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Talking PointA glimpse at Prague's secretive Vietnamese community
The Czech Republic boasts a large Vietnamese community, dating back to the
days when the two countries were part of the Communist bloc. Today there
are an estimated 40,000 Vietnamese here, the large majority of them
working as market traders. The focal point of Prague's Vietnamese
community is a huge open-air market known to Czechs as "Little
Hanoi", and to Vietnamese as "Sapa", after an area of
outstanding natural beauty in Vietnam. Rob Cameron was given a guided tour
of Sapa by Mimi Nguyen, a 26-year-old student from Hanoi.
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Current AffairsCan Europe sharpen its blunt competitive edge?
Leading British and Czech economists met at Prague Castle last week for
another in a series of conferences about the future of Europe - what it
has to offer the world, how it is affected by migration and the impact of
European integration, among other things. Last week's conference was
called Can Europe sharpen its blunt competitive edge and it presented
another platform to the much debated Lisbon agenda aimed at raising the
EU's competitiveness by 2010. Keith Didcock, deputy director of the
Foreign Policy Centre in London tells Daniela Lazarova about the
conclusions reached in the course of the two day panel debate.
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Talking PointCzech Republic - A Second Homeland
Since the 1989 Velvet Revolution, the Czech Republic has become a second
home for many foreigners. Among them - a sizeable community of 7,500
people from the countries of the former Yugoslavia. Why did they decide to
leave their homes and come here? What do they do now? Do they see Prague
as
their new home? Maida Agovic reports about their experiences and
impressions in the Czech capital. More
Current AffairsForeigners unaware that Ombudsman is there for them too
On December 8th 1999, the Czech Parliament adopted a law which established
an Ombudsman or Public Defender of Rights. But while many Czechs have been
making use of this service, few foreigners are aware that they too have
the right to ask the ombudsman for assistance. To reach more foreigners
and inform them on what the ombudsman's office has done so far, a press
conference was held in Brno this week.
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One on OneFrank Haughton - pub pioneer building bridges between Czechs and Irish
Rob Cameron's guest in this week's One on One is Frank Haughton, who set up
a number of Irish bars in Prague over the last decade. Originally from
Wicklow in Ireland, Frank left his job as a stockbroker to come to Prague.
Today he owns just one bar - Caffrey's, on the Old Town Square - and it
was there that Rob caught up with him to talk about starting out in the
early 90s, the stag party invasion, and the Czech thirst for Irish
culture.
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Letter from PragueAnglicization and its discontents
"Nemluvim Cesky." I don't speak Czech. It's by far my least
favorite phrase in the Czech language and one that unfortunately I've had
to say quite often. On Monday's edition of this program, Dominik Jun took
a look at the growing trend of Anglicization in Prague's tourist
districts. I enjoyed the segment but must admit that it made me feel a bit
uncomfortable when it occurred to me that I am one of this trend's
perpetrators.
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Current AffairsNumber of foreigners residing in Czech Republic doubles in ten years, government tries to attract skilled foreign labour
Figures have been released this week showing that the number of foreigners
residing in the Czech Republic legally has almost doubled in the past ten
years. They now make up 2.3 percent of the country's population, but that
number is still incomparably lower than that in other EU member states.
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Czechs Today"Children of the storm" - A look at the complex origins of the Czech Republic's Hellenic community
Greece, like many poorer countries, has a huge diaspora of emigrants living
and working abroad. It's estimated that over five and a half million
people of Greek origin live in other countries around the world. The Czech
Republic also has a sizeable Greek community. But while Greeks living in
places like the United States and Australia primarily left their homeland
in search of work and a better standard of living, most of the Hellenic
community here first came to the Czech lands for a very different reason.
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One on OneTodd Benson - Prague TV co-founder dreaming of the ocean
Our guest in this week's One on One is Todd Benson, co-founder of the
online city guide and web portal Prague TV. Todd, an American who grew up
in England and the U.S., came to Prague after graduating from college, and
- like many foreigners - decided to start a new life in the Czech capital.
Rob Cameron spoke to Todd recently, about the pros and cons of Prague
life, some of the more controversial classified ads on his website, and
dreams of one day being able to live a bit closer to the ocean.
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