Section Archive ICE - special
Czech exhibition celebrates the freedom to be gay
An exhibition celebrating the history of the gay and lesbian movement in
the Czech Republic has just opened in Prague. It is mostly focused on gay
culture over the last two decades, a time when Czech homosexuals made great
strides in achieving equality. When it comes to a close in the capital, the
exhibition will tour the country.
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Slovak caricaturist Shooty has a critically sharp pencil
Each day Slovakia's best known caricaturist, Shooty, (Martin Sutovec) puts
his pencil to work with sharp criticism of Slovak politics and society.
Reactions to his caricatures on the former Pope John Paul II or other
religious topics were very strong in Slovakia and led to heated debate.
Though Shooty does not like to talk to the media, Ela Nahalkova managed to
get wome words with the young artist.
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Austrian town claims "flood" of asylum seekers since borders opened
Local politicians in the town of Traiskirchen near Vienna are complaining
of a flood of asylum seekers since the opening up of borders under the EU's
Schengen agreement. Traiskirchen is home to Austria's largest refugee
centre and local officials say the number of people accommodated there has
more than doubled since border controls with Austria's eastern neighbours
were dropped on December 21st. The interior ministry says the situation is
being exaggerated and claims most of those coming into Austria will be sent
back to the country where they first applied for asylum.
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A Polish addiction - TV soaps and series
On average, Poles spends three and a half hours daily in front of the
television. Nearly half of that time is devoted to watching TV series or
soap operas. This is according to a recent survey by Poland's leading
polling center. Anna Piwowarska of Polish Radio's External Service
investigates the Polish people's love for television sagas.
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Slovenia's EU presidency faces challenges in its own neighbourhood
Slovenia is taking on a bit of delicate diplomacy just days after taking
over the European Union Presidency. The Croatian navy intercepted an
Italian fishing boat in a controversial protection zone in its territorial
waters last week. The EU says this could harm Croatia's chance of EU
membership. This is just one of a number of thorny issues for Slovenia
which sees the presidency as a matter of national pride.
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Explosive prank could spell fine or even prison for members of artistic group
Last June, a group of artists called Ztohoven hijacked a Czech Television
programme to broadcast images of a nuclear bomb going off on a peaceful
Czech hillside. The mock explosion may have been and gone in a flash, but
the fallout has far from disappeared. Last month, Ztohoven won an award
from the Czech National Gallery for the work. On Wednesday, State Attorney
Dušan Ondráček said that he had brought charges against the group.
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ICE - special
In this week's Insight Central Europe: Slovenia takes on the EU Presidency
- but is it a poisoned chalice? And we review 2007 in Central Europe with
some of our features and special reports including - journeys into some of
the lesser known regions of Slovakia and Slovenia. We'll find out why Poles
are waltzing into dance classes and hear how Hungarians feel about open
borders. You can hear all of these stories and more in this Insight Central
Europe or visit our web site
www.incentraleurope.com
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As to Zlin: A Czech odyssey by train
There's probably no better way to see a country than by train, preferably a
really slow one, giving you lots of time to take in the countryside,
meeting interesting people along the way. Radio Prague's Rob Cameron took
that to the extreme earlier this year when he set out for a 19-day slow
train odyssey across the Czech Republic, accompanied by friend and former
Radio Prague colleague Nick Carey. They set foot in more than 80 towns and
villages, crossed the border into Germany, Poland, Slovakia and Austria,
and trundled over more than 2,000 km of track. Rob kept an audio diary of
that trip - here's a sort of concentrated digest.
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Christmas Caroling across Poland - with a British academic
In predominantly Catholic Poland, concerts of Christmas carols are held in
churches and concert halls across the country at this time of year. In
quite a few Polish homes, too, people sing carols together during the
Christmas season. Carols occupy such a prominent place in the Polish
musical tradition, they are the subject of study by musicologists.
Professor Adrian Thomas of Cardiff University in the UK, who's written
several books on Polish music, has given a series of lectures on Polish
music in London. One of them was devoted to Polish Christmas carols.
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Schengen: Barriers disappear at Berg on the Slovakia - Austria border
In a region once riddled with borders of barbed wire and gun emplacements -
Friday's historic enlargement of the EU's border free zone - known as
Schengen - has particular resonance. The Visegrad four of Hungary, Poland
the Czech Republic and Slovakia, along with Slovenia, were among the nine
newer EU member states celebrating their new ease of travel. It was also a
time to reflect on the unhappy events these borders had witnessed in the
past.
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