News

Three baby giraffes have died in a stampede as a result of a massive power failure in eastern Bohemia. A spokesperson for the Hradec Kralove Zoo said that the sudden blaze of lights when power was restored threw the animals into a panic and the baby giraffes were trampled in the stampede. The zoo is said to have sustained 400, 000 crowns in damages as a result of the black out. The power cut in eastern Bohemia affected some 180,000 homes and is said to have been the worst in 15 years.

President Vaclav Klaus has said that finding an agreement between the Czech political parties on the formation of a new government will be tough. Speaking after a meeting with the leadership of the Social Democrats on Wednesday, President Klaus said he had learned the party's goals and priorities. He said that the different parties' views were like the pieces of a puzzle and he was trying to put the puzzle together. Previously, Mr Klaus received representatives of the Civic and Christian Democrats, and he will end the series of consultations with meetings with the Communists and the Greens.

The chairwoman of the Independent Candidates-European Democrats party Jana Hybaskova has provided a state attorney's office with the names of people who allegedly demanded a bribe from her party in exchange for the payment of a state subsidy to which the party is entitled, Ms Hybaskova said on Wednesday. However she did not disclose the names to journalists, saying that it would frustrate the investigation. The small party's representatives said previously that they were addressed by certain persons who said that the subsidy would be immediately paid if the party set aside 3 million crowns out of the 15 million for the mediator.

The SNK-ED demands a subsidy for its successful performance in the 2002 local elections in Prague. Previously, the Finance Ministry refused to pay the subsidy, saying that the SNK-ED had entered the elections as an alliance of a political party and independent candidates, while only parties and movements are eligible for the subsidy. The courts, however, have not supported the ministry's stand so far. The SNK-ED, claiming some 15 million crowns in compensation, has turned to the Constitutional Court. The party also filed a complaint against former Social Democrat finance minister Bohuslav Sobotka, but police shelved it.

The government has said it wants to see the number of abused children and children in institutional care reduced. On Wednesday, it approved a plan by the Social Affairs Ministry which proposes to boost cooperation between state bodies, NGOs and the public to fight child abuse. According to a report published by the ministry, some 7,500 new cases of child abuse were reported last year and the number has been increasing. Some 20,000 children are in institutional care in the Czech Republic, a fact regularly criticised by NGOs both in the country and abroad.