Copyright (c) 2008 Radio Prague (Cesky Rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha)
News Wednesday, June 4th, 2008
By: Dominik Jun
* Civic Democrat MPs have threatened disciplinary proceedings against
Social Democrat Shadow Health Minister David Rath.
* The Croatian authorities have withdrawn a ban which prevented foreign
tourists from bringing meat and dairy products into the country.
* Prague loses 2016 Olympic bid.
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Civic Democrats threaten shadow Health Minister with disciplinary
proceedings
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Civic Democrat MPs have threatened disciplinary proceedings against
Social Democrat Shadow Health Minister David Rath. The threat comes as
a result of harsh language used by Dr Rath to describe his counterpart,
Health Minister Tomas Julinek. Whilst introducing a proposed bill that
would outlaw the privatization of hospitals, Dr Rath labeled Mr Julinek
as a "corrupt" figure, accusing him of taking bribes from the
pharmaceutical industry. The comments were made on the floor of the
Chamber of Deputies and were greeted by jeers from the ruling Civic
Democrats, who immediately announced that they would file disciplinary
proceedings against the Shadow Health Minister. The situation was only
calmed after the MPs went into a short recess.
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Czechs celebrate Croatian food import U-turn
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The Croatian authorities have done a u-turn on a ban which prevented
foreign tourists from bringing meat and dairy products into the
country. The ban, which will be lifted on July 1, had angered many
Czechs, who traditionally bring along their own food during travels to
both domestic and foreign locations. In fact, the ban was considered by
many Czechs as so outrageous, that it threatened to curtail their
holiday travels to that country. Croatia has been a popular holiday
destination for Czechs since communist times, due to its relative
proximity and seaside resorts. Last year, an estimated 800,000 Czechs
visited the country.
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Prague loses 2016 Olympic bid
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The International Olympic Committee has failed to put Prague on a
shortlist of candidates for the 2016 Olympic Games - this puts an
official end to Prague's official bid. The controversial proposal had
ceased to become realistic in recent months, with the slow downscaling
of financing to promote the Games in Prague. Meanwhile, the bid also
received much criticism from within the country, with many noting that
Prague was simply to small a city to host such a seismic global event.
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High court rules that the Milada Horakova case has not exceeded statute
of limitations
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The Czech High Court has ruled that the case of Milada Horakova, who
was executed by the communist regime in 1950 has not expired due to a
statute of limitations. This ruling specifically revives a possible
criminal case which could be brought against Ludmila Brozova-Polednova,
a procurator in the case, and today an elderly woman in her eighties.
The controversy around Ludmila Brozova-Polednova has continued for a
number of months as authorities argue over her role and whether she can
be prosecuted for her alleged direct involvement in the death of the
Czechoslovak anti-communist dissident Milada Horakova, who was executed
after a notorious Stalinist show-trial. The current High Court Ruling
means that the Prague High Court must again assess the case.
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OECD warns of economic slowdown
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The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has
warned that the Czech economy may face a slowdown due to high levels of
inflation. The country has enjoyed roughly 6 percent GDP growth for
three years, and the OECD predicts that in 2008, the rate will be a
lower 4.5 percent.
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Czech crown reaches a fresh record against Euro
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The Czech crown has broken yet another record in trading against the
Euro. On Wednesday morning, the Czech currency reached 24.63 crowns to
the Euro and 15,96 crowns against the dollar. However, analysts were
uncertain as to what exactly had caused the currency to rally so
strongly, especially in light of the fact that surrounding countries
tended towards a slight weakening of their currencies. In recent
months, the crown has consistently broken records against the Euro,
although most analysts expect that it will stabilize by the end of the
year.
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Authorities find wide-scale abuse at Czech pig-farm
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Authorities have unveiled what they describe as appalling conditions at
a pig-farm close to the town of Jihlava. The farm contained 237 dead
pigs, with another 115 in a severely deteriorating condition.
