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Carolina (English) No 419
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STUDENTS' E-MAIL NEWS FROM THE CZECH REPUBLIC
Charles University in Prague
Faculty of Social Sciences
Smetanovo nabr. 6
110 01 Prague 1
Czech Republic
e-mail: CAROLINA@mbox.fsv.cuni.cz ISSN 121-5040
tel: (+4202) 22112252, fax: (+4202) 22112219
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
C A R O L I N A No 419, Friday, May 18, 2001
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (May 9 - May 16)
Enthusiastic Welcome for Hockey World Champions in Prague
Like one year ago (see Carolina 376), thousands of Czechs gathered
on Prague's Old Town Square to watch the final match of the hockey World
Championship on a large video screen May 13. The predominantly young
audience burst into cheers when David Moravec scored the winning goal to
defeat Finland 3:2 in overtime. The crowd moved to Wenceslas Square,
where celebrations continued. Similar festivities took place also in
other Czech towns. The only serious accident was reported in Cheb, where
a group of young people attacked a group of Romanies who wanted to join
the celebration, and a Romany man was seriously injured.
The next day, more than 20,000 people welcomed the champions back
to Prague. After being met by players' families and journalists at the
airport, an open bus with the Czech hockey team made its way to Old Town
Square, where about 17,000 fans awaited. The ovation started when team
captain Robert Reichel, together with Martin Rucinsky, brought the
Champions Cup onto the stage. The crowd chanted "Thank you, boys."
Goalie Dusan Salficky turned into the informal entertainer of the
gathering. Karel Gut, the chairman of the Czech Hockey Union and one of
several speakers at the meeting, said, "We managed to keep our
championship, and now we have another task: to build a new hockey arena
in Prague." Gut was talking about the problems with the construction of
a new hockey arena in Prague, which is a precondition for holding the
hockey World Championship in Prague. Originally, Prague should have
hosted the championship in 2003, but the construction problems recently
forced a postponement to 2004.
Petr Adam/Milan Smid
Government Prepares New Assembly Act
The Government approved a framework for a new Assembly Act May 14.
The Interior Ministry proposes punishing those who "obstruct the
identification of individual participants of the assembly." "We must
find a legal norm such that people at demonstrations cannot hide their
faces behind masks," said Interior Minister Stanislav Gross, who
announced his intention to change the law during the riots against the
IMF-World Bank summit in September.
Fines for violating the law would rise from 1,000 crowns to 10,000
crowns and demonstrations would have to be registered from three months
to five days before taking place. Today, some organizations reserve
public places up to 15 years in advance.
The bill has a good chance for success. The Civic Democratic Party
(ODS) supports it as well as the Four-Party Coalition. "Whoever
demonstrates within the limits of the law does not have to hide," said
Karel Kuhnl, leader of the coalition. However, Jan Jarab, the Government
Envoy for Human Rights, said he is skeptical about the changes. "It
shouldn't be so strict with identification. If the law passes, it will
probably be necessary to specify what hiding behind a mask is.
A demonstrator could be wearing a Bill Clinton mask, which doesn't
necessarily mean he wants to conceal his identity," said Jarab.
According to the proposal, sports fans would be breaking the law when
they paint the Czech flag on their faces.
Jakub Vavruska/Adam Fendrych
NEWS IN BRIEF
* Miloslav Vyborny, former vice chairman of the Christian Democratic
Union-Czechoslovak People's Party (KDU-CSL), announced at a press
conference in Brno May 9 that he will not run for party chairmanship at
the May party congress. His decision came after the 10 days he gave
himself to decide and surprised not only incumbent Chairman Jan Kasal
but also his party colleagues who believed Vyborny could bridge the gap
between the different wings in the party (see Carolina 417). Vyborny
said the divisive conflict between Kasal and Cyril Svoboda could be
resolved "only by personal confrontation, not by an evasive manuever."
Vyborny said he will support Kasal.
