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Carolina (English) No 251
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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 251, Friday, June 13, 1997.
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (June 4 - 11)
Parliament Reconfirms Klaus Government's Mandate
With the slimmest possible margin of 101 votes to 99, Parliament
gave a vote of confidence to Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus' reorganized
government June 10. The vote hung on a one-man thread, leaving
independent deputy Josef Wagner to decide the coalition's fate. Wagner
was expelled in January from the Social Democrats, after he supported
the coalition's 1997 budget proposal. He said he would vote for the
ruling coalition on the condition that Klaus not allow large banks and
strategic companies to be privatized until a privatization strategy is
presented to Parliament. When Klaus refused, Wagner threatened to
support the opposition. Minutes before the voting began, Klaus promised
that the government would present Parliament with the privatization
plans.
Klaus said the vote of confidence was necessary because of the
political and economic situation and personnel changes in the Cabinet.
He said that for the last year, his government had carried on in
a permanent state of tension both in Parliament and the public. Klaus
acknowledged the tension had increased with the recent economic
difficulties, and he admitted his government's partial guilt for the
problems. The prime minister offered to open discussions with the
opposition and the unions, and to present a stabilization schedule to
Parliament. Another 20 billion crowns in budget cuts should be made this
year, in addition to the 25.5 billion crowns of cuts made in April.
The government decided June 9 on radical budget cuts to save 16.5
billion crowns in 1997. Savings include spending cuts in healthcare,
childcare and infrastructure construction.
Although the opposition and extremist factions were highly critical
of the new mandate, President Vaclav Havel said he believes the tense
political situation will calm down.
Lenka Javurkova/Andrea Snyder
Klaus and Zieleniec Make Up
When Civic Democratic Party (ODS) Chairman Vaclav Klaus and Vice
Chairman Josef Zieleniec agreed June 6 that the party should work on
better communication and forget their conflicts, it was a sign that
their clash had ended. Zieleniec, the foreign minister, had accused
Klaus, the prime minister, of keeping secret from the Cabinet an
International Monetary Fund report (see Carolina 250).
ODS management will try to "avoid steps which cause information
barriers and undermine mutual trust," said Klaus.
Zieleniec's advisor Michal Lobkowicz said the minister had wanted to
push Klaus towards a more forceful economic policy. "It is known that
Vice Chairman Zieleniec has a more skeptical outlook on the depth of the
problems, and as such on their resolution," he said.
Marketa Kropacova/Andrea Snyder
KDU-CSL Announces Confidence Vote Conditions
Christian Democrat (KDU-CSL) Chairman and Vice Prime Minister Josef
Lux said that his party's support in Parliament's government confidence
vote depended on passing their budget proposals, which include
postponing inflation-pegged increases in social security and the poverty
line, postponing deregulation of rents and energy prices, decreasing
salaries for government officials by 50 per cent and taking bigger taxes
from higher wages.
"I realize that postponing the pension and poverty-line increases
concerns a change in laws, and that is why, should we agree on this
issue, it would be very useful to unite the vote of confidence with an
announcement of legislative emergency in Parliament," said the Christian
Democrat leader June 6. The government can propose that the Parliament
speaker announce a state of legislative emergency, which allows for more
rapid approval of necessary laws.
Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Jindrich Vodicka said the
proposal was "unacceptable" and Civic Democratic Alliance (ODA)
Parliament club chief Ivan Masek compared it to the neo-fascist
Republicans' "populist opinions."
Although the proposal, which was not further specified, was sharply
rejected, Lux said in a pre-vote television discussion panel that "when
the government asks for a vote of confidence, the idea that one of the
KDU-CSL deputies might vote against them is absurd."
Bohdana Rambouskova/Andrea Snyder
Union Leaders Meet with Government Representatives
At a June 7 meeting between the trade union leaders and a government
delegation, neither side was willing to budge from its standpoint.
Though Chairman of the Czech-Moravian Chamber of Trade Unions Richard
Falbr assured Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus that trade unions are holding
off on all protest actions. After the three-hour-plus meeting, Klaus
said "the union organization do not want to add any more unrest to the
already tense political and economic situation, and this the government
appreciates."
Unions still insist on delaying rent and energy deregulation, which
the government will not discuss. On the other hand, the government
unsuccessfully asked for wage restraint from the unions. In return for
abstaining from protest actions, the government promised the trade
unions regular meetings with Cabinet representatives.
Marketa Kropacova/Sofia Karakeva
Havel Seconds Discussions on Postponing Deregulation
President Vaclav Havel considers discussions on the possible
postponement of this year's rent and energy price deregulation
appropriate, he said in his weekly radio program Talks from Lany June 8.
