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Carolina (English) No 287
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STUDENTS' E-MAIL NEWS FROM CZECH REPUBLIC
Faculty of Social Science of Charles University
Smetanovo nabr. 6
110 01 Prague 1
Czech Republic
e-mail: CAROLINA@cuni.cz
tel: (+4202) 24810804, ext. 252, fax: (+4202) 24810987
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
C A R O L I N A No 287, Thursday, April 30, 1998.
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (April 22- April 29)
Vaclav Havel Will Be Back Soon (and Live Long)
The condition of Czech President Vaclav Havel improved in spite of
a series of small, non-life-threatening surgical procedures. The day
after the president was taken off from a respiratory machine, April 23,
the medical team applied a tracheotomy (an artificial opening below the
throat) to enable independent breathing and to remove the plastic pipe
from his throat which was causing painful irritation. Deep stitches from
Havel's abdomen were removed April 28.
Havel has been hospitalized in Innsbruck since April 14, the day of
the emergency surgery on his perforated colon. According to medical
reports, Havel had no fever April 30, he was ready to swallow both
liquids and solid food and to start physical therapy. Chief surgeon
Ernest Bodner said he expects Havel may return to Prague at the end of
the week, the exact date of the transport is to be set May 1.
Nonetheless, Bodner recommends not to hurry because of Havel's
restlessness.
If the popular superstition that anybody who was erroneously
reported to be dead will live a long time comes true, Havel's future is
going to be bright. A news story about the death of the president leaked
out from the database of the Czech press agency CTK for half an hour.
Due to a technical error, Havel's profile, led by news of his death
dated April 14, slipped from the stand-by position into the part of the
database accessible to some of CTK's subscribers. No one passed on the
news to the public.
Jana Ciglerova/Milan Smid
Tosovsky Meets Santer and Solana in Brussels
European Commission Chairman Jacques Santer agreed April 28 in
Brussels with Czech Prime Minister Josef Tosovsky that the Czech
Republic would from June repeal its quotas on apples imported from EU
countries. According to the daily Pravo, Santer voiced his request for
consolidating state administration and justice in the Czech Republic
before its entry into EU. The European Commission also advised the
Czechs to enact stricter supervision over the banking and insurance
sectors and the capital market. On the other hand, Santer complimented
efforts at a macroeconomic recovery and the Czechs' approach to the EU.
Tosovsky assured Santer that privatization would continue after the
early elections.
During their short meeting, Tosovsky acquainted NATO Secretary
General Javier Solana with the positive result of the Czech
Parliament's vote on Czech NATO membership and the individual
legislative steps necessary for membership which have already been
taken.
Erik Tabery/Denisa Vitkova
Holocaust Day
According to the Jewish calendar, April 23 was the Yom HaShoa
- Holocaust Day. A ceremony in the memory of Holocaust victims took
place at the Pinkas Synagogue in Prague. During the memorial meeting,
led by the chief Czech rabbi Ephraim Karol Sidon and the high cantor of
the Jewish Community Viktor Feuerlicht, candles were lit in memory of
the 6 million Jews killed in the Holocaust. During the afternoon hours
a similar ceremony took place at the Jewish cemetery at the former
Theresienstadt (Terezin) camp, where the names of the hundreds of
victims of the crematorium were read. The aim of this tradition, which
began eight years ago, is to read gradually the names of all 35,000
Theresienstadt victims.
Czech daily Lidove noviny April 24 published a poll taken for them
by the Median agency which found that 3.7 per cent of respondents
consider the Holocaust an invention and 11.3 per cent believe the number
of 6 million victims to be exaggerated.
Chairman of the Jewish Community Federation in the Czech Republic
Jan Munk said, in connection with the continuing attacks against
Romanies (Gypsies), that the Jewish minority also feels endangered by
the growing racist mood. He also appealed to the Czech government to
take a more active role in the case of the extradition from Germany of
war criminal Anthon Malloth, a guard at Theresienstadt.
