Copyright (c) 2010 Radio Prague (Cesky Rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha)
News Monday, March 29th, 2010
By: Jan Richter
* The Czech prime minister has condemned Monday's attacks on the Moscow
underground.
* Human Rights and Minorities Minister Michael Kocab has stepped down a
week after the Greens withdrew support for the caretaker government.
* The European Commission will not support a Czech bid to make Canada
drop the visa requirement for Czech nationals.
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Czech PM condemns metro attacks in Moscow
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The Czech prime minister, Jan Fischer, has condemned Monday's attacks
in Moscow's metro. In a letter of condolence to his Russian
counterpart, Vladimir Putin, Mr Fischer said the two suicide bomb
attacks were "a deplorable act of hate". The Czech prime minister noted
that the government of the Czech Republic, its citizens as well as
himself personally condemn all terrorist acts as unacceptable.
The Czech embassy in Moscow said no Czech citizens were among the
victims of the attacks that killed at least 37 people at two metro
stations in the Russian capital on Monday morning. The Czech charge
d'affaires in Moscow said they were checking all available lists of
Czech nationals in Moscow, but no Czech victim had been reported.
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Human rights minister steps down
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Human Rights and Minorities Minister Michael Kocab stepped down on
Monday, a week after the Greens, who nominated him for the post,
withdrew support for the caretaker government. Mr Kocab said he did not
step down immediately to make sure his resignation would not trigger a
government crisis. The Green Party withdrew its support for the cabinet
after Environment Minister Jan Dusik, stepped down last week over
pressure concerning controversial plans to modernize a major Czech coal
power plant.
Mr Kocab, who announced his resignation on Friday, served as human
rights and minorities minister since January 2009. His major efforts
focused on improving the situation of Romanies as well as on equal
opportunities for gays and other minorities. Prime Minister Jan Fischer
said he would talk to the two strongest parties about the future of the
post; he might also take over Mr Kocab's agenda himself until May's
general elections.
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European Commission not to push for visa requirement for Canadian
diplomats
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The European Commission is for now not going to ask EU member states to
impose visas on EU-bound Canadian diplomats in a bid to make Ottawa
drop visas for Czech citizens, European Commissioner for Home Affairs
Celicia Malmstrom said on Monday.
The news comes as a disappointment for Czech officials who were hoping
that a summit of EU interior ministers would deal with the issue, and
eventually recommend EU member states to pressure Canada into dropping
the visa requirement for Czechs. Canada re-introduced visas for Czech
citizens last year over increasing numbers of Czechs who sought asylum
in that country. Earlier this month, a group of experts from the
European Commission, Canada and the Czech Republic met in Prague to
discuss the situation; Canadian officials said that Ottawa will
consider lifting the visa requirement for Czechs only after
streamlining its immigration system which might take years.
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Top NATO commander in Europe meets Czech chief of general staff over
Afghanistan
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NATO's Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, Admiral James Stavridis, met
the chief of Czech general staff, General Vlastimil Picek, on Monday to
discuss ways the Czech Republic can participate in the training of
Afghan security forces even if the Czech Parliament does not approve a
planned increase of Czech troops in that country. Admiral Stavridis
said NATO needed more Czech instructors to train the Afghan army and
police as part of NATO's ISAF mission. During his two-day visit to the
Czech Republic, Admiral Stavridis will also meet President Vaclav Klaus
and Prime Minister Jan Fischer.
The Czech Republic has over 500 soldiers serving in Afghanistan, while
this year the government is planning to send an additional 55 Czech
troops. However, these plans have been opposed by the left-wing
majority in Parliament.
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Central bank governor: health of public finances key to euro adoption
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The state of the Czech public finances is the factor in determining any
possible date for the adoption of the euro, Governor of the Czech
National Bank Oldrich Tuma said on Monday. Speaking at a conference on
euro adoption in Prague, Mt Tuma also suggested 2015 as the earliest
possible date the Czech Republic could adopt the common European
currency. According to the Finance Ministry, the Czech Republic failed
to fulfil two out of four criteria for euro adoption laid down in the
Maastricht treaty; it exceeded the 3 percent limit of the state budget
deficit, and it also failed to join the European exchange rate
mechanism ERM II.
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Government to provide 1.5 billion for investments in health care
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The Czech government agreed on Monday to provide 1.5 billion crowns, or
nearly 80 million US dollars, for strategic investment in health care,
Prime Minister Jan Fischer told a news conference in Prague on Monday.
Nine hospitals, including teaching hospitals in Prague, Brno, Olomouc
and Ostrava, are supposed to receive the earmarked funds after the deal
is agreed by the regions' governors in early April, Mr Fischer added.
The prime minister said the investment projects to be supported by the
government were "central priorities" and that some of them were
extremely urgent.
