Copyright (c) 2010 Radio Prague (Cesky Rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha)
News Monday, March 15th, 2010
By: Sarah Borufka
* A Romany family in Ostrava has become the victim of a Molotov
cocktail attack.
* The Bavarian interior minister has said road checks in the
Czech-German border areas must continue in view of curbing crime.
* More than half of Prague's restaurants and bars are planning to ban
smoking on their premises starting July.
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Romany family becomes victim of arson attack
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A Molotov cocktail was thrown into the home of a Romany family in the
North Moravian town of Ostrava late on Saturday night, Czech TV
reported on Monday. The bottle landed in the bedroom of a 14 year old
girl who was able to extinguish the burning bottle before it caused
further damage. Nobody was injured in the attack. The perpetrators are
yet unknown, police are investigating the case as a threat to public
safety.
In April of last year, a Romany family in the Moravian town of Vitkov
was victim of a racially motivated arson attack. The family's
two-year-old daughter suffered severe burns and had to undergo numerous
operations before being released from the hospital in November.
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Bavarian crime statistics indicate record low
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The Bavarian interior minister, Joachim Hermann, said on Monday that
road checks in the Czech-German border areas must continue in view of
curbing crime. The minister said newly published crime statistics
indicate that Bavaria last year saw the lowest number of criminal acts
since 1992. Czechs were at the top of the statistics of incidents where
foreigners smuggled drugs into Bavaria. At the same time, car theft
along the border with the Czech Republic increased. Mr. Herrmann said
the key to success was in effective cross-border cooperation.
Increased controls of Czech drivers in Bavaria had lead the former
prime minister, Mirek Topolanek, to criticize the Bavarian and German
governments, stating that the controls constituted harassment and
should cease immediately.
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Over half of all Prague restaurants are planning to ban smoking on
premises
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Pavel Hlinka, the president of the Czech Association of Restaurants and
Hotels, said on Sunday that about fifty percent of Prague pubs and the
majority of upscale restaurants are planning to change into non-smoking
establishments as of July. Within a new law aiming to curb smoking in
public that takes effect on July 1, restaurants and bars will be
obliged to display stickers that indicate whether smoking is allowed on
their premises or not. Outside of Prague, the number of establishments
planning to ban smoking is significantly lower, Mr. Hlinka added.
Although the respective legislation was approved by Parliament last
summer, bar and restaurant owners were given a year to prepare for the
introduction of the new measure.
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Government approves proposal seeking to boost integration in Czech
schools
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On Monday, the government approved a proposal to open schools designed
to integrate socially disadvantaged and disabled children. The measure
is meant to address the lack of integration in the Czech school system
and seeks to facilitate co-education of disabled and healthy children,
as well as to include children from socially weak families, including
children of Romany origin. One of the possible ways of helping to
integrate these students would be to introduce a mandatory pre-school
year to help bring children's abilities to an elementary school level.
The proposal also seeks to increase the number of staff trained to
address the needs of disabled students and students who have a hard
time keeping up with the class.
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Government grants extraordinary funds to Ministry of Transport to
repair roads damaged by harsh weather conditions
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The government on Monday decided to grant extraordinary funds of 2.25
billion Czech crowns to the Ministry of Transport to help repair roads
and railways that were badly damaged by the harsh winter. The ministry
estimates damages to the tune of 6.5 billion crowns, which is about 4
billion more than the projected sum. After the Ministry of Finance had
refused to cover the difference, Gustav Slamecka, the minister of
transport, asked the government to cover part of the remaining funds
needed to repair Czech roads.
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Business Europe: Czech economy deals well with global financial crisis
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According to an assessment published by Business Europe, an EU
association of employers, the Czech Republic is one of the EU countries
that are successful in addressing the challenges posed by the global
financial crisis. Business Europe's assessment suggests that the Czech
Republic's economy is well on the way to catching up with the more
advanced EU states. In the area of export, the Czech Republic ranks
fourth amongst 29 countries that include EU member states as well as
Norway and Switzerland. Among the weak points of the Czech economy, the
assessment cited low productivity along with the cost of labor.
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Customs police uncover counterfeit goods worth 6 million Czech crowns
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On Saturday, customs officers in the Moravian town of Brno uncovered
counterfeit designer purses and clothes valued at about six million
Czech crowns, a police spokeswoman said on Monday. Officers uncovered
the fake designer goods during a routine inspection at a local market
where they discovered a retail stand that was unlocked and unattended.