Jakub Svab/Ajla Zinhasovic
Human Rights Report Critical of Czech Republic
The Czech Helsinki Committee published April 21 its 1997 annual
report, according to which the Czech Republic did not pay appropriate
attention to the observance of human rights, namely in respect to
legislation against racism and the sloppy approach to the prosecution of
racially motivated crime.
Minister Vladimir Mlynar, responsible for ethnic and minority
affairs, declared his basic acceptance of the report, in that Romany
unemployment data are correct, he said. Mlynar is going to present in
six weeks at the Cabinet meeting a program encouraging Romany
employment. According to the Czech media, the program assumes that up to
5 per cent of the contracts commissioned by the state should be awarded
to Romany companies, on the condition that these companies would posses
the approval of the Inter-ministerial Commission for Romany Affairs.
Mlynar said he disagrees with the report on its critical stance
toward Czech observance of the International Treaty on the Elimination
of All Forms of Racism. He said the Czech Republic's attitude toward the
issue is far from perfect, but other countries' situations are not
ideal, either.
Tomas Mls/Milan Smid
Black Week for Czech Railways
Two minutes before 2 p.m. April 28 two passenger trains collided
head-on in Stritez near Jihlava. It is not known yet who caused the
disaster in which 27 people were injured, eight of those seriously. This
crash was the fourth railway accident during the past week.
Seven days earlier in Brno, a cargo train derailed; two gas tanks
overturned, and gasoline leaked into the area. On April 24 a brakeless
express passenger train with one passenger and no crew left the station
in Brno. The train was stopped in Skalice nad Svitavou using a special
derailing machinery after a 40-kilometer ride. A few hours later, in
Morkovice near Kromeriz, more than 200 standing cars of cargo started
into motion; 30 fell into a field. There were approximately 700 unused
wagons were left standing on an unused regional line, and the presumed
cause of the accident was the removal of their brakes by an unknown
person.
Jaroslav Mares/Denisa Vitkova
NEWS IN BRIEF
* Prime Minister Josef Tosovsky promised to meet representatives of
the 10 largest unions of state administration employees May 19, after
the previously scheduled meeting was cancelled because of the state
employees' demonstration in front of the Office of the Government April
7 (see Carolina 285).
* The Senate, the upper chamber of the Czech Parliament, approved the
new Higher Education Act passed already by the Chamber of Deputies. The
Senate did not try to incorporate into the bill any provisions
concerning mandatory tuition, rejected by the lower chamber of of the
Czech Parliament. The act, which will go into effect January 1, will
allow for the establishment.
* Only a few politicians observed Earth Day in the Czech Republic. One
of the few was Environment Minister Martin Bursik, who came to his
office April 22 on his mountain bike, instead of in his government limo.
* Petr Studenovsky, former head of the news department at the public
Czech Television, became the new Cabinet spokesman April 22. Minister
Vladimir Mlynar left the position after joining Jan Ruml's new party the
Freedom Union.
* Two policemen participating in a raid on organized crime suspects in
Prague's Zizkov area were gunned down in an apartment house when
a member of the gang alerted by mobile phone attacked two armed
plainclothes policemen from behind in the corridor of the house. One
policeman was killed, the second managed to escape after being shot in
the leg. The gang is allegedly involved in auto theft and blackmail.
* Jiri Payne, Civic Democratic Party (ODS) deputy in Parliament,
caused an automobile accident April 22 which resulted in serious injury
to his daughter Rachel, 11, and the driver of the second vehicle. The
head-on crash with an ambulance happened at a crossing in the village of
Svetice, east of Prague, when Payne did not yield to the ambulance,
which had the right-of-way.
* Eighteen-year-old Katerina Stocesova from Podlesi near Pribram won
the jubilee 10th-annual Miss Czech Republic pageant April 25 in Ostrava.
Stocesova attends a botanical high school, has blond hair and is 177
centimeters/5' 9" tall. Two Prague brunettes finished behind Stocesova
- Alena Seredova and Petra Faltynova.
