Section Archive Current Affairs
Czech government’s future remains uncertain after party split
The fate of the centre-right Czech government hangs in the balance after
the junior coalition party Public Affairs split up, robbing the government
of its comfortable majority in the lower house. The newly emerging
pro-government faction around defector Karolína Peake is now trying to
rally enough deputies to secure a viable majority in the lower house, but
the key players on the Czech political scene are already preparing for
early elections. More
Kupka’s Shape of Blue sets new Czech art auction record
On Wednesday night, The Shape of Blue, a painting by abstract artist
František Kupka, sold for 55.75 million crowns at auction – setting a
new Czech art auction record. The impressive final sum came as a surprise
even to the director of Adolf Loos Aprtment & Gallery, which organized
the auction. What significance does this latest record have for the
domestic art market, and what makes this work of Kupka’s special? We
spoke to Jan Skřivánek, the editor-in-chief of art + antiques. More
Prague conference explores role of culture in diplomacy
This Thursday saw the hosting of a Culture Plus event at Prague’s
Černín Palace, co-organised by the Czech Foreign Ministry. On the table
was the topic Culture & Diplomacy – namely how culture, including the
arts, can be used to promote greater communication and understanding. More
Domestic vintners outraged over planned introduction of wine tax
In its ongoing effort to find ways of lowering the state budget deficit,
the Czech government has announced that it is planning to introduce a new
tax on wine. The country’s winemakers are enraged and believe that this
step will lower the competitiveness of domestic vintners, while giving
foreign producers an edge on the Czech market. More
Peake quits Public Affairs
Influential politician Karolína Peake dropped a political bombshell late
Tuesday when she announced that she was leaving the smallest party in
government to found a new faction. The move has cast doubt on whether the
centre-right coalition still has a majority in the lower house needed to
govern. More
Pundit: Public Affairs has no future with or without Vít Bárta
The leadership of the junior coalition party Public Affairs is meeting to
debate the outcome of last week’s trial in which the party’s informal
leader Vít Bárta was found guilty of bribery. Although Mr. Bárta had
promised to pull out of high politics if he did not clear his name, he now
says he’ll keep his seat in the lower house and he thus remains a member
of the party’s deputies’ club. Radio Prague asked commentator Jiří
Pehe for his thoughts on how this latest development may impact the
government’s future and who is now actually running the smallest party in
government. More
Pirate Parties in Prague set sails for Europe-wide political success
Cue: Pirates of the World, Unite! – that was the message at this
weekend’s Pirate Party International meeting in Prague, the third in the
organisation’s history and the first in the Czech capital. What started
as a Swedish protest movement against the criminalisation of file-sharing
has grown into a tangible political body, setting its sights on
continent-wide success in the 2014 European Parliament elections. More
Government vows no cuts in this year’s foreign aid budget
The Czech Foreign Ministry has vowed that in spite of severe austerity
measures, this year’s budget for the country’s foreign development aid
will not suffer any cuts. The Czech Development Agency is planning to spend
over 430 million crowns on development projects mainly in countries that
have been earmarked as priority recipients, including Mongolia, Ethiopia,
Moldova, Afghanistan, and others. More
Czech MPs Bárta, Škárka sentenced in bribery case
A Prague court on Friday delivered a verdict in one of the most
high-profile cases in recent years. The court found the unofficial leader
of the coalition Public Affairs party guilty of bribery, and fellow MP and
former Public Affairs chair of fraud. The case also highlighted the shady
practices within the Public Affairs party which has been behind a series of
government crises. More
22nd edition of Prague Writers’ Festival brings international literature greats like Hanif Kureishi to Czech capital
On Saturday, the 22nd edition of the prestigious Prague Writers’ Festival
kicks off in the Czech capital, under the theme of “Only the future
exists”. For five days, visitors will have the opportunity to attend
readings, discussion panels and film screenings featuring writers from
around the world. As every year, the festival brings writers of
international caliber to the city, with the British novelist and
screenwriter Hanif Kureishi probably the most famous guest this year. Sarah
Borufka spoke to the festival’s president, Michael March, about the
guests, the mission and the theme of the festival. More
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