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 Faculty of Social Science of Charles University Smetanovo nabr. 6 110 01 Prague 1 Czech Republic e-mail: CAROLINA@cuni.cz tel: (+4202) 24810804, ext. 252, fax: (+4202) 24810987 *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* C A R O L I N A No 282, Friday, March 27, 1998. FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (March 18-25) Former Social Democrat Vice Chairman Machovec First Victim of Scandal Karel Machovec was removed from the Social Democrats' central Bohemia ballot for the early parliamentary elections in June at the party's regional conference March 22 by a vote of 70 delegates to 56. Machovec, considered one of party Chairman Milos Zeman's strongest rivals, was removed for his role in "Bamberg-Gate." The Bamberg affair was initiated by a Czech Television program March 16 (see Carolina 281). Bamberg is the German town where in 1995 Zeman and Machovec met Czech-Swiss entrepreneurs who are said to have offered them a low-interest loan and documents compromising leaders of the ruling political parties. If they had won the 1996 elections, the Social Democrats were to provide the entrepreneurs with top economic and political posts in exchange for the loan of tens of millions of Swiss francs. Machovec and Zeman changed their positions several times last week. Zeman strongly denied having signed the document shown on Czech TV but later Zeman found a hand-written copy of the Bamberg meeting's minutes in Czech in party archives and submitted it to Security Information Service Director Karel Vulterin. Machovec, the author of the minutes, said on television he had hidden the original document in the Social Democrats' safe and destroyed it later. He then denied (through an assistant while he was visiting Russia) having ever confirmed the authenticity of the German memo with which Czech-Swiss businessman Jan Vizek started the scandal. At the same time, Machovec accused Czech Television reporters of deliberately editing the interview to change what he said. Under pressure, Czech Television broadcast the unedited interview with Machovec on the same program March 23 and thus proved he confirmed Social Democrat negotiations with the businessmen on providing them with a loan in exchange for government posts. The show forced Machovec to recount his previous denials and admit Czech Television had not altered his words. Zeman refuses to comment on anything concerning the case until the inquiry determines who produced the fake memo in German. Though Social Democrat leadership considers Zeman's explanation unsatisfactory, the will not seek his resignation. Jana Ciglerova, Jan Kozanek/Jana Ciglerova Senate Passes Ban on Drug Use A group of people gathered in front of the Senate building March 18 to protest an amendment to the law on drug possession. Although the protest was peaceful, police kept a careful eye on the crowd. The small number of those present was out of proportion to the number of people the law will affect, and had no influence on the Senate's decision. Parliament's upper house passed the amendment that day. Those caught with drugs could have to pay up to 15,000 crowns or spend up to two years in prison. Forty of 71 senators voted to pass the amendment, 21 voted against and 10 abstained. With both houses of Parliament having passed the amendment, only President Vaclav Havel can veto it. The amendment will go into effect January 1 if the president signs it. The current law punishes the manufacture and distribution of illegal drugs, although one can possess drugs for personal use. The Christian Democrats proposed the amendment. Petr Bilek Jr., Tomas Mls/Andrea Snyder Czech Victims of Nazism to Receive Compensation Fifty years after World War II, Czech victims of the Nazis will receive compensation. All who provide documentation by the end of March proving they were political prisoners will receive from 30,000 crowns to 50,000 crowns. The compensation is provided by the Future Fund, which was created after the Czech-German declaration was signed in January 1997. Over the next four years, the Czech government will provide 440 million crowns and the German government will give 140 million deutschmarks. The money will be divided among Czech victims of the Nazis and Germans with Czech citizenship. Dagmar Buresova, chairwoman of the fund's Czech board, said about 6,000 people will receive compensation. Ivona Pulkrabkova/Andrea Snyder Man Who Saved 664 Czech Jewish Children Visits Prague British Jew Brit Winton, who saved more than 600 Czech Jewish children in 1939, visited Prague. He met with nine women who he had smuggled out of the country. Winton came to Prague in 1938 as an employee of the London Stock Exchange. The possibility of Hitler occupying the former Czechoslovakia loomed large. Winton decided to give the country's Jewish children a chance to escape