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 THE CZECH REPUBLIC Charles University in Prague Faculty of Social Sciences Smetanovo nabr. 6 110 01 Prague 1 Czech Republic e-mail: CAROLINA@mbox.fsv.cuni.cz ISSN 121-5040 tel: (+4202) 22112252, fax: (+4202) 22112219 *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* C A R O L I N A No 422, Friday, June 8, 2001. FROM THE EVENTS OF THE PAST WEEK (May 30 - June 6) Some 100 StB Agents Escaped Screening, Ministry Checking Certificates More than 100 former State Security (the secret police, known as the StB) agents, including members of the former military counter-intelligence, received false negative screening certificates in 1991 and 1992, said Interior Minister Stanislav Gross June 1. Screening certificates were issued in order to prevent former high functionaries in the Czechoslovak Communist Party, former agents and StB collaborators from holding certain public functions. Gross said responsibility lies with the Interior Ministry then headed by Jan Langos, which issued the certificates based on incomplete information. Gross' announcement shook confidence in all certificates. "The ministry at that time did not work with documentation as it should have. Materials (given to the Interior Ministry by the Defense Ministry to confirm its counter-intelligence personnel) wound up in a drawer and no one paid any attention to them," said Gross. On the other hand, historians and security experts say that at the time, when intelligence activities were being transferred from the StB to the Interior Ministry, important information about agents was destroyed, falsified and rewritten. "It was evidently an effort to survive, to keep a well paid job," said Vaclav Bartuska, a member of the parliament commission for investigating the events of November 1989. The case came to the light when eight high Interior Ministry officials did not pass security checks by the Defense Ministry because of collaboration with StB. All eight had negative screening certificates. "Our findings, however, demonstrated the opposite. Those people demonstrably collaborated with the State Security, that's why we warned the Interior Ministry that its officials issued in the past unauthorized screening certificates," said Defense Minister Jaroslav Tvrdik. He also said there are a lot of former StB agents in the army, but in lower posts not covered by the Screening Act. Gross announced June 4 that during the coming weeks his ministry will check 150,000 certificates issued at the beginning of the 90's. Marie Sternova/Sofia Karakeva Javier Solana in Prague EU High Commissar for Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana visited Prague May 31 to meet with Czech political leaders. Solana discussed with Foreign Minister Jan Kavan the affairs of the six countries which are NATO members but have not yet joined the EU, and also to discuss an institutional agreement between NATO and EU. During his meeting with the President Vaclav Havel, Solana emphasized the importance of the NATO summit in Prague in 2003. During his meeting with deputies and senators from foreign-affairs and security committees, Solana expressed hope that European rapid-reaction units of up to 60,000 men should be prepared by 2003. Solana, 58, last visited Prague three years ago, when Havel awarded him the state's White Lion Medal. Marie Sternova/Sofia Karakeva NEWS IN BRIEF * Jan Mrzena, director of the Southern Bohemia Theater in Ceske Budejovice, was elected chairman of the Czech Television Council May 30. The new supervisory body of the public-service broadcaster Czech Television was elected a week ago by the Chamber of Deputies as a result of the recent Czech Television crisis (see Carolina 421). * More than 70,000 liters of radioactive water leaked from the Temelin nuclear power station May 31. The accident was caused by an employee, who filled Temelin's reactor with too much cooling water, which then overflowed the security lid. There was no leakage outside of the power station. Temelin's management said the accident was not significant, environment activists say the opposite. * The requirement for travellers to disinfect their shoes in Czech airports and at border crossings with Germany and Poland ended June 1. The measure was taken in March to prevent the potential spread of foot-and-mouth disease (See Carolina 410). Marie Sternova, Adam Fendrych/Sofia Karakeva FOREIGN AFFAIRS * Deputy Foreign Minister and chief negotiator for EU membership talks Pavel Telicka settled on the period during which foreigners will not be allowed to buy land or real estate in the Czech Republic. It will be seven years for farmland and five years for real estate not permanently occupied. The Czech Republic refused the EU proposal for the free movement of people, intended to limit Czech employment abroad (see Carolina 421). * Political leaders of the Visegrad Four (the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary) met in Krakow, Poland, for the 10th time June 1. They talked about joining the EU and expressed the hope that at the July EU summit Gothenburg, Sweden, the EU would set a firm date for these countries to join. The Polish, Czech and Hungarian prime ministers said they want NATO to accept Slovakia