The Prague Post
September 7th, 2008
Endowment Fund     Business Listings ONLINE      Reservations      Classifieds    Subscriptions
Real Estate Prague Prague Rentals Prague Apartments Prague Art & Antiques

Home » Archives » News

Race for the castle

Presidential election 2008: A side-by-side look at the candidates

By Markéta Hulpachová
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
January 30th, 2008 issue

KURT VINION/THE PRAGUE POST
President Václav Klaus and hopeful Jan Švejnar made time for photographers moments before their historic Jan. 29 debate.
enlarge
Whether through years in public office or weeks on the campaign trail, incumbent Václav Klaus and challenger Jan Švejnar have made their politics and personalities known to Czechs. Now, in the run-up to the Feb. 8 election, public and elected officials alike have seen these presidential candidates go head to head for a first-of-its-kind debate. The historic meeting, organized by the opposition Social Democrats (ČSSD), took place Jan. 29 in the Green Room of the Senate.
Although the president is not elected through a direct vote, the public was able to watch the debate, broadcast live. For more than an hour, the candidates sparred on questions from senators on topics such as healthcare fees, finance reforms, civic society and the moral authority of the presidency.
While discussing government spending, for instance, Klaus asserted that devoting monetary resources to stop global warming would be “throwing money out of the window.” Švejnar, by contrast, has said environmental issues deserve serious attention.
Later in the discussion, Švejnar expressed his views on the European Union, saying that the Czech Republic should be a “strong and active member.” Klaus, however, has been more reluctant in his approach to the EU.
Although a debate format serves to highlight the differences between candidates, when stepping back to consider Klaus and Švejnar’s particular backgrounds, the similarities also become difficult to ignore. Both economists with experience in banking, each candidate is capitalizing on his vast economic and political knowledge in his bid for a place at Prague Castle.
From their political platforms to personal lives, what follows is a look at the candidates.

Jan Švejnar

The son of a reform economist, challenger Jan Švejnar, 55, was born in Prague 5–Smíchov. At age 17, he moved to Switzerland, where his family emigrated after the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops. Because he fled the country before earning a secondary-school diploma, Švejnar was not accepted for study at a European university. He moved to the United States at age 18. After studying economics as an undergrad at Cornell University in New York and doing his graduate and postgraduate study at Princeton University in New Jersey, Švejnar worked as a professor of economics in both Europe and the United States, including the University of Michigan, where he has taught since 1996.
Švejnar
enlarge
His biggest achievements include the establishment of a prestigious economic research center linking Prague’s Academy of Sciences with Charles University, and his work as director of the University of Michigan’s William Davidson Institute.
Švejnar, who met his wife, fellow University of Michigan faculty member Katherine Terrell, while interning at the World Bank, has two children.
As he emphasizes on his campaign Web site, Švejnar’s “life is not all about work.” He has a lifelong affinity for skiing, which he recently complemented with snowboarding. He also enjoys tennis and playing the guitar.

ON THE ISSUES

Economy
Cautioning against a worldwide economic slowdown, Švejnar stresses the importance of the Czech Republic’s economic development within the European Union and effective preparation for the long-planned conversion to the euro. Domestically, his plans include “nursing public finances back to health” and strengthening the social and healthcare systems.
Foreign policy
Pledging to “present us as a dynamic and ambitious country that knows what it wants in the EU,” Švejnar’s goal is to streamline the country’s EU agenda and speed up its path toward European integration.
With the country set to helm the EU presidency in 2009, intensive preparation for effective leadership is among Švejnar’s top priorities, as is enabling the speedy ratification of the EU reform treaty.
Like Klaus, he also supports the United States’ plans to build a radar base on Czech soil as part of a European missile-defense shield, but says more time and dialogue between the two countries are necessary.

Politics

Although he is a relatively unknown figure on the local political scene, Švejnar has been pulling the strings in the background since the early 1990s, when he was an adviser to former President Václav Havel and an architect of that period’s economic reforms. As someone with no previous political affiliation, Švejnar capitalizes on his objectivity, promising to be above special interests and political agendas.
 

 

Václav Klaus

The incumbent Václav Klaus, 66, was born in Prague 2–Vinohrady. The relatively relaxed political atmosphere in Czechoslovakia during the mid-1960s allowed him to study briefly in Naples, Italy, and Cornell University in the United States. He did his undergraduate and post-graduate studies at the University of Economics in Prague.
Klaus
enlarge
After years of work at the Czechoslovak National Bank and the Economic and Prognostic Institutes, Klaus entered high-level politics in the Civic Forum shortly after the 1989 revolution, and was named finance minister.
Klaus has since been on top of the country’s political apex, and has seen the nation through some of its toughest post-communist transformations. As prime minister from 1992 to 1997, he participated in the peaceful split-up of the Czech and Slovak republics. He is also credited with implementing “coupon privatization,” through which the government returned state property to private ownership. In 1991, he founded the Civic Democratic Party (ODS), and until 2002 acted as its chairman. In 2003, he replaced Havel as president.
Klaus, whose wife, Livie, is also an economist, has two sons and five grandchildren.
On his campaign Web site, he proclaims himself to have been “a top athlete in his youth.” He now skis and plays tennis, and enjoys reading fiction and listening to jazz.

ON THE ISSUES

Economy

Warning against a hasty conversion to the euro, Klaus says the Czech Republic faces more negative impacts by entry into the euro zone than any other former Eastern bloc country. “Possible entry would raise the Czech Republic’s interest rates one or two percent above the euro-zone average,” he wrote in his blog.

Foreign policy

Despite the fact that he signed the country’s application for EU membership, Klaus continues to warn against the impulse to be an obedient member state at all costs, or “Euro-fanaticism.” Although he supports European integration and opening the country’s borders, he is a staunch opponent of overt centralization and excessive bureaucracy. “We should deal with whatever we can on our own,” he wrote in a recent statement. “It’s not necessary for Brussels to make our decisions for us.”

Klaus has also gained international notoriety for his skeptical stance on global warming. In his book, Blue, not Green Planet, published in 2007, he delves into the “economics of global warming” and discusses the risks of implementing measures to curb its effects too abruptly.
Politics
Klaus is often criticized for his “Euro-skepticism,” his affiliation with the ODS and the problems with coupon privatization, which may have been to blame for the country’s 1997 economic recession. Klaus, however, believes his ability to remain in power and guide the country through these setbacks speaks for itself.
— Markéta Hulpachová 

Markéta Hulpachová can be reached at mhulpachova@praguepost.com


Other articles in News (30/01/2008):

Browse the Current Issue

If you enjoyed this article, why don't you subscribe to the print version!
We accept secure online transactions provided by PayPal and Moneybookers

Be the first to add a comment!


Full Name: *
City: *
E-mail: **
This comment can be published in the print version of The Prague Post
Enter the text on the right:
 visual captcha
Comment: *
* Required field. In order to be approved for display, comments must have a first and last name and a city.
** E-mails are required and will only be used for internal purposes.

Most visited in Business Listings

Hotel booking
The Prague Post Online contains a selection of articles that have been printed in
The Prague Post, a weekly newspaper published in the Czech Republic.
To subscribe to the print paper, click here.
Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.