the Nazis and the occupation. He began organizing transports for children from Jewish families, the first transport being 20 children spirited to Sweden. Others were taken through Germany to England, and Winton also found families to take in the children. Thanks to Winton, 664 Jewish children escaped certain death in Nazi concentration camps. Ajla Zinhasovic/Andrea Snyder Americans Warned Not to Stay in Maltese-Libyan Corinthia Hotels Bankovni holding, created from an Investment and Postal bank (IPB) closed-end investment fund, evidently broke the law banning business with Libya by selling the hotel management group Top Spirit to the Maltese-Libyan-owned Corinthia Group. Parliament passed a law a year ago which joined the Czech Republic with the group of countries banning all business contact with Libyan-owned or controlled establishments in an effort to control Libyan terrorism. It is not yet clear how the Czech Republic's Security Information Service will approach the transaction. The law does not include penalties for its violation. Because U.S. law forbids any transactions with Libyan-owned enterprises, the U.S. embassy in Prague warned its citizens that they may have to pay up to 250,000 dollars and companies up to 500,000 dollars in fines if they lodge or dine in any of the embargoed hotels. Corinthia Group owns Prague's Panorama and Forum hotels, as well as the Hotel Cernigov in Hradec Kralove, the Palcat in Tabor, the Bavor in Strakonice, the Anna in Wimperk, the Kuba in Kubova Hut, the U Svateho Vavrince in Roudnice nad Labem and the Motel Konopiste. Lenka Vochocova/Andrea Snyder NEWS IN BRIEF * The Czech Senate passed a constitutional law requiring parliamentary elections by the end of June. President Vaclav Havel has said that he will probably set the date for June 19-20. * Jiri Sedivy will replace Jiri Nekvasil as commander of the Czech Army May 1. Nekvasil is to be restationed in Brussels as the Czech NATO representative. Sedivy attended the military academy in Vyskov and later studied at the Army War College in the United States. He led the Czech mission in Bosnia, and is married with two children. * Social Democrat leadership decided March 20 to support Czech NATO membership without calling for a referendum. * The Communist party decided March 21 that for the next four years they will advocate a 35-hour work week, a 30-per-cent consumer tax on luxury goods and a property tax of 5 per cent to 80 per cent. * Support among Czechs for NATO membership is rising. According to a recent poll, 57 per cent of respondents agree with joining NATO. * Twenty-eight per cent of Czech respondents to a recent poll said they were convinced they live better now than they lived under the Communist regime. Katerina Murlova, Lenka Jindrlova, Ondrej Hanzal/Andrea Snyder, Gabriela Pecic FOREIGN AFFAIRS Internal US Politics Delay NATO Vote The American Senate March 22 has delayed its vote on NATO expansion. "The delay has nothing to do with the level of support or opposition to an expanded NATO. It is an expression of discussion between the Republicans and the Democrats in the Senate over their schedule and further steps in approving other laws," said Alexandr Vondra, the Czech ambassador to the U.S.. If the Democrats continue to slow approval of the new Education Act, the Senate will get to the question of foreign policy in April, threatened Republican Trent Lott, the senate majority leader who determines the Senate's schedule. Before Easter the Senate is to deal with the Republican proposal for tax breaks related to public and private schooling, the financing of the military operations in Bosnia and the Persian Gulf and changes to the Emergency Aid Act. Nevertheless, it is expected that expansion will be ratified by more than the necessary two-thirds of the Senate. The bill has support from both parties and Lott. If Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic are to enter NATO, the step must be confirmed by the legislatures of all member countries. Of the 16 countries in the Alliance, expansion has been ratified by the legislatures of Canada, Denmark and Norway, with Germany ratifying March 26. Prokop Havel/Ajla Zinhasovic Citizens of EU Countries Do Not Support Czech EU Membership Under the shadow of the Bamberg scandal, news appeared last week about unpleasantly low support among citizens of European Union member countries for the EU membership of the Czech Republic. In the four most powerful EU countries - France, Austria, Germany and Belgium - the majority of respondents of EU Commission research are against the entry of the Czech Republic into the EU. In Germany, 40 per cent of respondents were against Czech EU membership, while 37 per cent agreed with Czech membership. Worse results came from Austria, where the proportion was 45 per cent against membership and 38 per cent supporting. On the other hand, the Czech