President calls on Czechs to keep calm and support austerity measures in face of European debt crisis
President Václav Klaus’s traditional New Year’s address reflected key political events of the year, among them the death of his predecessor, Václav Havel. Moreover, Mr. Klaus warned of both false optimism and fear mongering in face of a possible recession in the eurozone. The Czech president said it was crucial to support additional cuts in government spending and emphasized that this was a time for the nation to tighten its belt.
Like other political leaders across the eurozone, Mr. Klaus, who is a vocal critic of European integration, also warned of the dangers the economy is facing in the coming 12 months. Going into 2012, the European Union is likely to encounter difficult challenges, he stressed.
“Unfortunately, it is possible that the problems in some countries will become even worse in the coming months. Europe may well be hit by a recession. That would also affect us. 2012 will most probably not be the easiest of years.”
However, Mr. Klaus added, the Czech Republic was doing relatively well despite toughening economic conditions. The country was not facing bankruptcy and its unemployment rate was below the European average. The president stressed the importance of members of the public gritting their teeth and not standing in the way of further far-reaching austerity measures.
“Our success requires reforms. I am aware that a lot of people here are rightfully weary of this term, which has been used carelessly for many years. Rather than being implemented, the necessary changes were merely talked about. But if we want to avoid very painful consequences, these changes have to be made as quickly as possible. This becomes evident if we look at our public debt. Four years ago, it was 345 billion Czech crowns. Today, this figure has more than quadrupled.”
Alluding to a series of scandals that shook the government coalition, Mr. Klaus slammed ceaseless political disputes, a lack of strong leaders and a increasing sense of mutual distrust that had dominated 2011 and blocked political growth. In the course of just one year, six ministries saw their leaders resign, among them such important portfolios as the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Transport. The resignation of that ministry’s leader, Vít Bárta, of the junior coalition partner Public Affairs, brought the reform government to the brink of collapse in June of last year.