* Foreign Minister Jan Kavan and Austrian Environment Minister
Wilhelm Molterer signed an agreement in Prague May 12 obligating the
Czech Republic to supply Austria with additional information about the
Temelin nuclear power station. The information pertains to the "zero
option," i.e., the possibility of not launching the power station, and
potential accidents and the problems connected with the non-nuclear part
of the plant. Both parties said they were satisfied with the outcome of
meeting - Austria got some additional information about Temelin and the
Czech Republic received an assurance that Vienna supports the Czech
effort to join the EU.
* May 16 marked the fifth annual Flower Day, when people pay whatever
sum they want for a yellow flower, with the take going to fight cancer.
The League against Cancer prepared about 700,000 flowers, to be sold in
368 cities by 5,100 pairs of volunteers, mostly scouts and high school
students. Last year's income was more than 14 million crowns.
* Foreign Minister Jan Kavan suffered a minor heart attack May 14,
after arriving for an official visit to the USA that morning. His
meeting with Secretary of State Colin Powell and National Security
Adviser Condoleezza Rice was postponed. After a short stay at hospital
in Washington, Kavan's visit continued in New York.
Pavla Krizkova, Radim Hladik/Adam Fendrych, Milan Smid
FROM SLOVAKIA
Bratislava Hosts Representatives of NATO Candidate Countries
Ten prime ministers and deputy prime ministers of former communist
countries gathered May 11 in Bratislava for a two-day conference on New
European Democracy: Leadership and Responsibility. American political
analyst Zbigniew Brzezinski and Czech President Vaclav Havel were the
main speakers. Both expressed their support for expanding NATO, mainly
to the Baltic countries. Havel also said the conference was preparation
for the autumn NATO summit in Prague, where the candidate countries
should be invited to join. According to Havel, the prospects of Slovakia
are positive if Vladimir Meciar does not return to power.
Slovak Premier Mikulas Dzurinda praised the conference, but said
only time will show if this was a turning point for expanding NATO to
the east. He said the issue will be discussed more in June when American
President George W. Bush visits Europe. Dzurinda said the results of
upcoming general elections should decide the direction of Slovakia.
Dzurinda said he wants to use the time before the Prague summit to
persuade Slovaks that joining NATO is necessary. However, more than 50
per cent of Slovak poll respondents do not support membership, while
Meciar and his Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS), blamed for the
Slovakia's exclusion from the first wave of expansion, are leading all
voter-preference polls. HZDS legislator Irena Belohorska tried to
convince conference guests that her party will not significantly alter
Slovak foreign policy.
FROM SLOVAKIA IN BRIEF
* Interior Minister Ladislav Pittner resigned May 14. He said the
reason for his resignation was continuing criticism from the Party of
the Democratic Left (SDL'). Premier Mikulas Dzurinda said he wanted to
take over the ministry temporarily, but President Rudolf Schuster, after
a day of deliberation, delegated the ministry to Justice Minister Jan
Carnogursky. Dzurinda, however, said Carnogursky's acceptance of the
post is a demonstration of disloyalty. Dzurinda will meet his coalition
partners May 18 to discuss other possible changes.
* Last year, about 20,000 fans applauded Slovakia's silver medalists
from the hockey World Championships. This year, a handful of fans
welcomed the team that lost the quarterfinal match to the Czech
Republic. Defenseman Martin Strbak said he thinks the lack of stars and
the inability to beat the best teams were responsible for the team's
finish. The Slovak daily SME wrote that a majority of Slovak hockey
players and politicians supported the Czechs in the finals.
From Slovakia Veronika Pavlu/Ondrej Maly
ECONOMY
Sixth International Arms Fair in Brno
Some 332 companies from 23 countries took part in the sixth
international fair of defense and security equipment called IDET 2001,
which took place in Brno May 9-11. Seven countries (France, Italy,
Germany, Norway, Poland, Russia and Slovakia) had official national
exhibits there. Representatives of companies vying to be selected to
modernize the Czech air force had presentations at the fair.
The exhibition occupied much more space than the last year, the
number of visitors also rose. The ITTE 2001 international exhibition of
information and communication technologies ran concurrently with the
defense fair. One of the topics was to present tactical operation
systems of NATO armies.
New Czech Defense Minister Jaroslav Tvrdik was in Brno on the first
and second day of the fair. Defense ministers from Austria and Slovakia,
Herbert Scheibner and Jozef Stank, respectively, also visited the fair.