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Czech Republic and Syria sign social insurance agreement
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Czech Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Petr Simerka and his Syrian
counterpart, Diala El-Haj Aref, singed a social security agreement
between the two countries in Prague on Monday. The deal will grant
pensions to Czech nationals working in Syria and to Syrian citizens
working in the Czech Republic. The agreement provides for equal
treatment for nationals of both countries, adding up insurance periods,
pension payments in the other country and prevents double taxation. The
Czech-Syrian treaty is the first such agreement the Czech Republic has
with an Arab country, the ministry said, noting it will affect some 350
persons in each country.
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Central Bohemian hospitals file joint lawsuit against Health Ministry
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In related news, five hospitals run by the Central Bohemian Region
filed a joint lawsuit against the Czech Health Ministry on Monday over
the ministry's refusal to allow their transformation into a
non-for-profit holding. The region's governor, David Rath, told
reporters the hospitals have applied twice for permission to transform,
but were rejected each time on the grounds of procedural faults. Mr
Rath criticized the ministry for having failed to address the
applications, and said the lawsuit should force the ministry to act.
Meanwhile, the Czech Health Ministry rejected the criticism on Monday,
saying the applications lacked the necessary paperwork.
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Corruption watchdog files lawsuit against Prague district mayor
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The corruption watchdog Transparency International filed a lawsuit on
Monday against the controversial mayor of the Prague 5 district, Milan
Jancik, over contracts the town hall signed with debt recovery
agencies. Transparency International said the contracts were concluded
in breach of the law; the group also believes that contracts were
disadvantageous for the district of Prague 5 which lost several dozen
million crowns as a result. The police had already investigated the
contracts, but found no law was breached.
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Czechs among EU nations that least engage in sports
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Czechs are among EU nations that least engage in sports and other
physical activities, according to a survey by the Eurobarometer agency
released on Monday. With 37 percent of Czechs regularly doing exercise
or sports, the country ranked 20th out of the 27 EU nations in the
survey. The EU average is 39 percent. The list is topped by Swedes,
Finns and Danes; while Bulgarians and Greeks ranked lowest.
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Weather
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The coming days will be cloudy with occasional rain showers. Highest
day temperatures should range between 11 and 15 degrees Celsius.
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Articles posted on www.radio.cz today
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One on One
FAMU dean Pavel Jech: sometimes it's too easy to make a film here
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The Czech Film and Television Academy, or FAMU, has been educating
filmmakers for over 60 years. Among its students were such
personalities of Czech and international cinema as Milos Forman, Jiri
Menzel, Agneiszka Holland and Jan Sverak. In this edition of One on One
we talk to Pavel Jech, the dean of the famed film school. Pavel Jech
was born in Prague but grew up in the United States, where his parents
moved after 1968, when he was only two months old. After graduating in
history at Columbia University in New York, Pavel Jech returned to
Prague in 1990 where his life took a different turn.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/126426
Sports News
Sports News 3.29.2010
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In Sports News this Monday: there are upsets in the playoffs of ice
hockey's Extraliga, with the clubs who came first and second in the
regular season both exiting in the quarter-finals for the first time
ever; Sparta Prague pull ahead in the Czech soccer league with a 3:0
win over Brno; Vendula Frintova takes a top triathlon prize in
Australia; and former European footballer of the year Pavel Nedved
takes part in the Prague Half Marathon.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/126422
Current Affairs
Prague Photo Fair opens in Czech capital
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Monday night will see the opening of Prague Photo Fair. Until the end
of the week, the Manes Exhibition Hall will present a wide range of
photographers, galleries and art schools from Central Europe. For the
first time this year, the Prague Photo Fair is part of a larger event -
the Prague Photo Festival - that will be held simultaneously at twelve
venues in Prague. Tomas Hajek is the event coordinator:
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/126414
Current Affairs
Earth Hour sees Brno veiled in darkness, but in Prague lights blaze on
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Millions of people, institutions and town halls around the globe joined
forces in calling for action on climate change on Saturday evening by
switching off their lights for an hour. Launched just 3 years ago by
the World Wildlife Fund, Earth Hour is now observed by some 50 million
people in 35 states. Although in Prague lights blazed on, the country's
second biggest city Brno was veiled in darkness as were a number of
other locations such as Liberec, Telc, Trebon and Decin. Earlier today
we spoke to Vojtech Kotecky from the non-governmental organization
Friends of the Earth about Czech participation in Earth Hour.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/126413
Current Affairs
Human rights minister Michael Kocab steps down at Greens' request
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The Minister for Human Rights and Minorities Michael Kocab has resigned
- meeting a request by the Green Party which no longer intends to
support the country's caretaker government. The Greens decided to
withdraw from the cabinet entirely after its environment minister
stepped down over what they see as ineffective modernisation plans by
the CEZ power utility for a controversial coal-powered plant.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/126412
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