CCCCC AA RRRRR OOOO LL II NN N AA CC AA A RR R OO O LL II NNN N AA A CC AA A RRRRR OO O LL II NN N N AA A CC AAAAAA RR R OO O LL II NN NN AAAAAA CCCCC AA A RR R OOOO LLLLLL II NN N AA A STUDENTS' E-MAIL NEWS FROM CZECH REPUBLIC School of Social Sciences of Charles University Smetanovo nabr. 6 110 01 Prague 1 Czech Republic E-mail address: carolina@n.fsv.cuni.cz Fax: (+422) 24810987 *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* C A R O L I N A No 125, Friday, July 1, 1994. FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (June 22 - 29) Government approves proposal of a constitutional law on organizing 17 regions (countries) in the Czech Republic The Citizen's Democratic Party (ODS), strongest party in the country, decided during their June 28 meeting to to come to a compromise in the coalition conflict about the number of regionally legal units. This conflict, continuing now for several months, has divided the coalition into two sides. On one side, ODS is still the strongest. It has been enforcing more than 80 regions or counties. Smaller coalition members - Citizen's Democratic Alliance (ODA), Christian Democratic party (KDS), and the Christian Democratic Union - Czechoslovak People's Party (KDU-CSL), stood against it. They proposed a much smaller amount. The conflict came to a head last week, right after the governmental majority turned down Jan Kalvoda's proposal (Governmental vice-chairman, and ODA Chairman ) to divide the Czech Republic into 13 regions. Prague Mayor Jan Koukal (ODS) strongly disagreed with the proposal last week. Instead of creating Prague as a sole region, it put the city into its former Central-bohemian region. After the government didn't approve the proposed law, it fell into danger that it may not be able to keep the promise to foreward a proposal on arranging the regions to parliament by the end of June. Milos Zeman, Chairman of the opposing social democrats, expressed his distrust to the cabinet. President Vaclav Havel sent letters to three the chairs of the coalition parties June 25, expressing his dicontent with the fact that two years after the approval of a governmental program, the coalitions can not agree on state legal reforms. ODS, with the weight of ten votes, established their compromise. It divides the Czech Republic into 17 regions. Former Czechoslovakia was made up of 5 Czech regions, 2 Moravian regions, and 3 Slovak regions. Tomas/Andrea Albanian Prime Minister in Prague for a Three-day Visit The Czech Republic could provide Albania with up to 11 million US dollars, according to information contained in the Czech press of Monday (June, 27.) Czech aid to Albania was discussed during talks between Prime Minister Vaclav Klaus and Albanian Chairman of the Goverment Aleksandr Meksi, who is in Prague for a three-day visit The Czech Republic aid will come in the form of maniches for Albania's food industry and agriculture. Josef Zieleniec, minister of foreign affaires, lso talked with Meksi about the Albanian debt owed to the Czech Republic whichamounts to 15 million dollars. In Meksi's opinion, the only way out is to change the money into goods or to give it for Czech tourism. President Vaclav Havel, who met the Albanian guest on Tuesday, believes that Albania could become a centre for Czech tourists. Meksi suggested cancelling the need for visas between the two countries. Lida/Zuzana Vaclav Klaus about the Democratic Union Prime Minister and Chairman of Civic Democratic Party Vaclav Klaus called the Democratic Union (we informed about it in the last Carolina) the party of fundamentalistic antibolshevics with no positive programme. Mr. Klaus made his remark in Varnsdorf in Southern Bohemia on Thursday Juny,23. In his opinion, DEU,s face is turned toward the past and that this path does not go anywhere. "The rear mirror in the car cannot be larger than the front screen. I see the window. I am afraid that this elementary truth Mrs. Hromadkova (the leader of the new party) and people of the new party and the people around her did not understand." Klaus' remarks were quoted in Cesky denik on Saturday. Lida/Zuzana Best-selling Titles in the Czech Newspaper Market Agencies AISA and GfK brought results from a survey, Media Project 94, on Thursday Juny, 23. The survey revealed that the best-selling newspaper Mlada fronta Dnes, which before the revolution was the main daily of the Union of Youth. Today the French company Socpresse belonging to Robert Hersant (he owes majority of the French press) has majority in the MaFra stock company that prints the newspaper. Socpress had 48% till Saturday June,25 and about 4% they bought from Czech journalists. Mlada fronta Dnes is bought by almost 340 thousand people, read by 16% of population which makes 1 million and 300 thousand people. The best-selling gossip newspaper is Blesk - 18% of the population read it which is 1.5 million people. They sell 286 thousand of them avery day. Blesk is printed by Switch Ringier. The third best-reading (12% of people) and the second best-selling (308 thousand of printings) is Rude pravo. Before the revolution it belonged to the Czechoslovak Communistic Party, today it sais - the independent newspaper.At least this belongs to a Czech company (Borgis s.c. where the chief editor Zdenek Porybny has the majority). The newspaper is in the opposition to the Goverment and has a professional standard. In other places there are Zemedelske noviny, Svobodne slovo, Hospodarske noviny, and Lidova demokracie is in the tenth place. Lida/Zuzana The Tenth of the School Children Smoke and Almost the Quater of Boys Drink Alcohol 11.5% of boys and 7.5% of girls from basic schools smoke and 22.8% of boys and 10.8% of girls drink alcohol once or more times a week which is more than abroad. A survey made by the National Centre for the Health Support took place in 35 schools in CR and 1622 pupils took part in it. According to the survey boys prefer beer and hard alcohol, girls prefer wine and mixed drinks. A similar survey was undertaken also in secondary schools. There 18.7% of boys and 15.4% of girls confessed that they smoke. 