News

The Czech romany civic association Romea has filed a criminal complaint against independent senator Liana Janackova for apparently racist remarks she made about Romanies. The senator, who is also mayor of a district of the city of Ostrava, was recorded on tape saying she was against Roma integration in the area. Ms Janackova has since apologised for her remarks but has rejected calls for her to resign from her post as deputy chairwoman of the Senate committee for human rights

Czech police have reported a slight drop of around two percent in the crime rate in Prague in the first six months of this year. According to police figures released on Wednesday, 44,295 crimes have been reeported since January, a drop of 827 compared to the same period last year. It is the fourth year in a row that crime rates have fallen in the Czech capital, which accounts for one quarter of all criminal offences committed in the country. The most common crimes in Prague are car thefts and pick-pocketing while 23 people have been murdered in the city since the start of the year.

The website of the Czech daily Mlada fronta Dnes has quoted the head of the E.ON power company Wulf Bernotat as saying that his organisation are going to build a brown-coal-fired power plant in conjunction with Czech coalmining giant Mostecka uhelna. According to Mlada fronta Dnes, talks between the two companies on the plant should be concluded in a few months and that it will involve an investment of 56.5 billion Czech crowns or 2.7 billion US dollars.

A new opinion poll conducted in June by the Mori agency indicates that the Civic Democrats still lead nearest rivals the Social Democrats, but that both parties have lost more than five percent of their support since May. According to the poll, if elections were held tomorrow, the Civic Democrats would get 33 percent of the vote while the Social Democrats would get 22 percent. The Greens were the third most popular party in the poll with eight percent support followed by the Communists on five percent.