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Carolina (English) No 427
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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 427, Friday, July 27, 2001.
FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST TWO WEEKS (JULY 11 - JULY 25)
Germany Appeals for Shutdown of Temelin Nuclear Power Station
The German government called upon the Czech Republic July 17 to
reconsider and to stop the process of putting into use the Temelin
nuclear power station. The Czech government refused to comment on the
appeal.
The German government is not pleased with Temelin's technical
equipment and believes it a high safety risk. The appeal also states the
electricity to be produced by Temelin is unnecessary, because the Czech
Republic has a surplus of energy. Czech Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir
Spidla said July 18 that only the Czech government will decide the
future of Temelin. He also claimed the power plant is safe and its
German opponents have no reason to be afraid. Czech Prime Minister Milos
Zeman expressed the same statements concerning the safety of Temelin.
John Ritch, president of World Nuclear Association, defended
Temelin in the Czech daily Pravo July 17. Ritch told German Environment
Minister Jurgen Trittin not to interfere into matters of foreign states
and to get better information concerning the safety of Temelin. German
Foreign Minister Joschka Fisher July 23 supported his German colleagues
and repeatedly called on Czech politicians to stop Temelin.
Fisher said the matter does not harm Czech-German relations nor
will it jeopardize the Czech Republic's accession into the European
Union.
Romanies Want to Sue the Czech Republic
Representatives of Romanies living in Ostrava are about to sue the
Czech Republic because it agreed with the British immigration control
procedure in Prague's Ruzyne Airport preceding flights to Britain.
Because of the measure - through which the British want to stop the
continuing flow of Romany asylum applicants from the Czech Republic
- dozens of Czechs were not allowed to fly to Britain. The Czech Foreign
Ministry explains the measure, enacted July 18, as an effort to prevent
visa requirements for all Czech citizens.
Czech KFOR Unit Changes
Another regular exchange of the Czech KFOR unit in Kosovo began
July 25 with the first flight of soldiers of the 11th Expeditionary
Force. Tweenty-three functionaries of the unit flew out July 19 to make
preparations for the new soldiers. The remaining soldiers will fly to
Kosovo July 31. The soldiers replace the 7th Mechanized Brigade, which
has been in Kosovo since February.
Defense Ministrty Breaks Law, according to Czech Television Report
Czech Television reported that the Czech Insurance Company (Ceska
pojistovna) received a 35-million-crown contract last year from the
Defense Ministry without a public tender being held, a violation of the
law requiring all state purchases exceeding 100,000 to be done by public
tender.
The ministry gave the insurance company the contract for the
ministry's compulsory insurance for all vehicles used by the Czech Army
and the ministry. The Czech Insurance Company said all negotiations with
the ministry were transparent.
The ministry opened a tender for the contract last fall, but then
closed it after claming none of the entrants met the conditions of the
tender. A new tender was not held. The contract expires this year.
FROM SLOVAKIA
Yoga Prompts Battle between Education Ministry and Churches
The Catholic and Evangelical churches are vehemently protesting the
Education Ministry including yoga among non-compulsory subjects able to
be taught at elementary and high schools. The ministry's project allows
for 400 teachers - graduates of a baisc yoga course - to lead the
course. The Slovak Bishops' Conference rejected the project, saying
ideological influence and manipulation are inseparable from the physical
aspects of yoga. The bishops also criticize Svami Mahevesvarananda of
India, who presented the project to the ministry.
FROM SLOVAKIA IN BRIEF
* Slovakia breached the freedom of speech of writer Lubomir Feldek,
according to a decision of the Euroepan Court for Human Rights in
Strasbourg. The Slovak Supreme Court decided against Feldek in a suit
filed against him by former Culture Minister Dusan Slobodnik. Feldek
charged Slobodnik in a newspaper article with having a Fascist past,
Slobodnik sued, the Slovak Supreme Court ordered Feldek to apologize.
Feldek then appealed to Strasbourg.
* Lt. Colonel Lubomir Orsag, 42, died July 20 when the jeep he was
riding in with a Norwegian soldier and their Albanian translator set off
a mine on the way from Skopje to Tetovo.
ECONOMY
Deputies Reject State's Final Account for Last Year
The Government July 13 presented to the Chamber of Deputies its
final accounts for 2000. Deputies rejected the accounting, because the
government exceeded the approved deficit. The deficit of 46 billion
crowns exceeded the approved deficit by 11 billion crowns.
Because there is no law specifying what the government should do
after losing such a vote, the deputies' decision has no influence on the
activities of the Cabinet. Chamber of Deputies Chairman Vaclav Klaus
said the rejection of the final state account does not mean there should
be a vote of confidence in the government. Prime Minister Milos Zeman
said the vote is only a political gesture.
