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August 16th, 2006 | Current Issue

Global reach
As Al-Jazeera readies for world broadcasts in English, a Czech who powers its newsroom, Petr Stokuč, bottom right, has no qualms

Adoption reform addresses abuse
Foreigners wanting to adopt must undergo extensive testing

Security boosted for flights to U.S.
High alert continues at Ruzyně Airport despite easing of threat levels

Report: Prison facilities deny human rights
Public advocate Motejl releases findings of six-month investigation

Parents wanting to adopt face challenges, long waits

Czech brands of old making a comeback
Nostalgic locals choose the return of communist-era labels over Western products

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BRIEFS


  • GOVERNMENT -
    • Prime Minister and Social Democratic (ČSSD) leader Jiří Paroubek is expected to resign Aug. 16, more than two months after losing the July 2–3 election. The Chamber of Deputies elected its chairman Aug. 14 after six unsuccessful attempts. ČSSD Deputy Miloslav Vlček received 174 votes out of 197. His appointment, which is to be temporary, is the first step in forming a government.

  • PLANETS -
    • The way celestial bodies are classified faces significant changes as more than 2,000 of the world's leading astronomers gather in Prague Aug. 14–25 for the annual meeting of the International Astronomical Union. Topping the agenda is defining what constitutes a planet, which is likely to lead to up to three new planets being named.

  • WORKERS -
    • Nearly 400,000 citizens from the 10 newest European Union member states have applied for work in the United Kingdom since May 1, 2004, when that country opened its labor markets, the daily Právo reported Aug. 14. Among them were 220,000 Poles and 20,000 Czechs. UK officials say the flood of new workers will not create job shortages there.

  • MISSILES -
    • Four out of the five parties in the Chamber of Deputies want a referendum on a potential U.S. missile defense base in the Czech Republic. The Civic Democrats are divided on the issue, Právo reported Aug. 14. The United States is likely to submit an official request for the country's participation in building the base by September.

  • SENATE -
    • A few famous faces will be vying for seats in this fall's Senate election, including Pavla Topolánková, the wife of Civic Democratic Chairman and potential new Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek, the Czech News Agency reported Aug. 14. Other candidates include television host Mirka Cejková and pop singer Martin Maxa. The Senate election is slated for Oct. 20–21.

  • FLU -
    • Czech scientists are developing a medicine to combat bird flu, working with the U.S. pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, the daily Mláda fronta Dnes reported Aug. 14. Scientists from the Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry Institute of the Academy of Sciences think the drug will develop into an efficient medicine against the disease, which was first found here in March. The virus has killed 136 people worldwide.

  • UK -
    • The United Kingdom lowered its countrywide security level from "critical" to "severe," five days after authorities foiled a terrorist plot to blow up as many as 10 aircraft bound for the United States using liquid explosives Aug. 10. Twenty-three suspects remain in custody, as police investigate the case. UK law enforcement officials have said that the threat of similar terrorist attempts is still substantial.

  • FRANCE -
    • The French Interior Ministry has received some 24,000 residency applications from illegal immigrants. Immigrants who have children attending French schools had until Aug. 11 to meet an amnesty deadline that would let them legalize their status in the country. The ministry said it would issue residency permits to about a quarter of the applicants.

  • SLOVAKIA -
    • Government officials are planning to establish an office for ethnic minorities, Slovak Deputy Prime Minister Dusan Caplovic said Aug. 14. He did not specify the tasks the new office would undertake, but said its creation would take two to three years. Ethic minorities make up nearly 15 percent of Slovakia's 5 million citizens.

  • POLAND -
    • The European Commission (EC) criticized Poland Aug. 11 for failing to meet its European Union commitments to protect natural habitats. The country has put more than 100 endangered species in further jeopardy, the EC said. Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski told environmental groups last week that the number of protected habitats in the country should be cut to make way for roads and other projects.

  • UKRAINE -
    • A gas explosion killed six miners and injured seven others Aug. 13 at a coal mine in eastern Ukraine. The remaining 158 miners were safely evacuated. Ukraine has some of the world's most dangerous mines due to poor safety standards and outdated equipment. Nearly 4,300 miners have been killed in accidents in the country since 1991.

  • RUSSIA -
    • Drawings worth several million dollars were stolen from a Russian national archive and only noticed when some of the items were sold at a London auction house, Russian officials said Aug. 15. The announcement came one week after a separate theft at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, raising questions about the security of artwork around the country.

  • NETHERLANDS -
    • Dutch national television broadcaster TV NOS had to apologize Aug. 12 after wrongly reporting that the mayor of Utrecht, Annie Brouwer, had died after being hospitalized with Legionnaire's disease. NOS said the wrong information was based on an anonymous e-mail.

  • GREENLAND -
    • Greenland, an autonomous province of Denmark, is seeing its ice cap melting at an increasing rate, which is responsible for rising sea levels. Scientists from the University of Texas in Austin measured the ice cap and concluded it is losing around 57 cubic miles (238 cubic kilometers) annually. NASA scientists confirmed the trend.

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