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Carolina (English) No 277
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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 277, Friday, February 20, 1998.
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (February 11-18)
DOMESTIC POLITICS
Skalicky Departure Decision Next Week
Civic Democratic Alliance (ODA) Chairman, Environment Minister and
Vice Prime Minister Jiri Skalicky offered to leave his posts because of
his party's finance scandal. President Vaclav Havel asked Skalicky at
a two-hour meeting in the hospital (see below for information on
Havel's operation) to get to the bottom of the party's finances and
withdraw his resignation for a week.
The president gave Skalicky the week to clear up the affair around
the campaign donations received from the TMC front company, which is
based in the British Virgin Islands. Reports say the party knew of and
supported the transactions carried out through the Caribbean with
a promise of anonymity. ODA will also have to fight charges of tax
evasion.
Former ODA Vice Chairman Vladimir Dlouhy said at a press
conference February 13 that TMC is a cover company for donations made by
Philip Morris, the Vitkovice steelworks and the PPF holding. All of the
companies, however, deny having donated money under a pseudonym. The
origin of the 6 million crowns ODA received from TMC is still unclear,
and the police are looking into ODA's finances.
Opposition Social Democrat Stanislav Gross said there is not much
of a chance to explain ODA sponsorship. He also said that Havel, who
sharply criticized Vaclav Klaus' Civic Democratic Party (ODS) last year
during its financial scandal, has a double standard. Gross said not only
Skalicky, but all ODA ministers and Freedom Union ministers should leave
the government. Freedom Union began as a faction of ODS.
ODS leader Milan Kondr said that, in reality, the problem was the
same one ODS had and had nothing to do with finances.
Jaroslav Mares/Andrea Snyder
Former ODS Vice Chairman Charged with Tax Evasion
Libor Novak, the former Civic Democratic Party (ODS) vice chairman
responsible for party finances, will stay in police custody
indefinitely. Police charged him with tax evasion, and a Prague district
judge issued a warrant to take him into custody for fear of possible
influencing of witnesses by Novak or his fleeing the country. Novak had
recently booked a trip with his family to the Dominican Republic at the
Fischer travel agency and was going to leave the Czech Republic next
week.
According to Novak's lawyer Tomas Sokol, his client cannot be
released on bail because the reasons for custody do not allow for bail.
In the meantime the amount of taxes allegedly evaded have increased
from 170,000 crowns (see Carolina 276) to about 500,000 crowns, which
would increase Novak's possible jail time to eight years if convicted.
Petr Bilek Jr./Milan Smid
Social Democrats Publish Sponsors
The British Westminster Foundation, The Swedish Olof Palme
Foundation and the Dutch Alfred Mozer Foundation are among the sponsors
of the Czech Social Democratic Party kept secret until February 16, when
Social Democrat Chairman Milos Zeman revealed their identity.
The British Embassy to the Czech Republic confirmed that the
Westminster Foundation granted to Social Democrats the sum of 1,133,670
crowns before the 1996 general election. Westminster Foundation
spokeswoman Alexandra Jones said the sum should have been used to assist
in the education of Social Democrats for the pre-election campaign.
More information is to be revealed at the Social Democrats' regular
press conference February 20. Gabriela Pecic/Milan Smid
Young Romany Woman Dies after Racially Motivated Attack
Czech police are investigating another crime with a highly probable
racial motive, after three young men (aged 23 to 24) attacked
a 26-year-old Romany (Gypsy) woman in the northern Bohemia town of
Vrchlabi. They beat their victim and pushed her into the Elbe (Labe)
River, where she drowned around midnight February 15. The dead body was
found after a two-day search. The Trutnov County investigator Vlastimil
Svajdler said to the daily Lidove noviny: "According to some witnesses,
the attackers are members of the skinhead movement, and their victim was
attacked because of her race."
Local Czech Radio correspondent Eliska Pilarova, 48, jumped into the
river in an attempt to save the drowning Romany woman. However, the
current was too strong, and Pilarova barely escaped with her life and is
hospitalized with spinal injuries in the Vrchlabi Hospital.