Rates at the Czech National Bank (valid July 27)
--------------------------------------------------------------
1 EUR = 33.890
country currency CZK
------------------------------------------
Australia 1 AUD 19.645
Great Britain 1 GBP 55.104
Denmark 1 DKK 4.551
Japan 100 JPY 31.166
Canada 1 CAD 25.056
IMF 1 XDR 48.541
Hungary 100 HUF 13.692
Norway 1 NOK 4.230
New Zealand 1 NZD 15.922
Poland 1 PLN 9.194
Slovakia 100 SKK 78.888
Slovenia 100 SIT 15.476
Sweden 1 SEK 3.638
Switzerland 1 CHF 22.420
USA 1 USD 38.546
Exchange Rates of countries participating in the euro
(converted from the euro rate)
country currency CZK
-----------------------------------------
Germany 1 DEM 17.328
Belgium 100 BEF 84.011
Finland 1 FIM 5.700
France 1 FRF 5.166
Ireland 1 IEP 43.031
Italy 1000 ITL 17.503
Luxemburg 100 LUF 84.011
Netherlands 1 NLG 15.379
Portugal 100 PTE 16.904
Austria 1 ATS 2.463
Greece 100 GRD 9.946
Spain 100 ESP 20.368
CULTURE
Amelie from Montmartre Triumphs in Karlovy Vary
French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet's film Ameile from Montmartre
won the Crystal Globe, the grand prize at the 36th Karlovy Vary
International Film Festival. The film was immensely popular with the
fesival public, finishing second to the American animated movie Shrek
for the viewers' award. The Polish film Hi, Terezka won the special
prize of the jury, chaired by Polish director Krzystof Zanussi.
The French documentary Lives by director Alain Cavalier won the
prize for best documentary. Ben Kingsley and Czech director Otakar Vavra
received awards for lieftime contribution to cinema.
There were 9,724 guests registered at the festival - among them
4,913 students - an increase of about 1,000 from last year. The festival
boasted of 514 screenings, including 13 world premieres and 48
international premieres.
Reunited Living Colour Highlights Summer Festivals
The reunited American band Living Colour closed the
festival.kraliky.com music festival, which took place July 20-22 in
Kraliky in the Orlik Mountains (Orlicke hory). Constant rain marred the
festival, which also featured the Legendary Pink Dots and Czech bands
Support Lesbiens, Psi vojaci and Tony Duchacek and Garage. Living Colour
played barely an hour, after problems with passports and a 10 p.m. limit
for the festival.
The Boskovice 2001 festival, sponsored by the Unijazz association,
took place July 12-15 near Brno. The festival offered a photo exhibit,
film screenings, and of course concerts and theater performances.
CULTURE IN BRIEF
* Writer Ludvik Vaculik turned 75 July 23, with President Vaclav
Havel among those sending congratulations. Vaculik wrote for magazines
in the 50's, then was forbidden from publishing in the 70's and 80's,
mainly a result of his 1968 essay 2,000 Words. He is the author of three
novels and contributes regularly to to newspapers and the weekly
Literary News (Literarni noviny).
* Jazz singer Vlasta Pruchova turned 75 July 12. She gained fame
singing with the orchestras of Karel Krautgartner, Karel Vlach and
Ferdinand Havlicek. She is just as famous for the being the mother of
Jan Hammer (named after Pruchova's composer husband); she also sang with
the Junior Trio, the phenomenal group formed by Hammer and the Vitous
brothers, bassist Miroslav and drummer Alan, before Hammer and Miroslav
Vitous emigrated.
SPORTS
Czech Women's Juniors Win First World Championship in Basketball
The Czech women's juniors basketball team beat Russia 82:80 July
22 in the finals of the World Championships in Brno. They trailed 79:78
in the final minute, and Jana Vesela scored the winning basket to break
an 80:80 tie. The Czech team beat the USA 92:88 in the semifinals.
SPORTS IN BRIEF
* The Czech Republic's top soccer league kicks off its season July
28, with one of the biggest stories the return of goalie Petr Kouba. He
signed a one-year contract with Jablonec. Kouba, who was in goal when
the Czech tema made it to the final of the 1996 European Championships,
left Sparta that year for the Spanish team La Coruna, which won the
Spanish title. He did not play much in Spain, he was a guest player in
the German team Kaiserslautern and the Czech team Viktoria Zizkov.
* The third qualificiation round for the Champions League will take
place in August and pit Slavia Praha against the Greek team Panathinakos
Athens. The second-best Czech team will try its luck for the third time
to qualify for the Champions League. Czech champion Sparta Praha has
a spot in the league assured.
WEATHER
Despite the fact that July 15, with an average tempaerature of 30
degrees Celsius/86 degrees Fahrenheit, was the hottest day of the year
(in Southern Moravia in Znojmo a temperature of 35 degrees Celsius/95
degrees Fahrenheit was recorded), heavy rains in the last week worried
a great many residents of Moravia. Low pressure has left quite a number
of people lethargic, but the past couple days have hinted that a return
of summer may well be nigh.
This issue of Carolina was written by Petra Kovacova, Martin Rusek,
Andrea Slovakova, Lenka Nejezchlebova, Petr Frinta and Ondra Trunecka
and was translated by Sofia Karakeva and Michael Bluhm.
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