Havel thus indirectly supported the standpoint of Christian
Democrat Chairman Josef Lux, who proposed delaying deregulation to
compensate for this year's annulment of pension and poverty line
valorization. The opposition Social Democrats and labor unions have also
expressed their support for postponing deregulation, while on the other
hand, both the coalition Civic Democratic Party (ODS) and Civic
Democratic Alliance (ODA) unambiguously support the deregulation plans.
The president, within the framework of better communication in
politics, would like to see his own representative at regular Cabinet
meetings, like in the early 90's during Marian Calfa's term as prime
minister. In 1993, Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus' government declared its
meetings internal, and the president, unless he himself took part in the
agenda, stayed abreast only through press conferences. The Czech
Republic's constitution gives the president the right to attend Cabinet
discussions anytime.
Bohdana Rambouskova/Denisa Vitkova
Free Democrats Leave SD-LSNS
At the June 7 national conference of the Free Democrats-Liberal
Social National Party (SD-LSNS), long-simmering conflicts between the
merged parties led to the group's split. The liberal fraction members
decided to leave the party because of their disagreement with the
National Interests Charter, presented by leftist wing of the LSNS. The
liberals criticized the National Interests Charter as pedantic, outdated
and unintelligible. "The national socialists want the party to lean on
the national program and start fighting for Czech national interests. We
prefer our free-thinking convictions and we do not want to hollow out
economical and ethnical moats around us," explained liberal speaker
Milan Znoj. SD-LSNS Chairman Tomas Sokol will remain in the party, as
does former party co-chairman Jiri Dienstbier, both originally members
of the Free Democrats.
Michaela Klevisova/Denisa Vitkova
Education Minister Grusa Taken to Hospital
New Education Minister Jiri Grusa (59 nominated by the Civic
Democratic Party) was taken to the Central Military Hospital in
Prague-Stresovice directly from Cabinet discussions on budget cuts June
10. The minister had stomach ulcer problems, which, together with stress
and exhaustion caused a rupture of a blood vessel in his stomach and
bleeding. Grusa should stay in the hospital for three to six weeks.
Deputy Education Minister Frantisek Kozel will run the office in
Grusa's absence.
Michaela Klevisova/Magdalena Vanova
Czechs Interested in Seeing Secret Police Files
More than 2,000 citizens used an opportunity to see files of the
former confidential State Security (StB) police, and thus find out who
snitched on them in the Communist era. The Interior Ministry
declassified the files June 2.
About 1,000 people applied before June 1 to see the files. Jan
Frolik, director of the Confidential Materials Protection Department,
said that most of the application forms were filled out incorrectly. The
Interior Ministry established a special division in Pardubice which will
deal with the requests (for application details, see Carolina 250).
Marketa Kropacova/Magdalena Vanova
FROM SLOVAKIA
New Slovak Foreign Minister Has No Diplomatic Experience
From June 4 Slovakia's new Minister of Foreign Affairs is Zdenka
Kramplova, appointed by President Michal Kovac. Former foreign minister
Pavol Hamzik resigned after the scandal of the government-sabotaged
referendum on NATO and direct presidential election (see Carolina 249).
The appointment of Kramplova, however, evoked distrust among observers,
who consider Premier Vladimir Meciar's nomination of Kramplova a further
blow to Slovak diplomacy. Kramplova does not have any diplomatic
experience.
"The appointment of Kramplova could have two meanings. Either the
premier cannot find any expert willing to represent the Slovak
government in the West, or he just gave up the need of having at his
side a person capable of doing so," wrote distinguished Slovak
journalist Marian Lesko in the Czech daily MF DNES.
From 1994-97 Kramplova ran the Slovak Government Office and she was
recently responsible for the administration of the Foreign Ministry.
According to Slovak journalists, Kramplova, 39, has built her career on
her loyalty to Meciar. She graduated from the Agriculture Academy in
Plovdiv, worked in Nature magazine until 1992 and from 1992-94 as
Meciar's advisor for Parliament and political parties before joining the
Government Office in 1994.
Marketa Kropacova/Sofia Karakeva
ECONOMY
No Breakthrough in Disputes over Slovak Import Restrictions
Skepticism about the continuing existence of the customs union
between the Czech Republic and Slovakia still persists. After a meeting
of the Czechoslovak Customs Union Council June 9, however, both parties
declared themselves content with the results. "We did not speak about
abolishing the union at all. On the contrary, we see a positive trend,"
said Czech Trade Minister Karel Kuhnl to Czech daily MF DNES.