and Slovenia soon. * Anton Malloth, 89, was sentenced to life imprisonment in a Munich court May 30. After 56 years, one of the most brutal jailers at the Terezin (Theresienstadt) deportation camp was convicted of murder and attempted murder. Foreign affairs by Zdenek Sloboda/Stepan Vorlicek FROM SLOVAKIA Government Reconstruction, Part Two The Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) introduced a new plan to reduce the number of ministers from 20 to 13, after unsuccessful negotiations to reshuffle the Cabinet. They propose abolishing four ministerial posts and three ministries: culture, privatization and regional development. Jozef Migas, head of the governing coalition's Party of the Democratic Left (SDL'), said his party views the KDH plan positively. Another coalition party, the Party of Civic Understanding (SOP), might support the proposal, too. However, the rest of the coalition parties disapprove, as does the opposition Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS). The government named new ministers: Maria Kadlecikova (SOP), deputy premier for integration, and Ivan Simko (Slovak Democratic Christian Union), interior minister. Zdenek Sloboda/Adam Fendrych FROM SLOVAKIA IN BRIEF * The government May 30 allotted 1 billion SVK to settle Slovak Television's and Slovak Radio's (SRo) debt to Slovak Telecommunications. The payment was a precondition for the purchase of Slovak Telecom by Deutsche Telekom. Zdenek Sloboda/Adam Fendrych ECONOMY Average Monthly Salary Passes 13,000 Crowns The average monthly salary in the Czech Republic rose to 13,289 crowns in the first quarter of 2001, which is 1,128 crowns (9 per cent) more per month than in the same period last year. The Czech Statistics Office released the data May 31. The average take-home pay is 10,500 crowns per month and, according to a government commission for social and economic strategy, it should increase to as much as 19,500 crowns per month in 2008, when the Czech Republic is expected to be a member of the EU. The gap between Czech salaries and salaries in EU countries varies from 50 to 70 per cent, but prices of goods here are often as high as in the union - clothing, dairy products and fuels, for example. Prices grew by 4 per cent, which means that the average citizen can buy 5 per cent more than last year. Also, the differences between salaries in various sectors increased. The sector with highest average salary is banking, as usual; the sector's 27,000-crown-per-month average salary was up 24 per cent from last year. Also the salaries of IT experts grew rapidly, they are the only Czechs earning on average more than 30,000 crowns per month. On the other hand, textile industry and agricultural laborers earn the least. Some experts say a 5-per-cent salary increase is the maximum, as more could induce undesirable inflation. However, economist Jan Svejnar said to the daily Pravo, "We should not fear the growth of salaries, because the output of our economy is growing, as well. If we get closer the EU in prices, salaries must get closer, too." Gripen Fighter Planes Cheaper The price of the Gripen fighters offered to the Czech Army will not exceed 75 billion crowns (existing estimates expected a minimum cost of 100 billion crowns). The offer of the British-Swedish consortium BAE-Systems/Saab is the only one in the tender, after Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Eurofighter International and Dassault Aviation withdrew before the tender was closed May 31. The government established an interdepartmental commission, which should announce its recommendation by the end of September. The government could also cancel the purchase of 36 or 24 planes. The proposed price includes the planes and training, spare parts for three years of operation and logistic support. The weapons systems will have to be ordered separately later, and American companies are likely to supply them. The price does not include interest on a possible 15-year loan, which is also part of the offer. Czech industry should profit from the contract, as the supplier of the planes must pledge to secure offset investments in the Czech Republic for an amount equal to 150 per cent of the price of the planes. That would be 112 billion crowns for the Gripens. Economy by Stepan Vorlicek/Stepan Vorlicek Rates at the Czech National Bank (valid June 8) -------------------------------------------------------------- 1 EUR = 34.100 country currency CZK ------------------------------------------ Australia 1 AUD 20.690 Great Britain 1 GBP 55.853 Denmark 1 DKK 4.573 Japan 100 JPY 33.529 Canada 1 CAD 26.389 IMF 1 XDR 50.337 Hungary 100 HUF 13.665 Norway 1 NOK 4.286 New Zealand 1 NZD 16.529 Poland 1 PLN 10.053 Slovakia 100 SKK 79.202 Slovenia 100 SIT 15.666 Sweden 1 SEK 3.664 Switzerland 1 CHF 22.392 USA 1 USD 40.193 Exchange Rates of countries participating in the euro (converted from the euro rate) country currency CZK ----------------------------------------- Germany 1 DEM 17.435 Belgium 100 BEF 84.532 Finland 1 FIM 5.735 France 1 FRF 5.199 Ireland 1 IEP 43.298 Italy 1000 ITL 17.611 Luxemburg 100 LUF 84.532 Netherlands 1 NLG 15.474 Portugal 100 PTE 17.009 Austria 1 ATS 2.478 Greece 100 GRD 10.007 Spain 100 ESP 20.495 CULTURE Czech Literary