Republic was mostly supported by Scandinavian countries. Denmark respondents expressed 64 per cent support for the Czech Republic, while Sweden registered 63 per cent support. Ireland and Portugal recorded about 40 per cent support for Czech Republic membership with 24 per cent against. The total percentage of support is close, but in the end favorable - 41 per cent of respondents for membership, 33 per cent against. Hungary and Poland, however, achieved better results. Freedom Union Vice Chairman Petr Mares, a historian, said he believes the results express EU countries' uneasiness with cheap competition from the East. "It's good that our citizens see this now and realize that member countries are going to have problems with expansion, too, and must also take risks," Mares said. Erik Tabery/Sofia Karakeva FROM SLOVAKIA The Slovak SOP and a Pre-Election Calculation The Party of Civic Understanding (SOP), a political entity formed one month ago, produced another unexpected triumph March 19. On the private television station Markiza, which supports SOP, popular opera singer Peter Dvorsky announced he would join the new party, referring to his efforts to help conciliation in the country. According to a poll taken by the Focus agency, the largest number (29.1 per cent) of respondents would vote for the five opposition parties associated in the Slovak Democratic Coalition (SDK). The reigning Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) received the support of 23.6 per cent of respondents, while 11 per cent of respondents supported the novel SOP. The pre-election situation has become dramatic for other reasons as well: amendments to the Election Act proposed by Premier Vladimir Meciar's HZDS six months before the expected elections are directed against the SDK and would make it nearly impossible for the coalition to enter the elections as such; the proposed requirement of 5 per cent being the minimum for each party in a coalition to allow the coalition as whole into the National Assembly would almost ensure the failure of three of the SDK's five members. Another interesting fact is the proposal to make running as an independent illegal, which would mean a breach of the voting rights guaranteed in the Slovak Constitution. Tomas Mls/Denisa Vitkova ECONOMY Czech Gross Domestic Product Grew 1 Per Cent Last Year In 1997, the Czech economy grew by 1 per cent, which makes it the worst result since 1994 and the worst 1997 result in Central Europe (Slovakia's GDP grew by 6.5 per cent, for example, second in the region to Poland). However, a number of economists claim growth could have been negative, considering both 1997 economic reform packages, the Czech National Bank's restrictive monetary policy and the July floods. Hope for improvement in 1998 remains, because of the growing dynamism of Czech export and results from the last quarter of 1997, when GDP grew 2.2 per cent after 0.1 per cent growth in the third quarter. Experts conclude this year should bring GDP growth of 2 per cent to 3.5 per cent. Jaroslav Mares/Denisa Vitkova Trade Deficit Trend Might Not Have Happy End February's trade deficit for the Czech Republic is quite a pleasant surprise. The figure is 3.6 billion crowns, about 1.5 billion crowns less than in January and about half the estimates of most analysts. Recent months have shown a favorable trend in the balance between import and export. The latest information from the Czech Statistical Office (CSU) shows that imports increased by 23.2 per cent over the last 12 months, while exports grew by 45.3 per cent. The low exchange rate of the crown partially caused the turnaround, according to the CSU and other experts. But these days the currency is strengthening and so the situation could worsen. Experts claim this will lead to less encouraging trade deficits in upcoming months. David Kozohorsky/Matej Cerny Exchange Rates at the Czech National Bank (valid from March 27) country currency ------------------------------------------ Australia 1 AUD 22.792 Belgium 100 BEF 89.537 Great Britain 1 GBP 56.579 Denmark 1 DKK 4.845 ECU 1 XEU 36.676 Finland 1 FIM 6.086 France 1 FRF 5.511 Ireland 1 IEP 46.408 Italy 1000 ITL 18.735 Japan 100 JPY 26.128 Canada 1 CAD 23.944 Luxemburg 100 LUF 89.537 IMF 1 XDR 45.363 Hungary 100 HUF 15.976 Netherlands 1 NLG 16.387 Norsko 1 NOK 4.467 New Zealand 1 NZD 19.016 Poland 1 PLN 9.841 Portugal 100 PTE 18.035 Austria 1 ATS 2.626 Greece 100 GRD 10.572 Germany 1 DEM 18.470 Slovakia 100 SKK 96.229 Slovenia 100 SIT 19.860 Spain 100 ESP 21.774 Sweden 1 SEK 4.254 Switzerland 1 CHF 22.615 USA 1 USD 33.773 CULTURE Academy Award Given to Czech Pinkava During the Academy Awards ceremony in Los Angeles, the auditorium was treated to a few words of Czech from the platform. Prague-born Jan Pinkava, 34 and living in California, won the gold statue of the American Film Academy for best animated short film