AUSTRIA

Six people were injured after a landslide caused part of an Obertauern hotel to collapse April 9. The 5 a.m. landslide caused a retaining wall of an employee dormitory to cave in, burying six people in debris. Rescuers dug out the victims, one of whom suffered critical injuries.

Basque separatists announced April 8 that they are committed to peace if Spain ends its “attacks” against them. The ETA detonated a car bomb at Madrid’s international airport Dec. 30, eight months after declaring a cease-fire. The group’s demands include better treatment of ETA prisoners, inclusion in elections and fewer arrests of ETA members.

Most people in France expect Nicolas Sarkozy to win next month’s presidential election, according to a poll released April 8. Fifty-nine percent of 881 voters questioned said they expect Sarkozy, the former interior minister and Union for a Popular Movement candidate, to beat Socialist candidate Segolene Royal and right-wing contender Jean-Marie Le Pen. The official presidential campaign opened April 9.

Two French tourists remain missing after the cruise ship they were on sank April 6. The 22,412-metric-ton (24,650-short-ton) Sea Diamond sailed into a reef near the island of Santorini April 5. All 391 crew members safely evacuated as did 1,156 passengers. Meanwhile, experts are trying to control an oil spill caused by the ship. Six crew members, including the captain, have been charged with misdemeanors.

Ten Turkish troops are dead after clashes with Kurdish separatists in the country’s southeast region April 7 and 8, Reuters reported. Thousands of troops were involved in an organized crackdown against the Kurdish guerillas, a military spokesperson said. The separatists have been waging a bloody battle for independence in the region near the Iraqi border since the 1980s.

The UK Defence Ministry is facing criticism for allowing two of the 15 sailors and marines released from Iranian captivity April 5 to sell their stories to the media. Critics said the ministry’s decision is part of a propaganda ploy. During their interviews, Faye Turney, 25, and Arthur Batchelor, 20, spoke of isolation, psychological abuse and harsh living conditions during their 13-day captivity.

Authorities tipped off by the German branch of Interpol have charged six men and one woman suspected of operating a child-porn distribution ring, police told the Czech News Agency April 4. Officers seized more than 2,000 DVDs during raids in three locations across the country. The suspects, aged 24–57, include a former prosecutor and a customs officer, police said.

CORRUPTION

Justice Minister Jiří Pospíšil has proposed tightening the Criminal Code to fight corruption, he told reporters April 5. Pospíšil suggested increasing the maximum sentences for giving a bribe to two years and for taking one to 12 years. Not reporting corruption would mean a sentence of up to three years. According to a December 2006 Gallup survey, the rate of corruption in the Czech Republic is higher than in India, Pakistan and the Philippines.

Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek said April 10 that the government has no money to move the controversial pig farm in Lety, south Bohemia, that is on the site of a World War II internment camp for Roma, or Gypsies. Instead, the government would support the construction of a memorial near the farm, he told reporters. The cost of moving the farm is estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of crowns. The previous government had promised to move the farm.

Minister Džamila Stehlíková said April 9 that the government will present its Roma integration policy in June. Stehlíková, who is in charge of minority issues, said the initiative will focus on problems related to housing, education and employment. Meanwhile, Roma activists announced that they plan to file a criminal complaint against Deputy Prime Minister Jiří Čunek because of his recent inflammatory statements about the Roma. They are alleging that his comments have fomented hatred against them.

Foreign Affairs Minister Karel Schwarzenberg announced April 5 that the first round of talks about the U.S. request to station a radar base here will begin May 11. Schwarzenberg said Parliament has received all the technical details about the radar, but Communist Party Deputy Václav Exner said the government does not have sufficient information about the radar’s installation.