The investigator charged the attackers with the crime of
intentionally causing injury to a person in conspiracy. There is still
the possibility that the crime willl be requalified as murder. That was
the opinion of the Czech Cabinet spokesman and Minister Vladimir Mlynar,
who is responsible for the Romany issue in the government.
Petr Bilek Jr./Milan Smid
Havel Has Another Operation
President Vaclav Havel underwent another operation at The Central
Army Hospital in Prague February 18. It took surgeons 75 minutes to
remove air from an area infected by a stitch unremoved after Havel's
1996 lung operation
Havel had complained about respiratory difficulties before he was
hospitalized with the virus February 12. According to his chief doctor
Miroslav Cerbak, the president's temperature has stabilized and his
health condition is satisfactory.
Jana Ciglerova/Jana Ciglerova
NEWS IN BRIEF
* An amendment to the Penal Code and Misdemeanor Code was passed in
the Chamber of Deputies February 13. The amendments will allow
prosecution of those who keep drugs "in a quantity larger than small."
It is this vague wording which has spurred much discussion among
specialists.
* The amendment to the Family Act is another law revision passed in
Parliament. One of the most important changes makes divorce easier, in
the case that both parties agree; on the other hand, it creates more
difficulties for couples who do not agree, and creates support payments
for the party who did not cause the divorce and who would suffer
a significant decrease in living standard through the divorce.
* For the first time since he resigned in October as finance
minister and Civic Democratic Party (ODS) vice chairman, Josef Zieleniec
appeared in public. It was on the February 15 TV NOVA program Debate
(Debata). Immediately after the program ended, he escaped waiting
journalists through a back door. In the program he said he does not
intend to re-enter politics and that he would like to see the political
parties the Freedom Union (a former ODS fraction) and the Christian
Democrats (KDU-CSL) become closer.
Jaroslav Mares/Veronika Machova
FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Polish Prime Minister Visits Czech Birthplace
The Czech and Polish prime ministers Josef Tosovsky and Jerzy Buzek
held their first meeting in the Polish town of Bielsko-Biala February
16. Speaking after the talks, Tosovsky said the two countries' good
relations have not been interrupted by the changes of governments on
both sides of the border.
Discussions focused on a number of issues, including NATO expansion
and European Union membership, as well as stepping up border
cooperation. In connection with this, Tosovsky said the two sides would
work more closely to coordinate efforts to prevent a repeat of the
floods which seriously damaged both sides of the border last summer.
After the talks, the two leaders travelled to the Czech town of
Cesky Tesin, where there is a large Polish population and visited the
house where Buzek was born in the village of Smilovice.
Jana Ciglerova/Jana Ciglerova
Sweden Welcomes NATO Expansion
Sweden's Defense Minister Bjorn von Sydow paid a two-day visit to
the Czech Republic starting February 17. After meeting with his Czech
counterpart, Michal Lobkowicz, von Sydow said Sweden welcomes the
expansion of NATO but does not wish to become a member. "We consider our
security situation satisfactory enough that we will maintain our neutral
status," said von Sydow.
Petr Bilek Jr./Sofia Karakeva
FROM SLOVAKIA
Presidential Election Continues
The candidacy of Slovak Premier Vladimir Meciar for the post of
Slovak president is "maximally serious", but a definite decision will be
made February 20, said Olga Keltosova, vice chairwoman of Meciar's
Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) after a meeting of party
leadership. She also said that if Meciar becomes president he will not
withdraw from his position as premier nor from the leadership of HZDS
and will take part in the campaign for the upcoming general elections.
For now it is not clear whether any candidate will manage to
receive the required 90 votes in the National Assembly. It would mean
not only support of coalition parties, who have 83 votes, but also of
independent deputies and a part of the opposition. For the time being,
only Jan Slota, chairman of the coalition Slovak National Party (SNS),
has openly supported Meciar and said he believes all representatives of
his party will do the same.