After searching the stand, the police found a secret storage area
behind a mirror where the owners had hidden the counterfeit goods. The
find is one of this year's biggest. The stand's owners could face a
fine of up to five million crowns.
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Experts warn of avalanche risk in North Bohemian mountains
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The rescue service in the North Bohemian Krkonose mountains has issued
a high degree avalanche alert. After heavy snowfall over the weekend,
the risk was rated at level three on a five point scale. Skiers have
been warned not to stray from marked trails and to exercise caution.
Some skiing locations saw up to 50 centimeters of fresh snow over the
weekend and heavy winds are contributing to the danger. Avalanches
happen several times a year in the Krkonose mountains but rarely affect
populated areas or high-traffic skiing routes. The last victim of an
avalanche in the Krkonose mountains was a 36-year-old skier who died
after being buried by an avalanche in 2008.
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Immigration drops significantly in 2009
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Last year, the Czech Republic saw a growth in population of about
40,000, according to data published by the Czech Statistical Office on
Monday. The number of immigrants was seen to have dropped significantly
compared to the previous year, when 70,000 immigrants arrived in the
Czech Republic. Nonetheless, immigration was the main factor in
population growth in 2009. The number of births outweighed the number
of deaths by about 11,000. The data also confirmed the end of the baby
boom that the country saw between 1999 and 2009. Overall, more babies
are born out of wedlock, with a trend of motherhood later in life. The
average age at which Czech women became mothers in 2009 was 29, as
opposed to 27 in the previous year.
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Prague zoo sees birth of endangered tortoise
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Over the weekend, an Egyptian tortoise was born in Prague Zoo. The
Egyptian tortoise is among the most endangered species of tortoises
world wide. Prague Zoo has been breeding the animal for two years, the
newly born specimen is the zoo's fifteenth Egyptian tortoise. Only 4700
specimen are estimated to be living in the wild. The Egyptian Tortoise
is native to Libya and Israel.
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Weather
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The coming days will be cloudy, with snow in most places. In lower
altitudes, snow will turn into sleet or rain. Highest day temperatures
should range between 0 and +5 degrees Celsius.
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Articles posted on www.radio.cz today
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Sports News
Sports News 3.15.2010
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In Sports News: Czech downhill skiers clinch a sensational win in the
World Cup Nations Teams event in Garmisch-Partenkirchen; football's
Sparta eke out last-minute win against Mlada Boleslav; Baros scores in
his first game back for Galatasaray; in hockey, Slavia and Liberec
become the last two teams to reach the quarterfinals; Czech athletes
post disappointing results at World Indoor Athletics championships.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/125976
Current Affairs
One World film Mugabe and the White African documents one man's legal
battle against dictator
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Mugabe and the White African, which is being shown at the One World
festival of human rights documentaries in Prague, follows Michael
Campbell, one of the few white farmers left in Zimbabwe after years of
land seizures, as he takes the brutal regime of Robert Mugabe to court
at the Southern African Development Community (SADC). Campbell wins his
legal battle against the dictator, but at great cost to himself and his
family. I spoke to one of the directors of Mugabe and the White
African, Lucy Bailey.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/125973
Current Affairs
Gay grouping demands right to adopt children
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A gay association has called for the Czech legal landscape to be
redrawn allowing individual members of gay couples to be allowed to
adopt children. The demand is backed up by legal analysis and a 2,000
signature petition calling for action.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/125968
Current Affairs
Social Democrats generous with promises ahead of May's general elections
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The Social Democrats launched their campaign for May's general
elections with a bang over the weekend. At a conference in Teplice on
Saturday, they unveiled an ambitions programme, promising to put the
Czech Republic among the top ten countries of the EU.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/125967
One on One
Justin Quinn - A Prague-based poet, professor and translator
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The Irish poet Justin Quinn has been living in the Czech Republic for
close to two decades. His latest collection of poetry, "Waves and
Trees" has been translated into Czech, and he himself has also
translated the work of Czech poets, such as Petr Borkovec, into
English. I talked to Justin Quinn about translating poetry and how
living away from his native country has affected the poetry he writes.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/125966
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