Ministers fell into dispute immediately when they came to the real
reasons why the meeting was called - recent restrictions placed by
Slovakia on imports of Czech beer and its intention to abolish
customs-free trade with food and agricultural products. "We have
repeatedly disagreed with that," said Kuhnl, and added that it could
lead to the end of the customs union if the Slovaks do not stop placing
import quotas on Czech products. "The decision about beer has already
been made and monitoring imports of other goods will show if other
restrictions have to be established," declared Kuhnl's Slovak
counterpart.
Lenka Javurkova/Matej Cerny
Exchange Rates at the Czech National Bank
(valid from June 13)
country currency
----------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 24.221
Belgium 100 BEF 90.643
Great Britain 1 GBP 52.652
Denmark 1 DKK 4.914
Finland 1 FIM 6.232
France 1 FRF 5.535
Ireland 1 IEP 48.671
Italy 1000 ITL 18.977
Japan 100 JPY 28.247
Canada 1 CAD 23.232
Luxemburg 100 LUF 90.643
Hungary 100 HUF 17.463
Netherlands 1 NLG 16.635
Norway 1 NOK 4.488
New Zealand 1 NZD 22.194
Poland 1 PLN 9.971
Portugal 100 PTE 18.485
Austria 1 ATS 2.658
Greece 100 GRD 11.790
Slovakia 100 SKK 96.705
Germany 1 DEM 18.710
Spain 100 ESP 22.122
Sweden 1 SEK 4.139
Switzerland 1 CHF 22.330
USA 1 USD 32.233
ECU 1 XEU 36.428
IMF 1 XDR 45.058
CULTURE
Prague Festival of Modern Dance Starts June 15
The annual International Festival of Contemporary Dance will be held
in Prague for the 9th time, from June 15 to July 2. Artists will perform
their shows in the Comedy and Archa theaters and in a hall of the Fair
Palace (Veletrzni palac) in Prague.
Many stars of modern dance will take part in the festival, such as
American legend Merce Cunningham with his ensemble, the Swiss dance
group Alias and Portuguese dancers from the Clara Andermatt ensemble.
Central and eastern Europe are also becoming a part of world modern
dancing trends, as the Hungarian group 2 in 1 will perform its short
performance A Garlic Kiss, while the Slovenian Betontanc troupe will
introduce their avant-garde Know Your Enemy. Also several shows of Czech
and Slovak artists, such as the Slovak AS-Project and the Prague Chamber
Ballet, will take place during the festival.
As part of the festival, there will be open-air performances on
Prague's Old Town Square. Tickets are available at the box-office of the
Archa Theater.
Michaela Klevisova/Jan Majer
SPORTS
Czech Soccer Players Will Not Start in 1998 World Cup in France
The Czech Republic's loss to Spain in a qualification match June 8
in Valladolid finally dismissed any Czech hopes of advancing to the
World Cup. The Czechs, holders of the Euro 96 silver medal, was better
in the first half, especially Wagner should have converted his scoring
chance, but before the break Hierro scored on a penalty kick, which
referee Dallas incorrectly ordered after Alfonso's theatrical fall. The
Spaniards defended their unmerited lead in the second half, although
they never did shoot on Srnicek's goal.
After five matches, coach Dusan Uhrin's team has only four points in
the qualification group and cannot advance. The under-21 sides, which
had lost their last chance to advance earlier, lost in Burgos to Spain
0-4.
Lucie Vackova/Mirek Langer
Soccer League Closes
The last two question marks of the soccer league faded away after
30 minutes of the last round: Brno led its match with Karvina 3-1. After
the 5-1 final, Brno finished fourth and still hopes for a start in the
UEFA Cup, while Karvina finally fell into the second league. From the
second league Dukla Praha and Lazne Bohdanec advance and it is Dukla
which will determine whether Brno will see European cup action. If Dukla
wins June 15 the Czech Cup final against Slavia Praha, Slavia will start
in the UEFA Cup, and if Dukla loses, Slavia will set its course for the
Cup Winners' Cup and the Brno's path is clear.
Results from the 30th round: Brno - Karvina 5-1, Drnovice - Teplice
1-0, Liberec - Sparta Praha 0-2, Slavia Praha - Hradec Kralove 4-1,
Ostrava - Opava 1-0, Bohemians Praha - Viktoria Zizkov 0-0, Plzen
- Ceske Budejovice 4-0, Olomouc - Jablonec 4-2.
