• Iraqi official tells US investigators he did not meet Mohamed Atta in Prague
    12/13/2003

    A former Iraqi official has told United States investigators that he did not have a meeting in Prague with the suspected leader of the September 11 attacks, the New York Times reported on Saturday. Ahmad Khalil Samir al-Ani denied meeting Mohamed Atta in the Czech capital.

    Though Czech officials had initially said that the two men had met, the CIA and FBI eventually concluded that no such meeting took place. A possible connection between Iraq and the September attacks was a reason used by some conservatives in the US to justify invading Iraq earlier this year.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Man dies when train hits car on level crossing
    12/13/2003

    A man was killed near Jicin in central Bohemia on Saturday when his car was hit by a train at a level crossing at which there was no barrier. Another person was seriously injured in the collision, which is now being investigated by the police.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Chamber of Deputies launches campaign against pawn shops selling stolen goods
    12/13/2003

    The Chamber of Deputies has launched a campaign against pawn shops which deal in stolen goods, passing a bill on Friday under which shopkeepers would have to ascertain the identity of clients. The bill's proponents said there were 1,800 pawn shops in Prague alone, many of which were open around the clock.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Bill passed on building weirs on Elbe despite protests from environmentalists
    12/13/2003

    A bill was also passed on Friday allowing the building of two weirs on the Elbe River in north Bohemia, despite protests from the environment minister, Libor Ambrozek, and environmental groups. Mr Ambrozek said the building of the weirs would damage the eco-system in the areas in question and was in contravention of EU norms.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Czech PM Spidla in Brussels for talks on EU constitution
    12/12/2003

    The Czech prime minister, Vladimir Spidla, is in Brussels for a summit to decide the shape of the European Union's first constitution. Among the issues to be discussed are voting powers, the number of commissioners and national vetoes on foreign, defence and taxation policy. The Czech Republic is one of ten, mostly ex-communist countries set to join the EU next May, in what will be the biggest enlargement in the Union's history.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • MPs pass bill allowing Czech health workers to work in EU, vice versa
    12/12/2003

    Meanwhile, the Chamber of Deputies on Friday passed a bill allowing Czech nurses, midwives and other health workers to work in the European Union. The bill, which has to be approved by the Senate and signed by the president, also allows for health workers from other EU states to work in the Czech Republic.
    Author: Ian Willoughby

  • Klaus grants five pardons, does not specify details
    12/11/2003

    President Vaclav Klaus granted five presidential pardons on Wednesday, the first time he has done so since he first took office in March. President Klaus's spokesman said they were cases where suspended prison sentences had been imposed or applicants were suffering serious health conditions, or a combination of both. He would not specify any other details on Thursday. The Presidential Office says it has received some 900 pardon applications since March. Mr Klaus' predecessor Vaclav Havel was often criticised for dispensing controversial pardons. Mr Havel's office made public detailed information on every pardon dispensed. Mr Klaus said shortly after his election in late February that he would only grant pardons in exceptional cases.
    Author: Pavla Horáková

  • New law on domestic violence
    12/10/2003

    The Senate approved a bill on domestic violence on Wednesday that hopes to see offenders much more severely punished in the future. According to the new law, which should come into effect some time next year, offenders can receive prison sentences of up to eight years. The government and NGOs have made a concerted effort in past months to address the problem of domestic violence, helping victims to recognise the first signs and seek professional help as well as training police offers how to deal with the problem when they are called to the scene.
    Author: Dita Asiedu

  • Trade Unions criticise coal mine privatisation
    12/10/2003

    The Czech Confederation of Trade Unions (CMKOS) has called onto the government to stop the privatisation process of the Severoceske Doli coal mining company in North Bohemia. Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, the confederation's President Milan Stech said trade unions opposed the way the government had been conduction the public tender for the privatisation and view the process as damaging to future regional development and stable employment. He added that the country's biggest power utility CEZ should also not have been excluded from the sale. The government's privatisation of coal mines was criticised by the European Commission for similar reasons last month.
    Author: Dita Asiedu

  • Police break up prostitution gang
    12/10/2003

    Czech police say they have broken up a gang responsible for forcing Czech females into prostitution abroad. During a five-day operation named Espana, the police arrested several men who lured over twenty girls abroad under the pretence that they would make a fortune as dancers and singers in bars and clubs in Germany, Austria, and Spain. Upon their arrival in the foreign country, the girls were forced to sell their bodies and pose for pornographic photographs.
    Author: Dita Asiedu

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