Press Review

All the Czech newspapers today ponder the upcoming parliamentary debate on the state budget for next year, and feature a photo of Hana Marvanova, the 'enfant terrible' of the government coalition, who caused a government crisis a couple of months ago.

The business daily HOSPODARSKE NOVINY writes that the government has a pretty good chance of passing the draft budget through the lower house even with its planned deficit of more that 110 billion crowns, which is a thorn in the flesh of the opposition Civic Democrats and the Communists.

Mrs. Marvanova, who also has reservations against the proposed budget, promised to walk out of the house when the vote is on. Although the government coalition will lose her vote, it will still have a slim majority of 100 votes against 99.

More and more pedestrians die on zebra crossings, writes MLADA FRONTA DNES. It reports on an accident in the small town of Mala Skala on Thursday, when a mother and her little daughter heading for school were run over by two cars when they were crossing the road. The mother died on the spot, the little girl is fighting for life in hospital.

Police statistics have confirmed the fact that zebra crossings are in no way a guarantee of pedestrians' security. Paradoxically, with the introduction of stricter regulations for drivers to give way to pedestrians, in effect since January 2001, the number of people killed on pedestrian crossings grew four times. Although it is a well-known fact that drivers ignore pedestrians' rights, the transport police say they do not have strong enough powers to punish them, writes the paper.

PRAVO carries a story on Roma children who have come back from Britain after their families were denied asylum there. The paper writes that there are several cases of Roma children who start attending school at the age of 10 or more.

Although their parents claim they did attend school in Britain, it shows that the children only attended lessons of English linked with practical advice on how to live in a new environment, organized for immigrants by various church associations in Britain.

In the Czech Republic the rule is that a child must start school in the first grade. Psychologists say it's only good for the Roma children, because they would never be able to catch up with fourth-graders, if it was their very first year at school.

And finally, LIDOVE NOVINY informs its readers about the result of a research on corruption carried out by the Open Society Institute in Brussels in the Czech Republic. The result has shown that corruption in the Czech Republic exists even during the creation of new laws.

The paper quotes the author of the final report, Quentin Reed, as saying that although the Czech government has introduced a national anti-corruption policy, the legislation process in the Czech Republic is under the strong influence of uncontrolled lobbying.