Ondrej Hanzal, Karolina Kucerova/Milan Smid, Mirek Langer
FROM SLOVAKIA
Vladimir Meciar Elected HZDS Chairman Again
The 7th Republican Congress of the ruling Movement for a Democratic
Slovakia (HZDS) took place in Kosice April 25-26, where Premier Vladimir
Meciar was re-elected to the position of chairman. Augustyn Marian
Huska, Sergej Kozlik and Milan Topoli were elected vice chairmen.
A fourth vice chairman was not elected. Expectations that the Slovak
ambassador to the Czech Republic Ivan Mjartan would be elected vice
chairman were not fulfilled.
During his speech Meciar, who has led HZDS for seven years,
estimated that his party has to win more than 50 per cent in the
upcoming elections. "Let's be honest. We have no other option than to
win the elections," said Meciar, according to the Czech daily MF DNES.
He also added that by 2010 Slovakia will be among the most developed
European countries.
Prokop Pavel/Sofia Karakeva
ECONOMY
93 Per Cent of Airplane Producer Let Kunovice to Ayres Corporation
The government confirmed the sale of the state share in strategic
small-airplane producer Let Kunovice to the American firm Ayres
Corporation. The Americans will pay 4.5 million USD for 93 per cent of
Let. Trade Minister Karel Kuhnl said the sale is a success, because of
Let's bad financial state. He rejected charges that Let could have been
sold at a better price. Let's chief, Zdenek Pernica, said that nobody
could expect a better bid.
Let's debt, which Ayres assumes, is 50 million USD without the
amount that Let owes to the state for social and health insurance. Ayres
will invest about 15 million USD into Let and already gave Let the plans
for production of wing parts for the Loadmaster transport plane. Let's
general meeting at the end of April will have to authorize the sale and
then the purchase documents can be signed.
Jakub Svab/Mirek Langer
Czech State Lost Control in Mostecka Uhelna
The Most Coal Company (Mostecka uhelna - MUS) is almost certainly in
foreign hands. The National Property Fund (FNM), as the sole
representative of the state, controls 46.29 per cent of MUS' shares but
was unable at the general meeting April 23 to recall the company's
general director from its board of directors because of management's
alleged attempt to take over the company secretly and its mismanagement
of funds. The FNM's minority position will make it difficult for the
state to sell its share favorably, although the planned sale will
continue being prepared.
The FNM was outvoted by a coalition of Czech, Swiss and American
companies, who control 49.98 per cent. According to unconfirmed
information, the Swiss company Investenergy is representing the American
Appian Group, which in the Czech Republic is represented by the
subsidiary Synergo. The small shareholders who own about 5 per cent of
the shares supported Investenergy at the general meeting.
Ludvik Pospisil/Milan Smid
Exchange Rates at the Czech National Bank
(valid from May 5)
country currency
------------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 21.484
Belgium 100 BEF 89.127
Great Britain 1 GBP 55.052
Denmark 1 DKK 4.821
ECU 1 XEU 36.345
Finland 1 FIM 6.058
France 1 FRF 5.484
Ireland 1 IEP 46.384
Italy 1000 ITL 18.609
Japan 100 JPY 24.985
Canada 1 CAD 23.010
Luxemburg 100 LUF 89.127
IMF 1 XDR 44.407
Hungary 100 HUF 15.640
Netherlands 1 NLG 16.333
Norway 1 NOK 4.421
New Zealand 1 NZD 18.333
Poland 1 PLN 9.714
Portugal 100 PTE 17.942
Austria 1 ATS 2.614
Greece 100 GRD 10.437
Germany 1 DEM 18.385
Slovakia 100 SKK 95.418
Slovenia 100 SIT 19.720
Spain 100 ESP 21.651
Sweden 1 SEK 4.263
Switzerland 1 CHF 22.007
USA 1 USD 32.995
CULTURE
Prague As It Never Looked
In the Architects' Hall of the Old Town Hall the exhibit Prague in
Plans and Projects from the Middle Ages to Today is being held. Until
the end of April visitors can see how Prague could have looked if some
architectural projects had been realized. The exposition starts with
Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV's plan for the construction of New Town,
and a significant part is comprised by plans for demolishing and
rebuilding the historical center from the beginning of this century and
the exhibit ends with plans for suburban prefabricated communities. The
exhibit is organized by the Institute for Prague's Development in
connection with the approval of the new urban plan for Prague until
2010.