31.6% of boys and 14.4% of girls drink alcohol more often than once a week. Tomas/Zuzana ECONOMICS Bohemia Bank Finishes Definitely Bohemia Bank is the first private bank which has to finish its existence. The majority of the stock-holders were for the canceling in the meeting on Monday. However, little stock-holders do not agree. They think that this solution is advantageous only for the FINOP company (the owner of majority is the Czechoslovac Business Bank), which has 51% of Bohemia Bank. There was state supervisor sent to Bohemia Bank in April for illegal operations abroad. The leaders of the bank are investigated by the police for it. Tomas/Zuzana After a Long-time Fall, a Short Rise and Fall Again After a two-week rise on the Prague stock market, stocks fell again on Monday, June 27, as Tuesday's session showed. For example, as stocks soared last week, it nearly looked as if the prices would surmount the negative developement of the previous months, the Monday PX 50 index (official market index) fell nearly one percent, Tuesday, it fell almost three and a half percent. Market analysts had predicted the former rise to be transient. As a reult of the national holiday July 5, the stock market will not even operate on the 4th, so as to escape any possible problems with Monday trading. Tomas/Andrea Exchange Rates of the Czech National Bank (valid from June 29) Checks Cash Country buy sell middle buy sell middle Australia 1 AUD 20.427 20.633 20.530 19.46 21.60 20.53 Belgium 100 BEF 86.403 87.271 86.837 84.14 89.54 86.84 Great Britain 1 GBP 43.596 44.034 43.815 42.40 45.24 43.82 Denmark 1 DKK 4.533 4.579 4.556 4.36 4.76 4.56 Finland 1 FIM 5.366 5.420 5.393 4.89 5.89 5.39 France 1 FRF 5.193 5.245 5.219 5.02 5.42 5.22 Ireland 1 IEP 43.021 43.453 43.237 41.24 45.24 43.24 Italy 1000 ITL 18.020 18.202 18.111 17.34 18.88 18.11 Japan 100 JPY 28.093 28.375 28.234 26.93 29.53 28.23 Canada 1 CAD 20.363 20.567 20.465 19.58 21.36 20.47 Luxemburg 100 LUF 86.403 87.271 86.837 83.84 89.84 86.84 Netherlands 1 NLG 15.861 16.021 15.941 15.46 16.42 15.94 Norway 1 NOK 4.086 4.128 4.107 3.96 4.26 4.11 New Zeland 1 NZD 16.740 16.908 16.824 16.07 17.57 16.82 Portugal 100 PTE 17.291 17.465 17.378 16.20 18.56 17.38 Austria 1 ATS 2.530 2.556 2.543 2.48 2.60 2.54 Grece 100 GRD 11.801 11.919 11.860 11.15 12.57 11.86 Germany 1 DEM 17.799 17.977 17.888 17.43 18.35 17.89 Spain 100 ESP 21.568 21.784 21.676 20.68 22.68 21.68 Sveden 1 SEK 3.706 3.744 3.725 3.57 3.89 3.73 Switzerland 1 CHF 21.171 21.383 21.277 20.78 21.78 21.28 USA 1 USD 28.210 28.494 28.352 27.65 29.05 28.35 EC-ECU 1 XEU 34.093 34.435 34.264 -- -- -- IMF-ZPC-SDR 1 XDR 40.927 41.339 41.133 -- -- -- Slovkia 1 XCU -- -- 34.264 -- -- -- CULTURE Philippe Noiret in Prague, and Possibly at Karlovy Vary Festival French actor Philippe Noiret (Old Haf, Gentle Chicken) flew into Prague June 24 for an 8-day shoot. He is playing the lead role in a FrancoCzech production, based on Bohumils Hrabal's story, Too Loud Silence (Prilis hlucna samota). Noiret would like to meet the writer. Noiret will be in Prague shooting until August 13. Although his work schedule includes 12 hours a day, six days a week, the French star may yet take part in the International Film Festival in Karlovy Vary. Tomas/Andrea WEATHER The warmest June 28 in 220 years took place this week. In Prague's Klementinum, we measured 33 degrees. Tropical days give us a small break at night. At the entrance exams, going on at our faculty this week, not only did the testees sweat, but also the testers. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Dear readers, Carolina will be sent out every other week over vacation. July 14, Milan Smid will send out edition 126, Lida Truneckova will send edition 127 July 28 and edition 128 on August 11. Jan Jirak will send out the edition 129 on August 25. The English version will be the following day. We will let you know about the September dates in time. We will resume original lenght and coverage in late September, early October. Pekne leto Vam preje Vase redakce ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This news may be published only with "CAROLINA" designation. The subscription is free. Comments and remarks are appreciated. Send them please to the address: carolina@n.fsv.cuni.cz To subscribe to CAROLINA you send an e-mail message to the address LISTSERV@CSEARN.BITNET or to the address: LISTSERV@EARN.CVUT.CZ The text of the message is: SUBSCRIBE CAR-ENG First name Last name for the English version or SUBSCRIBE CAR-CS First name Last name for the Czech version. To delete your subscription from the list you send the following message to LISTSERV@EARN.CVUT.CZ: SIGNOFF CAR-ENG or SIGNOFF CAR-CS Please, don't send automatic replies to our list. You can temporalily stop receiving of Carolna by sending the command: SET CAR-ENG NOMAIL The command should be sent to the address LISTSERV@EARN.CVUT.CZ