for his work Geri's Game. The four-minute Oscar winner was created through computer animation. The hero of this film is an old man playing chess - alone - whose face changes during the game. "Mom, this is for your birthday," said Pinkava from the stage in Czech to his mother Eva Pinkava, who was visiting one of her children living in the Czech Republic. She was only sorry that Jan's father, writer Vaclav Pinkava (who wrote under the pseudonym Jan Kresadlo) died three years ago in London and was not there to enjoy his son's success. Jan Pinkava moved with his family to England when he was six years old. In Great Britain he studied graphic design and illustration, and when he was 16 one of his short films won a BBC contest. Eva Fronkova/Sofia Karakeva SPORTS Slavia Loses in Stuttgart and Exits Cup Winners Cup Slavia Praha will not repeat its semifinal appearance in a European Cup two years ago. In the quarterfinals of the Cup Winners Cup it lost in Stuttgart 0-2 and was eliminated. However, Slavia played a very good match. Its strategy, to fend off Stuttgart's attacks in the first half and then try to score, fizzled as soon as Krassimir Balakov scored in the 10th minute on a free kick. Slavia tied the first match on its home field in Prague's Eden 1-1, and so it had to score in Stuttgart. Vladimir Labant's header hit the post in the 65th minute and Lubos Kozel missed a great chance just before the end. Balakov repeated his precise free kick in the 90th minute and closed the match. Slavia's loss determined the Czech Republic's national index for the European cups will not be among the top eight, meaning next year one Czech team will start in the Champions League, one in the Cup Winners Cup and two in the UEFA Cup. Mirek Langer/Mirek Langer Vsetin First in Semifinals The hockey extraleague playoffs begin with reigning three-time champ Vsetin becoming the first team to advance to the semifinals. Vsetin crushed Pardubice in the first round thanks to four Jiri Dopita goals March 20. After two more great performances, Vsetin advanced after the first match on Pardubice's ice. Results: Vsetin - Pardubice 7-0, 5-2, 4-3. Series: 3-0. Litvinov led twice by two goals in Vitkovice, but did not manage to win till the series moved to Litvinov. Results: Vitkovice - Litvinov 5-2, 6-5, 0-2. Series: 2-1. The most dramatic series is being played between Sparta Praha and Plzen. There were 16 penalties during one period in the second match March 21, and 136 penalty minutes in the game. Plzen is unexpectedly leading the series, with the fourth match to be played on its own ice. Results: Sparta Praha - Plzen 2-3, 4-2, 2-5. Series: 1-2. The series between Trinec and Slavia Praha has been quite balanced. Results: Trinec - Slavia Praha 4-3, 3-4, 5-4. Series: 2-1. Michal Cerny/Mirek Langer Sparta Still Leads Soccer League, 10 Points ahead of Slavia Sparta Praha players defeated their fifth opponent in a row by the score of 1-0 in the soccer league spring session's fifth round and still lead the standings. Slavia continues to trail Sparta by 10 points, after defeating Jablonec 2-0. After the league break, including the national team match against Ireland, the top two teams will meet in the popular Prague derby. Drnovice, after bad play in recent games, easily defeated Brno 4-0 and coach Jan Kocian was saved from a sacking. Plzen returned to 15th place after losing to Zizkov, because Ceske Budejovice defeated Teplice. Results of the 20th round: Drnovice - Brno 4-0, Liberec - Sparta Praha 0-1, Ostrava - Hradec Kralove 3-0, Dukla - Opava 1-0, Ceske Budejovice - Teplice 2-0, Bohdanec - Olomouc 1-2, Zizkov - Plzen 1-0, Slavia Praha - Jablonec 2-0. Standings: 1. Sparta Praha 51 pts., 2. Slavia Praha 41, 3. Olomouc 34, 4. Ostrava 32, 5. Brno 31, 6. Jablonec 30, 7. Liberec 29, 8. Zizkov 26, 9. Drnovice 26, 10. Dukla 25, 11. Hradec Kralove 23, 12. Teplice 22, 13. Opava 22, 14. Ceske Budejovice 22, 15. Plzen 21, 16. Bohdanec 7. Jiri Polak/Mirek Langer After deadline: Czech Republic - Ireland 2-1 (played in Olomouc). Goals: Smicer, Lasota - Breen. WEATHER Spring is here and the weather went crazy with rapid changes. If you decide to take a walk in sunny weather you might soon be petrified when stuck in a blizzard. This winter was one of the warmest in the Czech history (it was warmer only in 1794 and 1796) and it looks like one of the most insane springs is ahead of us. I'm thinking of our ancestors' times, when it was cold in winter and warm in summer, while I fill my backpack with a winter coat, tanning lotion, wading boots and an air mattress before leaving for school. Jaroslav Mares/Matej Cerny English version edited by Michael Bluhm ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This news may be published only with "CAROLINA" designation. The subscription is free. Comments and remarks are appreciated. 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