The opposition, using the decision of the Constitutional Court
which found the interior minister guilty of obstructing the May
referendum on direct presidential election, is trying to solve the
election problem by announcing a date for a new referendum. Evidently
the activity of opposition deputies forced the HZDS to consider the
Meciar's candidacy already in the second round. Kovac's term ends March
2. If no new president has been elected, the powers of the position go
to the government (for more information see Carolina 275).
Paula Majorova/Sofia Karakeva
Game As Medicine
The Center for the Care of Drug Addiction in Bratislava is trying
to introduce a new method for treating drug addicts. Drug addicts are to
be helped by Tamagoci. "This electronic game faithfully reflects the
state of the patient," said Dr. Lubomir Okruhlika to the newspaper SME.
According to how the tamagoci feels it is possible to observe
improvement of worsening of the patient's state. The addict begins to
feel he is useful, that he has someone to care for and awakens from
apathy. To determine the success of the treatment, it has been recorded
that almost every tamagoci is feeling good.
Paula Majorova/Sofia Karakeva
ECONOMY
Exchange Rates at the Czech National Bank
(valid from February 20)
country currency
------------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 23.160
Belgium 100 BEF 91.955
Great Britain 1 GBP 56.498
Denmark 1 DKK 4.976
ECU 1 XEU 37.510
Finland 1 FIM 6.255
France 1 FRF 5.659
Ireland 1 IEP 47.168
Italy 1000 ITL 19.248
Japan 100 JPY 27.326
Canada 1 CAD 24.083
Luxemburg 100 LUF 91.955
SDR 1 XDR 46.414
Hungary 100 HUF 16.545
Netherlands 1 NLG 16.839
Norway 1 NOK 4.548
New Zealand 1 NZD 20.064
Poland 1 PLN 9.688
Portugal 100 PTE 18.534
Austria 1 ATS 2.697
Greece 100 GRD 12.014
Germany 1 DEM 18.970
Slovakia 100 SKK 97.567
Slovenia 100 SIT 20.064
Spain 100 ESP 22.395
Sweden 1 SEK 4.265
Switzerland 1 CHF 23.493
USA 1 USD 34.465
CULTURE
Alfons Mucha Museum Opens in Prague
A permanent exhibit of Alfons Mucha's works, dedicated to the art
and life of the Czech Art Nouveau icon, was opened in Prague's Kaunicky
Palace on Panska Street February 12.
The museum came into existence thanks to the Mucha Foundation and
the Copa company. The Mucha Foundation's president is John Mucha, the
artist's grandson, who lives with his family in London. This
exposition's goal is to maintain, exhibit and popularize Mucha's work.
The exhibited works, about 100 in number, have been borrowed from the
family collection represented by the Mucha Foundation, and also from
tennis player Ivan Lendl, an enthusiastic Mucha collector. The unique
collection includes oil paintings, lithographs - mostly posters and
decorative panels, pastels, drawings, photographs of the painter and his
models, jewelry, currency notes he designed, stamp designs, sculptures
and the artist's personal things.
Mucha was born July 24, 1860 in Ivancice in southern Moravia. At
the age of 19 he left for Vienna to work as a scene painter for the
theater. Mucha received his most interesting and most important
commission in 1894, when Sarah Bernhardt ordered a poster for her part
as Gismonda. It was Mucha's first poster, and its great success brought
him a contract with the "divine Sarah" for six years. From 1897 he
organized one-man exhibits in the Bodiniere Gallery in Paris. Then he
presented his work at Salon des Cent's. In 1900, he published his
handbook for artists - Documentes decoratifs et Figures decoratives. In
1906 Mucha left for America, where he painted and taught. Four years
later, he returned to Prague and painted the Slavic Epic, which he gave
in 1928 to the Czech people and the city of Prague. After the German
occupation of Czechoslovakia in 1939, Mucha was among the first
arrested, and died July 14 of that year, not a long time after his
release from jail.
The first Mucha museum in the world represents a cross-section of
the artist's works. An exhibit of 300 Mucha works is to follow - it will
be open in San Diego in three weeks and will travel throughout America.