Jaroslav Mares/Sofia Karakeva
Buttoners Fascinate at the Pilsen Finale 1998
The Golden Kingfisher main prize of the 11th-annual festival of
Czech films, the Pilsen (Plzen) Finale, was given to Petr Zelenka's
debut film Buttoners (Knoflikari). A five-member jury, among them the
actress Iva Janzurova, was to decide on best Czech film shown in the
Electra Cinema from April 14-20. "In comparison with last year's
festival, where every jury member had a favorite of his own, this time
the situation was easier. That doesn't mean that there is a decline in
the quality of Czech films. On the contrary, this time much better films
were presented but one of them was better than the others. Buttoners is
a film of higher quality than those of last year's festival," said
Janzurova to Carolina. She also said she considers it a miracle that 17
films were shot since last year's festival, including festival favorites
Through a Bleak Wood (Cesta pustym lesem) from Ivan Vojnar, Dead Beetle
(Mrtvej brouk) by Pavel Marek and Bed (Postel) by Oskar Reif.
Lenka Vochocova/Sofia Karakeva
European Film Days Fill Prague Theaters
The fifth-annual festival of films from the European Union, European
Film Days, wound up in Prague April 25 and moved on for five days to
Brno. Two Prague theaters, Lucerna and U hradeb, showed 32 feature films
and 16 short films from 16 countries in 10 days, including the Czech
films Buttoners (Knoflikari) and Through a Bleak Wood (Cesta pustym
lesem). The 10 sold-out showings and some 17,000 Prague moviegoers (last
year's total from Prague and Brno was about 22,000) demonstrated the
keen interest in contemporary European film, which otherwise rarely
appears in Czech theaters.
"The films shown should be the best made in each given country, and
they should characterize their country of origin in some way. That's why
we chose Buttoners, this year's most-seen Czech film, and Through
a Bleak Wood, which we wanted to introduce to a wider audience," said
festival Director Eva Kacerova. The festival was opened by the
English-French-German co-production Tango Lesson from director Sally
Potter, who coincidentally opened the festival's first year. The most
popular film was the Netherlands' Character, fresh from its Oscar
victory for best foreign-language film. Knocking on Heaven's Door, the
German action film which brought Germans back to theaters in droves,
also registered the interest of the Prague audience. The Spanish-French
film Flamenco, which has almost no dialogue, also filled theaters, as
did Marcello Mastroianni's final film, Journey to the Beginning of the
World, and the Norwegian-Danish-German film Mendel, about Jewish
refugees in Norway in the 50's.
"In Europe every year there is a massive number of films produced,
and theaters can't even manage to show them all, which is why these
festivals, where a certain selection is made, are good," said Petr
Zelenka, the director of Buttoners.
Anna Kadava/Michael Bluhm
SPORTS
Swedish Hockey Games Determine Nominations for World Championships
The two main goals of the Czech hockey national team in the Swedish
Games were fulfilled: while the players managed to win the unofficial
European Champion's title, finishing first in the ongoing Euro Hockey
Tour, coaches pared the nominees for the World Championships to 23
players.
The Czech team, which defeated Russia, Finland and Canada and lost
to Sweden, finished second in the Swedish Games behind Sweden.