The last day of the fair saw activists from the Unbowed (Nesehnuti)
ecology movement demonstrate in front of the fairgrounds. Silence the
Weapons was their slogan, which they supported by giving out fliers
about the dangers of arms and the way they are used to violate human
rights. Minister Tvrdik said arms are used to defend democracy.
From Brno Dana Zlatohlavkova/Stepan Vorlicek
Nova Hut cancels contract
Nova Hut, The biggest Czech steelworks canceled its contract with
the American company ICF Kaiser to supply the final, crucial part of
a mini-smelter, according to the Czech daily MF Dnes May 12. The
mini-smelter cost more than 10 billion crowns and was one of the biggest
investments in Czech industry during the past 10 years. The official
reason Nova Hut withdrew was the fact that the American firm was
supposed to carry out tests by the end of April, but never began. The
steelworks is demanding 46 million USD in compensation for damages
caused by the delayed launch of the smelter. It was to be in operation
from November 2000, but is still in the testing phase. If negotiations
with the ICF Kaiser are not successful, the steelworks will file a suit
with an international arbitration court. Nova Hut is now awaiting
privatization. According to a study carried out by the Eurostrategy,
Nova Hut should be joined with the Trinec Ironworks (Trinecke
zelezarny).
Martina Oplatkova/Stepan Vorlicek
Rates at the Czech National Bank (valid May 18)
--------------------------------------------------------------
1 EUR = 34.300
country currency CZK
------------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 20.380
Great Britain 1 GBP 55.525
Denmark 1 DKK 4.596
Japan 100 JPY 31.493
Canada 1 CAD 25.233
IMF 1 XDR 49.038
Hungary 100 HUF 13.303
Norway 1 NOK 4.283
New Zealand 1 NZD 16.472
Poland 1 PLN 9.788
Slovakia 100 SKK 79.346
Slovenia 100 SIT 15.767
Sweden 1 SEK 3.793
Switzerland 1 CHF 22.387
USA 1 USD 38.816
Exchange Rates of countries participating in the euro
(converted from the euro rate)
country currency CZK
-----------------------------------------
Germany 1 DEM 17.537
Belgium 100 BEF 85.027
Finland 1 FIM 5.769
France 1 FRF 5.229
Ireland 1 IEP 43.552
Italy 1000 ITL 17.714
Luxemburg 100 LUF 85.027
Netherlands 1 NLG 15.565
Portugal 100 PTE 17.109
Austria 1 ATS 2.493
Greece 100 GRD 10.066
Spain 100 ESP 20.615
CULTURE
Prague Spring Festival Begins
The 56th year of the Prague Spring Festival opened May 12 in the
Smetana Hall of the Municipal House (Obecni dum) with Smetana's symphony
My Homeland, conducted by Vladimir Valek. The festival is traditionally
opened on the day of Smetana's death. This year's celebration of
classical music is organized under the auspices of President Vaclav
Havel and will end June 3 with a performance of the Czech Radio Symphony
Orchestra.
Nine organizers and 250 workers have sold about 80 per cent of the
festival's 54,000 total. The opening and closing concerts are sold out.
People also wanted tickets for concerts by Dagmar Peckova and the Czech
Philharmonic conducted by Simonov, as well as Bernarda Finkova conducted
by John Eliot Gardiner. Highlights of this year's festival are violinist
Gil Shaham, conductor Nikolaus Harnoncourt with his Concentus Musicus
and a group of four Americans Anonymus 4. More information about the
festival is available at www.festival.cz.
Martin Roubal/Veronika Hankusova
British Win 38th Year of Golden Prague Television Festival
First prize for the 38th year of the Golden Prague international
television festival was won by the British program Green Table: The
Dance of Death in Eight Pictures. The creators of the program accepted
the grand prize May 10 at the closing ceremony of the festival. The
organizers gave prizes in four other categories. One of them was
received by Czech Television Brno for their broadcast of a concert by
Magdalena Kozena and Thierry Gregoira in Boskovice.
