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December 4th, 2008
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December 5th, 2007 | Current Issue

Season opener
Tree lighting officially kicks off Christmas in Prague

Record heist nets half a billion Kč
Officials call security agency incident the 'robbery of the century'

ČR readies for border-free zone
Schengen membership starts Dec. 21, signalling EU unity

Activism marks World AIDS Day
More education for youth needed despite low disease prevalence

Police suspect missing girl's body found
Despite high recovery rate, unsolved cases remain on the books

Tram service to expand
14.2 kilometers of new tracks planned to ease commutes on outskirts

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BRIEFS


BELGIUM After five months of unsuccessful efforts to form a government coalition, Belgium’s senior Flemish Christian Democratic Party Chairman Yves Leterme resigned Nov. 30, the BBC reported. His demands for greater autonomy of Belgium’s regions were rejected by politicians from Wallonia, Belgium’s French-speaking territory.

SLOVAKIA Two Hungarians and a Ukrainian were arrested near the Slovak-Hungarian border Nov. 28 after authorities discovered they had nearly half a kilogram of highly enriched uranium, The New York Times (NYT) reported. Police say they likely got it from a former Soviet republic and planned to sell it for $1 million. Enriched uranium is one of the two fuels needed to make an atomic bomb.
RUSSIA President Vladimir Putin’s United Russia Party secured more than 60 percent of votes in Russia’s Dec. 2 lower house elections, the BBC reported. The victory, which enables Putin to retain political power after his presidential term concludes next year, is being criticized by European election watchdog organizations, which have called the election undemocratic.
ITALY A 77-year-old man shot his 82-year-old wife to death Dec. 2 as she lay in a Tuscan hospital, where she was being treated for advanced stages of Alzheimer’s disease, the Associated Press reported. After his arrest, the man told police he killed his wife because he could not stand to see her suffer.
FRANCE Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili met in Paris with five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and Germany Nov. 30 for talks that failed to break the deadlock over Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, according to the BBC. Western powers plan to toughen UN sanctions against the program, which Jalili says is “entirely peaceful.”
POLAND Health inspectors found two cases of the deadliest strain of bird flu on two poultry farms near the city of Plock over the weekend of Dec. 1, according to Forbes.com. Although H5N1 has been found in wild birds in Poland in recent years, this is the first case of the infection affecting commercial farms.
UKRAINE A series of gas explosions at an east Ukrainian mine have left four men dead and 40 mine workers injured Dec. 2, the BBC reported. Ukraine’s Mining Inspectorate said the four men were maintenance workers trying to clear the Zasyadko mine in the eastern Donetsk region, where gas leaks killed 101 people in November.
ITALY The country struggled through a transportation crisis as train workers went on strike Nov. 30 and buses, ferries, cable cars and boats also stopped service, according to the NYT. The incident followed on the heels of an earlier taxi strike. Hundreds of flights were also canceled. The strike was meant to protest transport financing cuts planned by the government.
RUSSIA President Vladimir Putin signed a law Nov. 30 that suspends Russia’s participation in a NATO treaty that limits conventional forces in Europe, according to the Associated Press. Russia has threatened to pull out of the treaty Dec. 12. As a result of the suspension, Russia will halt Western inspections of its military sites.
EUROPE The European Parliament passed a law Nov. 29 that, if approved by national governments, would greatly restrict gun ownership across the union. The rules would allow those younger than 18 to have a gun only for hunting and target shooting under adult guidance, according to the NYT. Adults convicted of a violent crime would be banned from buying a gun.

PROTEST About half of Czech schools’ staff went on strike Dec. 4 in support of more money for education, according to Czech News Agency (ČTK). The strike, announced two weeks prior by school unions, caused a number of schools to shut down for the day. The unions are demanding 3 billion Kč ($167,224) more for salaries, teaching aids and continuing education of teachers, ČTK reports.

APPOINTED President Václav Klaus announced 30-year-old Ondřej Liška, the new deputy chairman for the Green Party, as education minister Dec. 4. The appointment follows a tumultuous two months for the party after former minister Dana Kuchtová resigned Sept. 25 amid accusations that she mishandled European Union funds.
DERAILED A train jumped its track outside Prague just before noon Dec. 1, causing 25 million Kč in damage but injuring none of the 150 passengers or staff onboard. A spokesman for Czech Railways said the tracks at the site of the accident had been pre-cut, indicating possible sabotage, according to Czech Radio. Police are investigating the case.
KLAUS On Nov. 28, the Civic Democrats unanimously named Klaus as their candidate for the next presidential election, to be held in February. Klaus, 66, is so far the only officially nominated candidate. His potential rival, economist Jan Švejnar, is expected to announce by the end of the week whether he will run for president, ČTK reports.
SWITCH Two baby girls who were mistakenly swapped at birth in a south Moravian hospital last year were returned to their biological parents Dec. 4, Lidovky.cz reports. The mistake was uncovered in October. The families have been preparing for the switch by making frequent visits with each other, ČTK states.

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