Daily news summary
All travellers arriving at Czech airports will be screened for ebola symptoms
All passengers arriving at airports in Prague, Brno, Pardubice and Karlovy Vary will be screened for the symptoms of ebola, the country’s National Security Council has ruled. The move should lead to gaining more information about travellers to allow the health authorities to quickly identify high-risk individuals. All travellers will be asked to fill in cards prior to their arrival, stating where they have been in the last 42 days; foreign nationals will also report their destination within the Czech Republic. Any passenger who has visited a country in equatorial Africa will have their temperature measured at the airport. The council also decided to activate an army health care facility to serve as a reserve hospital for patients with ebola. The Czech authorities have registered several suspected ebola cases which have all tested negative for the infection disease. The screenings are set to start on October 21.
EC calls on Czech Republic to change visa appeal procedure
The European Commission has urged the Czech Republic, along with Estonia, Slovakia and Poland, to provide effective judicial remedy against a visa refusal, annulment or revocation for third-country nationals. The EC argued that according to the Visa Code Regulation, the EU member states are required to provide for a right to appeal against a visa refusal, while the laws in the Czech Republic only enable an appeal before non-judicial administrative authorities. Czech authorities now have two months to take the necessary measures to comply with the Commission’s request.
BBC: Czech health workers spark diplomatic row with Ghana
Ghana wants to lodge a formal complaint over the steps taken by Czech authorities in case of a student from Ghana suspected of having Ebola, the BBC News website wrote on Thursday. The student from Ghana with reported cold symptoms failed to wait for health clearance at Prague’s international airport on Monday. The police and health authorities stopped him at the main railway station and covered him in black plastic, before rushing him to hospital. Ghana’s envoy to Prague told the BBC that the student, who was released shortly afterwards, had been left traumatised by the experience. According to the spokeswoman for the Czech Foreign Ministry, they have not received any complaint so far.
Munitions depot destroyed by explosion, two people reported missing
Two people have been reported missing following an explosion at a munitions depot in the village of Vrbětice in South Moravia on Thursday. The explosion was caused by a fire which broke out at around 10 A.M. Ten fire units, along with military police, are fighting the blaze, using a helicopter to monitor the situation. Hundreds of people were evacuated from companies and a school situated in the vicinity of the depot.
Czech cabinet set to visit Israel in November
The Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka along with other members of the cabinet will visit Israel to meet with their counterparts in November, the office of the government reported on Thursday. Among the topics on the agenda will be economic cooperation, security issues and collaboration in the areas of science, research and culture. The last meeting of the Czech and Israeli governments took place in May 2012.
Foreign ministry defends Czech ambassador to Ukraine
The Czech Foreign Ministry insists that the Czech Embassy in Kiev is not neglecting its duties regarding the situation of ethnic Czechs in Ukraine, the ministry’s spokesperson Johana Grohová said on Thursday. The announcement came in reaction to criticism from President Miloš Zeman, who accused Czech ambassador Ivan Počuch of inaction with regard to the demands of ethnic Czechs for repatriation. President Zeman on Wednesday said he would demand the ambassador’s resignation if it turned out that he did not provide truthful information concerning the Volynhia Czechs.
Petition calls lawmakers to amend bill on child care
The Association of Forest Kindergartens has organized a petition calling on lawmakers to amend a bill on child care. The Children Groups Act, which would discontinue the existence of outdoor nurseries known as forest kindergartens, was vetoed by President Miloš Zeman last week. The bill requires child care groups to register and meet strict hygiene rules, which would lead to the closure of 120 forest kindergartens across the country. The lower house can either outvote the presidents’ veto or amend the bill.
80,000 elderly Czechs looked after by their families
Some 80,000 elderly Czechs are being cared for by their families, mainly women, according to the results of a study presented by the Institute of Sociological Studies at Charles University on Thursday. The average Czech family dedicates 41 hours a week to care for an aging relative. The result were presented at a launch of a campaign Generace uprostřed, Generation in the Middle, organised by the charity Život 90, which focuses on the generation which is both raising children and caring for a parent. Statistics indicate that by the year 2030, the number of older Czechs requiring full-time care will rise up to 145,000.
Number of Czech dollar millionaires up by eight percent
The number of Czech dollar millionaires in the Czech Republic increased by nearly eight percent in 2013 to reach a record 19,400 people, according to the firm Capgemini and RBC Wealth management. The number of dollar millionaires around the world went up by 15 percent to 13.7 million.
Football: both Czech sides eliminated from women’s Champions League
Sparta Prague drew 1:1 against Lithuania’s Gintra Universitetas in the second leg of their group stage tie in UEFA’s women Champions League in Prague on Wednesday night. With the first leg having ended in a 2-2 draw, the tie went to penalty shootouts which Sparta lost 5:4, and were eliminated from the competition. Slavia Prague, meanwhile, have also been knocked out after they lost to FC Barcelona 3:0 in Spain on Wednesday, losing 4:0 on aggregate.
