Topolánek makes first comments on press photographs of meetings in Italy

The leader of the Civic Democrats Mirek Topolánek has called on the Social Democrats and the party’s chairman Jiří Paroubek to stop using the methods of the StB, referring to Czechoslovakia’s communist era secret police. Mr Topolánek made the comments at a news conference in Prague on Friday that saw his first reaction to newspaper photographs of him meeting influential lobbyists and business people while on holiday in Italy. He did not give any direct evidence for the claims and Mr Paroubek later responded that unfounded accusations were also StB practice. The Social Democrats deny being behind the pictures.

As for those he was photographed with in Italy, including a lobbyist for the power giant ČEZ, the Civic Democrats leader said such meetings were merely coincidental, as Tuscany was “the new Špindlerův Mlýn”, a reference to a popular Czech ski resort. Mr Topolánek said he did not know who owned the villa he had stayed at and refused to provide receipts to show he had paid for the recent holiday.

Paparazzi-style photographs that appeared this week were provided to the media by a former head of the Czech civilian intelligence agency Karel Randák, who said he wanted to show how things were done in this country. Mr Randák, who the Civic Democrats say is close to the Social Democrats, was fired in 2006 when Mirek Topolánek was prime minister.