Press Review

Most of the main papers, with the exception of PRAVO, lead with the government's decision to increase the wages of civil servants. PRAVO, on the other hand, features the consequences of the professionalisation of the army on its front page and reports on the wage increase in a small article on its second page. On the international front, there is a mix of headlines ranging from the latest developments regarding the weapons inspections in Iraq to a case in Germany where a man confessed to having eaten human beings, adding he was not the only one in the country engaging in cannibalism.

On Monday, the Czech government decided to increase the salaries of some 850,000 government employees by an average of seven percent as of next year. This includes teachers and doctors, who are to enjoy the highest rise in their salaries, and also police, fire fighters, state officials, nurses, and priests. While MLADA FRONTA DNES, LIDOVE NOVINY and the business daily HOSPODARSKE NOVINY give concrete figures regarding the wage increases that are to be expected, they differ by several hundred Czech crowns.

All papers agree, however, that although those affected are naturally welcoming the wage increase, they are being given less than originally promised. Before the devastating floods in August, the government had planned to increase their wages by double the amount it is promising now. HOSPODARSKE NOVINY writes that trade union representatives remain skeptical and are convinced that the government will not go through with its plan.

Over one hundred towns and villages will suffer the consequences of the professionalisation of the Czech army, writes PRAVO. The pulling-out of units will affect the lives of many Czechs, it notes. The business market and shops will suffer losses and utilities such as the water rate and sewage charges will increase as the country's soldiers constituted a large number of customers, it quotes a mayor in south-west Bohemia as saying. Another mayor from the Moravian town of Frydek-Mistek tells the paper that she is also expecting an increase in unemployment as many of the town's civilians work for the army bases. Several town representatives throughout the country also express concern as the army has always been called in to help in crisis situations.

MLADA FRONTA DNES goes back to the days of communism, looking at what Czech dailies used to feature during Christmas. The papers were full of Communist propaganda which compared the good living conditions of a Soviet worker to the sad conditions of his capitalist counterpart. Papers used to give the example of the fictive worker Vasilij Tolmacov, who was certainly no Stakhanovite - a worker in the Soviet Union who regularly surpassed production quotas and was specially honoured and rewarded - and yet was able to buy his wife a fur coat, his children new skis and even tricycles that could be converted into bicycles, and furthermore fifteen books for himself. He still had money left over, a situation which capitalist factory workers admired.

And back to the present, LIDOVE NOVINY writes about a Czech government decision to approve a bill which is to reduce the abuse of the drug Rohypnol. Prescribed mainly for the short-term treatment of sleep disorders, Rohypnol is a tranquilliser like Valium but ten times more potent. With its increasing abuse by drug addicts, the bill proposes for it be prescribed with special prescriptions that involve stricter controls at pharmacies. The paper quotes Health Minister Marie Souckova as saying that the Czech Republic is criticised by international institutions as Czech drug smugglers often export Rohypnol abroad, where it is abused by drug addicts.

HOSPODARSKE NOVINY looks at some of the changes expected in the legal system as the Czech Republic prepares for membership in the European Union. A bill is currently being prepared which will enable Czech citizens to obtain a court decision within a legally specified term and sue judges for delaying cases. Judges are to be assisted by a clerk of the court and a higher court official. The Justice Ministry is also thinking of creating its own postal service system as Czech post offices deliver mail too late. All cases returned to the highest court are dated in order to facilitate the detection of how long they have been open. And last but not least, judges will have a list of cases that have been dragging on for too long and will be checked on by the Justice Ministry, HOSPODARSKE NOVINY reports.

PRAVO is the only paper to feature a photo and an article on the bad winter weather that hit the country at the start of the week. Monday's early morning snow - combined with thick fog and sleet - have resulted in tens of accidents, which have left two German nationals who were visiting the country dead, PRAVO writes.