Apparently, the pigs had not been provided with food or water for
months, and had been forced to resort to cannibalism in order to
survive. The farmer at the site has defended his farm saying that his
pigs had fallen ill and that he was unable to afford a vet. The
authorities in the region have stated that this is the worst case of
animal abuse they have seen in 35 years.
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Beekeepers report severe losses
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Czech beekeepers have reported that they lost more than a third of
their bees over the winter. They estimate the damage will run into more
than one hundred million crowns and have called the losses a
"catastrophe." The losses are reportedly down to a warm winter, which
allowed a species of mite to decimate bee stocks. Beekeepers have asked
the government for assistance, and it has promised 25 million crowns to
renew the colonies. However, beekeepers have warned that the new
colonies will not be fully established until the following year. Due to
large stocks, honey prices are not expected to climb at present.
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Czechs prefer their own products
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A new survey by the STEM polling agency suggests that most Czechs
prefer buying homemade goods rather than foreign ones. According to
figures published by STEM, 69 percent of Czechs make a point of seeking
out Czech-made goods when shopping. 57 percent of Czechs also prefer
Czechs brands to foreign ones. However, the figures also reveal that
Czech goods are embraced for their perceived low prices rather than
their quality. According to the survey, another, more positive
perception among Czechs is that their own goods carry a greater
tradition and are made by Czech hands, whereas foreign goods do not
carry such associations.
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Strong storms cause damage
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Overnight storms on Tuesday caused minor damage and flooding across the
country. Northern Bohemia suffered the most with many people reporting
flooded basements and there was even a case of a house catching fire
from a lighting strike. In other parts of the country, trees were
reportedly uprooted by strong winds.
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Weather
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Showers and some stronger storms are expected to continue until later
in the week, with temperatures remaining in the low twenties.
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Articles posted on www.radio.cz today
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Current Affairs
US anti-military activist follows Czech No to Bases leaders on hunger
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Plans to build a US radar base in the Czech Republic have been in the
news lately, after a protest hunger strike undertaken by two members of
a group called No to Bases. Jan Tamas and Jan Bednar, who started
eating solid food again on Monday, are now being replaced by various
public figures on short symbolic fasts. Their influence has also spread
outside the Czech Republic, inspiring Bruce Gagnon, an activist with
the US-based Global Network against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space;
Mr Gagnon has not eaten for a week and a half - on the phone from his
home in Maine he told me why he was on hunger strike.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/104759
Current Affairs
Czech farmers join German protests against low milk prices
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Czech farmers have started pouring away thousands of litres of milk
which could not be delivered to German diaries, picketed by local
farmers protesting against low milk prices. In support of the protest,
farmers across the country will also cut down milk supplies to Czech
processing diaries by 10 percent.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/104758
Current Affairs
Outlook bleak for centre-right coalition amid Tlusty rebellion over
church law
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When Mirek Topolanek's centre-right coalition government came to power
in January 2007, it held the slimmest majority - two seats - in
parliament, and has survived pretty much on a knife-edge ever since.
But this week it seems to have lost even that wafer-thin majority
thanks to a rebellion in Mr Topolanek's Civic Democratic Party over the
restitution of church property. Now, newspaper commentators are
predicting the government's inevitable demise.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/104757
Czechs Today
Martin Rajnis - from '70s high tech to a building "for an ice queen" on
Snezka
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Martin Rajnis is a renowned Czech architect, who along with Johhny
Eisler and Miroslav Masak, authored the famous Maj building (now Tesco)
in the centre of Prague. Designed in the high tech style Maj was one of
Czechoslovakia's first department stores and is now a cultural heritage
site. But that is only one of the architect's achievements: in the
1990s after the fall of Communism, he was involved in the extensive
redesigning of the area around Andel in Prague's Smichov district.
Since, the architect has also concentrated more and more on designs
using natural materials - especially wood - in newer projects,
including an acclaimed building on the Czech Republic's highest peak,
Snezka.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/104751
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