The World Championships' squad was complicated by injuries to
defenders Jaroslav Spacek and Jan Srdinko; Srdinko will be replaced by
Vaclav Burda (Sparta Praha), and Spacek's participation is still
probable. Five forwards were excluded: Zelenka, Bednar, Alinc, Vlasak
and Kadera. Twelve Olympic champions will be in the team, and thus far
two NHL players, Martin Prochazka and Robert Reichel, have confirmed
their participation.
In the final preparation match April 28, the team defeated Canada
3-1 thanks to three goals from Patera's line. The Czechs will meet Japan
in the first match of the championships May 1.
The squad: Cechmanek (Hnilicka, Prusek) - Spacek, Kucera, L.
Prochazka, Kaberle, Vykoukal, Burda, Veber, Kantor - Moravec, Dopita,
Belohlav - Hejduk, Patera, M. Prochazka - Vyborny, Reichel, Hlavac
- Kacir, Beranek, Lubina. Some of these will probably be replaced by
players from NHL teams which lose in the first round of the Stanley Cup
playoffs.
Milan Eisenhammer/Mirek Langer
Sparta Praha Players Still Have to Wait for League Title Celebration
Sparta Praha's soccer players wanted to celebrate the title of
league champions after the 25th round match. Despite their 2-0 defeat of
Brno, they will have to wait at least another round, because
second-place Slavia Praha defeated Viktoria Zizkov 1-0. Sparta will
carry its champagne to Hradec Kralove, where it will play its 26th round
match May 1.
The dramatic fight to remain in the first league goes on. The
situation of Plzen, Dukla and Teplice looked up as all three teams won.
Drnovice, however, lost for the fourth time in a row.
Results of the 25th round: Olomouc - Opava 1-0, Zizkov - Slavia
Praha 0-1, Bohdanec - Dukla 2-3, Ceske Budejovice - Liberec 1-1, Plzen
- Ostrava 3-1, Teplice - Drnovice 2-0, Sparta Praha - Brno 2-0, Jablonec
- Hradec Kralove 3-0.
Standings: 1. Sparta Praha 61 pts., 2. Slavia Praha 48, 3. Olomouc
44, 4. Ostrava 40, 5. Jablonec 39, 6. Liberec 38, 7. Zizkov 35, 8. Brno
33, 9. Teplice 32, 10. Dukla 32, 11. Plzen 29, 12. Opava 29, 13. Hradec
Kralove 28, 14. Drnovice 27, 15. Ceske Budejovice 27, 16. Bohdanec 8.
Gabriela Podzimkova/Mirek Langer
Korda to Attack World Number-One Position in Prague
If Czech tennis player Petr Korda wins the Paegas Czech Open, the
clay tournament beginning April 27 on the Stvanice island in Prague, he
has a chance to become the world's number-one player. However, Pete
Sampras has a part to play - he has to lose before the semifinals in
Atlanta.
Korda's position improved when all the other seeded players were
sent off before the end of the second round: Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov
(6th in the ATP rankings), Slovakia's Karol Kucera (10th) and France's
Cedric Pioline (15th).
Korda defeated Czech junior Petr Kralert 6-2, 6-1 and will meet
another Czech Davis Cup team member, Ctislav Dosedel, in the second
round.
Gabriela Podzimkova/Mirek Langer
After deadline: Korda lost in the second round to Dosedel in two sets.
SPORTS IN BRIEF
* The management of Slavia Praha, holder of second place in the top
Czech soccer league, unexpectedly fired coach Pavel Tobias, who began
work last fall. Assistant coach Petr Rada was named interim coach.
Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer
WEATHER
Last week my colleague Ludvik was complaining about April weather,
but during the weekend he changed his mind. During the last few days the
sun is smiling on us, and even if it hides for a moment behind a cloud,
temperatures do not drop below 20 degrees Celsius/68 degrees Fahrenheit,
sometimes even reaching 30 degrees Celsius/86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Forests and bushes flowered so quickly that it reminds one of sped-up
pictures from nature documentaries.
Karolina Kucerova/Sofia Karakeva
English version edited by Michael Bluhm
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