News News

Raid on Heřmanice prison house

Four people have been charged with theft and abuse of office following a police raid on the Heřmanice prison house in Ostrava. Officers have been searching the premises and questioning employees since Friday night. Nine people were detained in the case and the four charged are prison guards who are believed to have been involved in scam practices at a nearby scrap metal yard from which they made millions of crowns. Officers were still searching the premises on Sunday. In view of the ongoing investigation the police have not released any details on the case.

Martin Bursík elected deputy chairman of the Green Party

Martin Bursík was elected deputy leader of the Green Party on Saturday night after losing the battle for the top post to his main rival, the party’s current leader Ondřej Liška. The two men clashed over the party’s future direction with Martin Bursík criticizing his rival for pulling the party left of centre, instead of striving to regain lost right-wing voters. Ondřej Liška argued there were no potential allies right of centre who would help implement the Green’s policy programme and stressed the need to address the young generation which is generally receptive to green issues. Others elected to the party leadership are Pavla Brady, Matěj Stropnický, Dana Kuchtová, Tomáš Průsa and Eva Tylová. The Greens were relegated to the sidelines of Czech politics after failing to cross the 5 percent threshold needed to win seats in the lower house in the 2010 general elections.

Cardinal Duka to take possession of titular church

Cardinal Dominik Duka, Archbishop of Prague, will take possession of the titular church of Santi Marcellino e Pietro in Rome on Sunday November 25th, the church he was assigned when he became cardinal. He will formally accept responsibility for the titular church at a mass served by Pope Benedict XVI. The cardinal will manage this new office with the help of an assistant.

Klus causes sensation at 2012 Český slavík awards

Twenty-six-year-old Tomáš Klus was voted singer of the year in the men’s category of the Český slavík (Czech Nightingale) awards ousting pop idol Karel Gott who had 13 awards in succession to his name. The 73-year-old singer who has dominated the awards since they were established in 1962 winning 37 nightingales altogether, got a standing ovation from the audience and joked that his fans must be having problems voting over the internet. Lucie Bilá picked up the award for best female singer and was also voted overall winner. Kabát picked up the award for best band for the seventh time in succession. The winners are elected by the public.

Peake against rewarding former rebel deputies with seats on supervisory boards

Deputy Prime Minister Karolína Peake has said she would try to prevent three former deputies for the Civic Democratic Party, who gave up their seats in the lower house to allow the government’s tax package to win approval, getting a reward in the form of seats on supervisory boards in state-owned companies. Ms. Peake said in a panel debate on Czech TV on Sunday that this kind of behaviour seriously undermined the government’s credibility and that she intended to bring the matter up at the next cabinet meeting. The Czech branch of Transparency International has long criticized the practice of appointing politicians to the boards of state-owned companies saying it presents a serious corruption risk.

Domestic violence statistics

Close to 1,200 people were evicted from their homes over domestic violence between January and October of this year, according to statistics published by the White Circle of Safety, an NGO assisting victims of domestic violence. Restraining orders were issued on average for a ten day period to give victims time to re-think their situation and take measures to protect themselves and their children. Domestic violence has been perceived as a crime in the Czech Republic since 2004 and the law enabling perpetrators to be ordered out of their homes was passed in 2007. Six thousand people have been temporarily evicted from their homes for perpetrating domestic violence since it came into force.

Record number of construction companies going under

A record number of Czech construction firms have gone bankrupt this year, according to the Czech Credit Bureau. The CCB says it expects a 17 percent increase in the number of bankruptcies year on year. 130 construction companies went bankrupt in the first six months of this year, which makes up 70 percent of all bankruptcies in 2011, the CCB said in its report. Newly-established construction firms are reported to be the most vulnerable.

Weather

The start of the week should be partly cloudy to overcast with scattered showers and day temperatures between 7 and 10 degrees Celsius.