The Prague Mucha Museum is open daily from 10 a.m. till 6 p.m., and
a ticket costs 50 crowns for Czech visitors and 100 crowns for foreign
visitors.
Ajla Zinhasovic/Denisa Vitkova
IN BRIEF
* The Big Synagogue in Pilsen (Plzen) was re-opened February 11 after
a three-year reconstruction. It is the biggest Jewish clerical edifice
in the Czech Republic, the second-largest in Europe, and the
third-largest in the world. Israeli ambassador to the Czech Republic
Rafael Gvir attended the opening ceremony.
* The movies Lea, Buttoners (Knoflikari) and The Wonderful Years of
Lousy Living (Bajecna leta pod psa) received the most nominations for
the annual Czech Film Academy award - the Czech Lion. The nominations
were announced February 11 in Prague's Lucerna Theater, where a film
critics' award was presented for Buttoners, directed by Petr Zelenka,
which garnered the prize at film festival in Rotterdam in the beginning
of February (see Carolina 276).
Ajla Zinhasovic/Denisa Vitkova
SPORTS
Czech Hockey Players in Semifinal in Tournament of the Century
Their second place in their group determined that the Czech hockey
team would meet the defending World Cup winner, the United States, in
the quarterfinals of the Olympic hockey tournament. After some very good
play, the Czechs defeated America 4-1 (0-1, 3-0, 1-0) February 18.
Goaltender Dominik Hasek was dominating in the match, with a save
percentage exceeding 97 per cent. Another Czech star, Jaromir Jagr,
recorded two points with a goal and an assist, while Ruzicka, Rucinsky
and Dopita each scored once.
AFTER DEADLINE: The Czechs beat Canada to advance to the final. The
semifinal final match ended in a 1-1 tie after regulation (the Canadians
scored with 63 seconds remaining in the game), and after no goals were
scored in overtime, the Czechs prevailed 1-0 on penalty shots after
Hasek was perfect in the clutch.
Czech Results from Nagano
* One mistake in shooting kept Ivan Masarik from a medal in the 20 km
biathlon.
* Marcel Maxa recorded the 6th-best time in the slalom and downhill in
the alpine skiing combination, but was disqualified after a false start.
It would have been the best result of a male alpine skier in Czech
history.
* The nordic combined competition started with Milan Kucera's 8th
place after jumps, and in the closing cross-country he advanced to 5th.
* Former sprinters Puskar and Kobian recorded the second-best result
in Czech bobsledding history, finishing 8th.
* Nineteen-year-old Michal Dolezal jumped the best of the Czechs in
Hakuba in the K-120 event. His 116- and 130.5-meter jumps moved Dolezal
into 8th place. Other Czechs: Suchacek 15th, Jez 24th.
* Saldova, Neumannova, Hanusova and Kocumova finished 6th in the
women's cross-country 4x5 km drelay, only five minutes behind the
bronze.
* Mrazova and Simecek, ice-ancing pair, finished 13th.
Daniela Bartova Breaks and Loses World Record
Pole-vaulter Daniela Bartova and her Icelandic opponent Flosadottir
fought for the world record. In the Czech Indoor Championships in
Prague, Bartova broke the world record of with a 4.43-meter jump, but
a few hours later Flosadottir added one more centimeter. "I am not in
good form yet, I think I can make it to 450 centimeters," said Bartova.
Both athletes will meet in the European Indoor Championships in
Valencia, Spain February 27-March 1.
Sport by Roman Jedlicka/Mirek Langer
WEATHER
A 12-minute, 36-second kiss by Petr Ciz and Vendula Kasikova in
a longest-kiss competition, held on Valentine's Day on Prague's Old Town
Square, will be entered into the Guinness Book of World Records.
The inclusion of this item does mean we have forgotten this is the
weather section, it merely serves as documentation of the nice spring
weather now resident in Prague.
Jaroslav Mares
English version edited by Michael Bluhm.
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