North Korean seamstresses receive pardons

President Vaclav Klaus has officially pardoned three North Korean seamstresses facing charges for theft earlier this year, bringing legal procedures against them to a halt. The incident with which the seamstresses were charged took place in April, when they allegedly assaulted a Czech TV cameraman filming outside the facility where they worked. The seamstresses were then charged with stealing material from the camera itself. The presidential office has said Mr Klaus decided in favour of halting legal procedures against the three as potential damages to the charged were greater than the damages in the incident, an estimated 20, 000 crowns.