News

Some 20 members and followers of the Czech extreme right National Corporativism group staged a demonstration on Saturday afternoon at the Moravian town of Holesov. The group marched from the railway station to the local square, being shadowed by anti-fascist supporters, but no violence was reported. The event was monitored by the police.

Czech breweries produced a record 9.92 million hectolitres of beer in the first half of 2007 due to heavy demand caused by warm weather and strong exports. The Czech Beer and Malt Association made the announcement on Friday, saying the 3.9 percent rise in production has put producers on course to beat last year's total output, potentially the best performance since the Czech Republic and Slovakia split in 1993. In the first six months of 2007, Czechs drank 8.15 million hectolitres, a 3.8 percent increase in consumption compared to the same period last year, while sales abroad rose 4.2 percent. Domestic production is dominated by three brands: the Inbev-owned Staropramen, the SAB Miller-owned Plzensky Prazdroj, and the state-owned Budejovicky Budvar.

The country's largest opposition party, the Social Democrats, have redoubled criticism of the centre-right government, saying the cabinet was "incapable of communicating with the opposition and even its own MPs". The deputy head of the lower house, Lubomir Zaoralek, pointed to the case of Christian Democrat MP Ludvik Hovorka, who was the only ruling party MP to vote against the government's fiscal reforms earlier this week. Social Democrat leader Jiri Paroubek, meanwhile, stated at a press conference on Friday his view that the coalition government - made up of the Civic Democrats, the Christian Democrats and the Greens - would suffer increasing "strain" in the coming months, both over the state budget and in the choice of candidates in the upcoming presidential election.

In related news, mayors from localities near the Brdy military grounds have formed an association of towns and villages opposed to the deployment of a US radar base to the Czech Republic. If the Czech Republic and the US find agreement in negotiations the radar base - part of a broader US defense system - could be stationed at the Brdy military zone near Misov, west Bohemia, some 90 kilometres southwest of Prague. The mayors' association is to negotiate with the government and its constituent document was signed by 31 of 34 municipal representatives, 27 of whom are from Central Bohemia. Only the mayors of Strasice, Hradek and Spalene Porici, all West Bohemia, declined to join.

Some of the mayors have admitted that a meeting with government coordinator for defence policy, Tomas Klvana, this week divided mayors in the Brdy area. It has been suggested that a recent 200-page report issued by the government, ruling out health risks from the radar (provided safety zone requirements are respected) has had a positive impact.