The student jury rewarded the Swedish film Voices, which allows
viewers to enter the inside of the human voice. The audience also voted
on best program for the first time this year. They selected
a documentary from Swiss Television, I Like Music, about pianist Alexis
Weissenberg. The prize for significant impact on world culture was also
given for the first time, and it was given to conductor Rafael Kubelik
in memoriam. All awarded films should be broadcast by Czech Television
this year.
Katerina Kunovska/Veronika Hankusova
Bookworld in Prague
More than 650 exhibitors from 26 countries took part in the seventh
international book fair called Bookworld 2001, which took place at the
Prague Fairgrounds (Vystaviste) May 10-13. This year's featured country
was Switzerland, which presented its cultural and literary history and
its present.
The wide program of the fair included the presentation of new books
by several Czech authors and an international conference called
Literature without Frontiers, which dealt with promoting literature of
non-dominant language areas in Europe, as well as with supporting
translations and cooperation between publishers working in Central and
Eastern Europe and in the EU. There was a show called Babylon of
Languages, where writers, translators and actors read excerpts from
books in various languages and their Czech translations. The goal of the
evening was to show the importance of translation for communication
among nations and cultures.
A discussion of internet books focused on the present and future of
e-publishing in the Czech Republic. Popular internet journalist Ondrej
Neff, who publishes his own magazine Neviditelny Pes (Invisible Dog,
www.pes.eunet.cz), was among the panelists. The debate was broadcast
live by the Czech portal centrum.cz.
Various awards were given at the fair. The Miroslav Ivanov Award
for Non-fiction Literature debuted this year, while the traditional
Photography Publication of the Year and the worst translation awards
were given. The most beautiful Czech books of 2001 were rewarded in
a contest sponsored by the Culture Ministry and the National Literature
Treasury; the Association of Translators and Interpreters awarded the
Best Dictionary of the Year. For more information, see the URL
www.bookworld.cz.
From Vystaviste Stepan Vorlicek/Stepan Vorlicek
SPORTS
Czech Hockey Players Win Third Consecutive Hockey World Championship
The Czech national hockey team defeated Finland 3-2 in the final of
the hockey World Championship in Germany May 13 and won its third
consecutive title. Although the Finns had a 2-0 lead at the beginning of
the third period, the Czechs tied the score with goals by Martin
Prochazka (45th minute) and Jiri Dopita (54th minute). The winning goal
was scored by David Moravec in overtime.
Before reaching the finals, the Czechs defeated Slovakia 2-0 in
quarterfinals. The semifinal against Sweden was decided by a shootout
after a 2-2 tie could not be undone in one period of overtime.
Soccer League: Slavia Climbs into Second Place
Slavia Praha, which defeated Ceske Budejovice 1-0, came closer to
its goal - to qualify for the Champions League. Its rise into second
place was made possible when Slavia's two most serious rivals lost.
Olomouc lost in Liberec 2-0 and Pribram was defeated by Bohemians 1-0 in
Prague.
Results of the 28th round: Blsany - Sparta 2-2, Slavia - Ceske
Budejovice 1-0, Liberec - Olomouc 2-0, Bohemians - Pribram 1-0, Drnovice
- Jablonec 2-1, Synot - Zizkov 1-1, Ostrava - Teplice 1-1, Plzen - Brno
1-1.
Standings: 1. Sparta Praha 65 points, 2. Slavia Praha 49, 3.
Olomouc 48, 4. Pribram 47, 5. Zizkov 45, 6. Liberec 43, 7. Teplice 40,
8. Drnovice 38, 9. Bohemians 36, 10. Stare Mesto 34, 11. Blsany 34, 12.
Jablonec 29, 13. Ostrava 29, 14. Brno 28, 15. Ceske Budejovice 26, 16.
Plzen 17.
Sports by Ondrej Trunecka/Milan Smid
WEATHER
Things are getting better. The sun is warm and the parade of summer
fashion is in full bloom. Those celebrating the Czech hockey team's
victory in the World Championships enjoyed days of temperatures
exceeding 20 degrees Celsius/68 degrees Fahrenheit.
Katerina Kunovska
English version edited by Michael Bluhm.
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