Fund Awards Annual Prizes The book Ferdinand Peroutka - His Later Life 1938-1978 (Ferdinand Peroutka - Pozdejsi zivot 1938-1978) by Pavel Kosatik was given the Czech Literary Fund's Annual Prize in the category of literature June 5. Paleoanthropologist Emanuel Vlcek and his book Czech Kings I-II (Cesti kralove I-II) received the prize in scientific literature category. Frantisek Honzak from the Libri publishing house got the annual prize for lifetime achievement in promoting reference works, encyclopedias and dictionaries. Among other winners, who received 50,000 crowns from the Czech Literary Fund, were Miroslav Krobot for his stage version of Ivan Goncharev's novel Oblomov, and Karel Vachek for the television documentary Bohemia Docta - The Divine Comedy. The Czech Literary Fund published its 2000 annual report, according to which the foundation distributed last year 339 grants worth 5,539,110 crowns. Martin Roubal/Milan Smid Zlin Film Festival Awards The awards for the 41st year of the International Festival of Films for Children and Young People have been distributed. The Child and the Soldier from Iran won the grand prize, the Golden Shoe, in the children's feature category, the Ali Zaoua (France, Morocco, Belgium) won the award in the category of youth feature film. The Golden Shoe for animated film went to The Dance of Bullying (Canada). The following films also received awards: The Miracle (Denmark), The Rebels (Rebelove, CR), The Circle (Kruh, CR), Bring It On (USA), Ely and Nepomuk (Switzerland), Marco Polo - Return to Xanadu (USA, China, Slovakia), The Mole and the Mum (Krtek a maminka, CR) and The Landscape (Krajinka, SR). Jindrich Polak has won the award for lifetime contribution to film for children and youth. According to the daily Pravo, this year of the festival saw a negative reaction by the audience to scenes of a baby's being born into a toilet bowl and sex between children in one of the movies. Martin Roubal/Adam Fendrych SPORTS Czech Soccer Players Lose First Place in World Cup Qualification The Czech national soccer team lost 1-2 in Denmark June 2 in its sixth game of the 2002 World Cup qualifications. Bulgaria moved into first place of the group standings with 13 points, one point ahead of Denmark; the Czech Republic is third with 11 points. After the game against Northern Ireland (finished after our deadline), the Czech team will play in Iceland and will host Malta and Bulgaria. The winners of the nine groups and seven second-place teams will qualify. The Czechs lost to Denmark for the first time in history, it was also the first qualification defeat for coach Jozef Chovanec. His strategy collapsed with the 6th-minute goal by Ebbe Sand. The Czechs faced continued offensive attacking by Denmark, but their defenders were up to the task. In the 41st minute Roman Tyce tied the score with his shot from the penalty box line. After the break Vladimir Smicer failed to convert two good chances and and the Danes' Martin Jorgensen centered to Jon Dahl Tomasson eight minutes before the final whistle to secure the victory. After deadline: Czech Republic - Northern Ireland 3-1 (1-1). Goals: Kuka (40th minute, 88th), Baros (90th) - Mulryne (45th). Stars Shine in Track and Field Meet in Ostrava Top Czech athletes met world-class opponents in Ostrava's Golden Spikes track meet May 31. The most expected star, however, had to withdraw: Michael Johnson, the United States' world-record holder in the 200 and 400 meters and five-time Olympic champion, had to return home because of his mother's illness. Canadian Olympic champion Donovan Bailey won the 100 meters, Czech javelin thrower Jan Zelezny pleased the fans with his winning throw of 89.47 meters. Roman Sebrle, new Czech decathlon world-record holder, ran in the 110 meters hurdles, finishing in fifth place. Kenya's Wilson Boit Kipketer won the 3,000 meters steeplechase. SPORTS IN BRIEF * The Czech national under-21 soccer team defeated Northern Ireland 4-0 June 5. After a 4-3 win in Denmark, the team has almost assured qualification for the European Championships final 16. * The Sparta Praha and Slavia Praha soccer clubs have new coaches. Jaroslav Hrebik will leave Jablonec to coach Sparta, Josef Pesice (former Slavia assistant coach) will lead Slavia. Karel Vecera signed a new contract in Brno, Karel Jarusek in Drnovice. * After the first week of the French Open, all the Czech singles players have gone home. Bohdan Ulihrach, Jiri Novak, Daniela Bedanova and Denisa Chladkova lost in the fourth round. Petr Pala and Pavel Vizner advanced to the men's doubles semifinals. Sports by Adam Fendrych/Mirek Langer WEATHER Last week said farewell to warm and pleasant weather. Evidence of the cold front arriving in Central Europe over the weekend was visible in pictures of a newlayer of snow on the Krusne Mountains and the Giant Mountains (Krkonose). The average daily temperature in the lowlands fluctuates between 15 and 18 degrees Celsius/59 and 64 degrees Fahrenheit. English version edited by Michael Bluhm. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- This news may be published only with attribution to CAROLINA. Subscription is free. Comments and remarks are appreciated. 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