Copyright (c) 2010 Radio Prague (Cesky Rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha)
News Sunday, July 18th, 2010
By: Jan Richter
* The Czech prime minister has expressed concern about a high number of
new government officials who came from a private security firm.
* The post-war Benes decrees, which legalized the expulsion of ethnic
Germans from Czechoslovakia, cannot be abolished, the foreign minister
has said.
* Storms, torrential rain and strong winds that hit the Czech Republic
over the weekend have swollen rivers and caused local flooding.
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PM Necas concerned about new government officials' record
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The Czech prime minister, Petr Necas, has expressed concern about the
high number of new ministry officials who came from the largest private
Czech security firm, ABL. The agency was until recently owned by
Transport Minister Vit Barta, a founder of Public Affairs, one of the
coalition parties of the centre-right cabinet. The Public Affairs party
now controls the ministries of interior, transport, education and
regional development; four deputy ministers had previously worked for
ABL. Mr Necas told Czech TV on Sunday the number of these officials was
unusual, but that his coalition partner, Public Affairs, assured him
that no conflict of interest would occur. The prime minister said he
would "vigorously intervene", should such a conflict appear.
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Budget supervisory body to be established by end of September
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In related news, Prime Minister Petr Necas told Czech TV on Sunday that
a new budget supervisory body would be established by the end of
September. The National Budget Council should have seven to eight
members, and will assess the impact of individual bills on the state
budget. Mr Necas said the new body would be non-political, and could
also include a representative of the opposition Social Democrats, an
idea rejected by Social Democrat leader Bohuslav Sobotka. Prime
Minister Necas also said he would revive the government's consulting
economic board, known as NERV, which was first set up last year by
former PM Mirek Topolanek.
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Foreign minister: Benes decrees cannot be abolished
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Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg told the Austrian daily Die
Presse on Sunday that the post-war Benes decrees, which legalized the
expulsion of around three million ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia,
could not be abolished. Mr Schwarzenberg admitted however the decrees
were a breach of human rights, but could not be lifted retroactively.
The Czech foreign minister also said it was not necessary for the Czech
Parliament to pass a resolution about the decrees as a symbol of
reconciliation but that the Czech society was engaged in a public
debate about sensitive issues in recent Czech history.
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Heavy storms cause local flooding
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Storms, torrential rain and strong winds that hit the Czech Republic
over the weekend have swollen rivers and caused local flooding across
the country. Some two thousand households in western Bohemia remain
without electricity supplies after falling trees broke transmission
lines. In southern Moravia, fire brigades pumped rainwater from some 50
houses. Heavy rain has swollen rivers in several places around the
country, with flood alerts declared in several parts of southern
Moravia, eastern Bohemia and other regions. Temperatures dropped by
around 10 degrees Celsius over the weekend.
A night storm interrupted the music festival Colours of Ostrava on
Saturday night when organizers turned off electricity for an hour for
safety reasons. The performance by the headliners, the Irish band The
Cranberries, was delayed by an hour, while the show of UK's Brendan
Perry was cancelled.
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Central bank: number of counterfeit banknotes doubles in first half of
2010
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The number of counterfeit banknotes intercepted by the Czech National
Bank doubled over the first six months of this year, according to a
report by the bank released on Sunday. The central bank intercepted
over 3660 counterfeit and altered banknotes, compared to around 1700
forged legal tenders intercepted in the same period last year. Most
counterfeit banknotes were Czech crowns, followed by the dollar and the
euro. The central bank also registered an increase in the number of
imitations that are used in advertising, as film props or for
instruction purposes.
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Report: Speeding in built-up areas most common traffic violation
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Speeding in built-up areas is the most common traffic violation by
Czech drivers, accounting for 25 percent of all traffic violations,
according to a report by the Czech Interior Ministry released on
Sunday. It is followed by disrespecting traffic signs and failure to
fasten seat belts or wear helmets. Other frequent violations include
driving without headlights on and making phone calls while driving.
Since July 2006, where a points system was introduced in the Czech
Republic, some 26,000 drivers lost their licences because of traffic
violations. Most drivers who scored 12 or more points are 21-years-old
and younger.
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Tennis stars Stepanek and Vadisova get married
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Czech tennis player Radek Stepanek, the world's number 29, married
former Czech player, Nicole Vaidisova in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague
on Saturday. Stepanek, who is 31, and Vadisova, 21, said they
originally planned to get married in Florida, where they live, but then
decided for Prague which they feel to be their real home. The Catholic
service, attended by several dozen guests including hockey star Jaromir
Jagr, Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech and others, was followed by a
wedding reception in Prague Castle gardens. The newlywed couple then
left for a brief honeymoon in Greece.
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Football: Champions Sparta lose to newcomers Hradec Kralove 2:1
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Defending champions Sparta Prague lost to newcomers Hradec Kralove in
the first round of the top Czech football division on Saturday.
Visitors Sparta conceded an early goal and only managed to equalize in
the 55th minute. The hosts Hradec Kralove were defending throughout
much of the second half but surprisingly took a 2:1 with half an hour
to go. The goal upset the title holders who were unable to come back;
the game was Sparta's first defeat in 15 months, and only third season
opening loss in 17 years.
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Tennis: Hungary's Agnes Szavay wins Prague's WTA event
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Agnes Szavay from Hunagry beat Czech Barbora Zahlavova-Strycova 6:2,
1:6 and 6:2 in the final of ECM Prague open to clinch her second WTA
title in a row. The eighth-seeded Czech played the first WTA final in
her career. After the game, the 24-year-old Zahlavova-Strycova said she
played great throughout the tournament, and that she was sorry she did
not do that well in the final.
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Weather
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The start of the week will be partly cloudy, with rain showers
particularly in the east of the country. Daytime highs should range
between 22 and 26 degrees Celsius.
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Articles posted on www.radio.cz today
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Letter from Prague
Heat wave
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One of the high points of my week was getting soaked to the skin on a
tram stop platform by a passing municipal truck sprinkling water to
keep the dust down. With the temperature at around 35 degrees Celsius,
the cool spray provided at least a brief relief from the mind-melting
heat.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/129869
Mailbox
Mailbox 7.18.2010
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This week in Mailbox: Czech farmers facing tough competition, the
quality of Radio Prague's internet broadcasts, a collapse of a road
tunnel construction in Prague, Radio Prague's special programme about
Jan Hus, a song featured on Radio Prague, the summer "emptiness" of
Prague. Listeners quoted: Lynda-Marie Hauptmann, David Eldridge, Victor
Mumba Ndzai, Carl Wolfe, Bill Hunt, Jaroslav B. Tusek.
http://www.radio.cz/en/article/129802
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