Final standings (games played, won, tied and lost, goals scored and
allowed, points):
1. Sparta Praha 30 19 8 3 61-20 65
2. Slavia Praha 30 18 7 5 59-24 61
3. FK Jablonec 30 17 5 8 40-29 56
4. Boby Brno 30 14 10 6 44-35 52
5. Slovan Liberec 30 12 12 8 33-30 46
6. SK Ceske Budejovice 30 11 11 8 38-40 44
7. Petra Drnovice 30 12 7 11 53-44 43
8. Sigma Olomouc 30 10 10 10 36-30 40
9. Kaucuk Opava 30 10 10 10 34-35 40
10. Banik Ostrava 30 8 13 9 33-35 37
11. Viktoria Plzen 30 7 11 12 17-33 32
12. Viktoria Zizkov 30 6 11 13 17-33 29
13. FK Teplice 30 6 10 14 21-37 28
14. SK Hradec Kralove 30 5 13 12 22-39 28
15. FC Karvina 30 6 7 17 25-50 25
16. Bohemians Praha 30 4 7 19 22-53 19
Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer
Soccer Euro 2004 Will Not Take Place in Czech Republic
The Czech Republic should have run for hosting the Euro 2004 soccer
championships. Austrian Soccer Union speaker Heinz Palme said June 3 the
Czechs did not present their promised, detailed written offer by May
31. Therefore, the Austrian union chose joint candidacy with Hungary.
According to Palme, the Hungarian government offer contained a higher
financial guarantee.
Czech soccer leadership found out about Vienna's step just before
departing for final negotiations with Austrian representatives June 3
from the Czech Press Agency, and so they called off the meeting. Tomas
Svoboda from the Education Ministry, who was present at the May meeting
in Vienna, said the Austrians had then taken into consideration the
Czech government's approval of the guarantee, according to the daily MF
DNES.
Besides the Austrians and Hungarians, also Germany and Spain are
running independently to host the Euro. For the Czech Republic, only
reorganization and enlargment of the championships to the 24 teams into
six groups could be the last chance to play the Euro 2004 matches here.
Lucie Vackova/Mirek Langer
Basketball Players Only Losers in World Championships Basic Group
The Czech women's basketball representatives did not pull themselves
together after their first, unexpected loss to Lithuania 82-89, and they
lost their remaining four matches in their world championships group in
Hungary. Because of bad defense, in which they confused aggressive play
with fouls, the Czech women lost to Spain 78-82, to Yugoslavia 69-84, to
Germany 65-86 and to Ukraine 72-76. They will try to get their
reputation back in the group of 9th-12th-place finishers.
Slovakia lost only one match, to Hungary, and advanced to the
quarterfinals in first place.
Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer
Track and Field Glory Week
Among the events which took place in Prague last week were the
100th anniversary of the founding of organized Czech track and field.
Over the June 7-8 weekend, both men's and women's national teams
succeeded in advancing to the European Cup superleague in Prague's
Strahov Stadium. The closing relays determined the Czechs' victories,
while behind them Polish teams finished second. Kovacikova (high jump)
and the men's 4x400 meters relay team broke Czech records.
The Odlozil Memorial also ended up in similar fashion, with the
bettering of Kodejs' 23-year-old record in the 400-meter hurdles. The
new name in the record books is Muzik, who also started in Sunday's
record relay. Souleiman from Qatar won the main discipline, the 2,000
meters race. At that distance, Odlozil set the world record in the 60s.
Nor in the fourth year of the memorial did the winner run faster than
Odlozil on the cinders in Houstka.
Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer
SPORTS IN BRIEF
* The best scorer of last year's soccer season and this season's
autumn, Radek Drulak, will return from a half-year engagement in
Austria's Linz to Olomouc.
* Coaches Slavomir Lener and Ivan Hlinka, who got a bronze medal with
the national hockey team, will continue with the team into next season.
The Nagano Olympics will be the top of the agenda and Jaromir Jagr will
want to start there, although he has made statements to the contrary.
* HC Olomouc gave up its hockey extraleague participation because of
a financial shortage. Becherovka Karlovy Vary will replace it.
* Pavel Padrnos finished fourth in the timed race during his first
start in the Giro d'Italia cycling race.
* Czech Daniel Vacek, together with Russian Yevgeny Kafelnikov, won
the men's doubles title at the French Open.
* Bohdan Ulihrach won the Prostejov tennis challenge. Some players
shut out in the French Open's first rounds took place.
* Slovakia lost its 1998 World Cup qualification match in Yugoslavia
0-2 June 8.
* FC Kosice won the Slovakian soccer league, Trnava finished second.
Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer
WEATHER
Weather in the Czech Republic is more and more vacation-like. While
at the end of last week dark clouds and unfriendly rain surprised us, in
the new week the sun has smiled on the heart of Europe and temperatures
are trying to reach 30 degrees Celsius/86 degrees Fahrenheit.
Meteorologists do threaten us with occasional showers, but they are not
to be believed. And if it did shower, do not despair - in the span of
a light summer squall there is just enough time to buy an ice cream at
the nearest soda fountain.
Bohdana Rambouskova
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