Daily news summary
75th anniversary of Lidice atrocity commemorated
Hundreds of people attended events in Lidice on Saturday marking the 75th anniversary of the village’s destruction and the 70th anniversary of its rebuilding. The Nazis razed the small Central Bohemian village to the ground and killed over 300 of its inhabitants on June 10, 1942 in one of the worst atrocities in the country’s modern history. Among those who took part in a commemoration ceremony in Lidice on Saturday morning were the bishop of Plzeň, Tomáš Holub, the minister of culture, Daniel Herman, the chairman of the Union of Freedom Fighters, Jaroslav Vodička, and the deputy speaker of the Senate, Miluše Horská. The traditional Light for Lidice gathering of children’s choirs took place in the afternoon.
Zeman opens Czech pavilion at Expo in Astana
The Czech president, Miloš Zeman, has opened the country’s pavilion at the Expo 2017 in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan. The pavilion at the world’s fair is showing Czech inventions related to the event’s central themes, energy of the future and the reduction of harmful emissions. Mr. Zeman thanked former industry minister Jan Mládek for getting behind Czech participation in the Expo, which will cost around CZK 90 million. The fair was officially opened on Friday evening and is set to continue until September 10.
Sobotka to meet top Japanese officials on visit later this month
Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka is set to meet his counterpart, Shinzo Abe, during a five-day visit to Japan at the end of June, the Czech news Agency reported. Mr. Sobotka will also meet the speaker of the lower house of the Japanese Parliament, Tamadori Oshima, and Crown Prince Naruhito. He will be accompanied by a delegation that includes other members of the Czech cabinet and business people on a trip marking the 60th anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic ties between the two states.
Govt report: 68,500 people homeless in Czech Republic
There are around 68,500 homeless people in the Czech Republic, according to a report that the government is due to discuss on Wednesday, the Czech News Agency reported. Another almost 120,000 adults and children live in unstable or unsuitable accommodation, the study says. Just under a quarter of the country’s homeless are women, almost 12 percent are under 18 and over 10 percent are aged 65 or more. Debt, alcohol addiction and unemployment are cited as the main causes of homelessness.
Valachová remaining as minister longer than originally planned
The Social Democrats Kateřina Valachová, who was due to step down on Saturday, will remain Czech minister of education, youth and sports for now, Czech Radio reported. President Miloš Zeman had given her until June 10 to reconsider her decision to resign following the charging of her deputy with large-scale corruption. Though she has not changed her mind, the president is set to go on a regional tour on Sunday and will not officially accept her resignation until he returns on Wednesday. She will be replaced by Stanislav Štech, who has hitherto been a deputy education minister.
Rest of June likely to be warm but cool start to school holidays due
The Czech Republic should continue to enjoy warm weather in the coming weeks but the start of July will see cooler than average weather for the time of year, according to a regularly monthly forecast issued on Saturday by the Czech Hydro-Meteorological Institute. From now until the end of June, daytime highs should reach up to 25 degrees Celsius, though forecasters say warmer weather is also a possibility. However, the start of the school holidays next month is likely to be accompanied by lower temperatures and higher than average rainfall.
Weather forecast
Sunday should see sunny spells and some rain in the Czech Republic. Temperatures are expected to reach up to 26 degrees Celsius. Daytime highs of up to 28 degrees Celsius and some storms are due on Monday.
