News

Czech Radio creates online broadcasts about children's homes

21.11.2015 16:14 Lukáš Kotlár, the Editor-in-Chief of the children's magazine Zámeček ("Mansion"), and his colleague Albín Augustin Balát have created an online radio station called DD Rádio - Rádio dětských domovů (DD Radio - Children's Homes Radio). "Annually around 1 000 young people leave children's homes and a similar number enter them. We will broadcast for the children and employees of these homes, but we also want to bring news from their world to the public," Kotlár said; news server Romea.cz conducted the following interview with him.  full story

Slovakia: Roma Spirit award won by those who saved two human lives

21.11.2015 15:00 On 15 November 2015 there was a gala evening for the Roma Spirit awards ceremony at Bratislava's New Stage Theater (Divadlo Nová scéna) and the well-wishers included the moderators of the evening - Gitana and Marián Mitaš, Mirka Partlová, Božena Ferancová, and musical legend Antonín Gondolán. During the evening there was a performance by the group Chalani z chatrče, who were joined by singer Marián Labuda, Jr.  full story

Commentary: You have the floor, so babble and manipulate people

21.11.2015 14:02 News server Romea.cz is republishing in full translation the following commentary by Bob Kartous from the EDUin NGO, written after he participated in the episode broadcast on 9 November of the Czech Television talk show "You Have the Floor" (Máte slovo) as a guest. The topic of the program was inclusion in the schools.  full story

Islamists occupy luxury hotel in Mali, taking 170 hostages

20.11.2015 18:01 Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports that unknown armed men assaulted the Radisson Blu hotel today in Bamako, the capital of Mali, taking 170 people hostage. According to initial reports the hostages included Chinese people, French people and Turkish people.  full story

Czech PM: The President should not attend events organized by xenophobes

20.11.2015 17:23 Speaking in an interview for the Czech daily Hospodářské noviny (HN), Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) said the Czech President should not make appearances at events organized by xenophobic sects disseminating hatred. The PM said he believes that by giving a speech on the state holiday of 17 November at Albertov in Prague side-by-side with representatives of the extremist Bloc against Islam group, President Zeman has now joined the populists who are feeding like parasites on people's fears of the so-called Islamic State and the migration crisis.  full story

EU diplomacy head cancels visit to Prague, probably because of President's remarks

20.11.2015 16:48 The head of EU diplomacy, Federica Mogherini, cancelled a visit to Prague yesterday, probably because some Czech politicians are automatically connecting Islam and refugees with terrorism without differentiation. Czech Radio reported the decision with reference to a highly-placed EU source.  full story

Czech Human Rights Minister: President Zeman is helping the fascisization of Czech society

20.11.2015 16:17 Czech Minister for Human Rights and Legislation Jiří Dienstbier (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) is convinced that Czech President Zeman is aiding in the creation of an atmosphere for the fascisization of Czch society. In an interview for the Czech News Agency on 18 November, he said that some remarks made by the head of state are Islamophobic, xenophobic, and are creating fear in society.  full story

Mastermind of Paris assassinations was killed during police raid on Wednesday

20.11.2015 16:08 The alleged main organizer of the terrorist attacks in France, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, was killed during a police raid on Wednesday of the Parisian suburb of Saint-Denis, according to the Paris Prosecutor. "Abdelhamid Abaaoud was formally identified. He was killed during the police raid," reads the prosecutor's press release.  full story

Commentary: Czech PM's hypocrisy and activists' unnecessary helpfulness

19.11.2015 0:37 Is Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka a courageous, sharp politician unafraid of going against the "voice of the people"? Well-known activist Jan Piňos thinks so.  full story

Czech Police found knives, truncheons and other weapons on 30 attendees of yesterday's anti-Islam event

18.11.2015 23:48 Tomáš Hulan, spokesperson for the Prague Police, announced on the official website that police arrested 20 people during demonstrations in Prague on the 17 November holiday on suspicion of assaulting officers and rioting. Police found knives, truncheons and other weapons on 30 people who participated in the Bloc against Islam event at Albertov.  full story

Four anti-Nazi fighters received the Memory of Nations award in Prague

18.11.2015 21:18 Four fighters against Nazism were awarded the Memory of Nations (Paměti národa) award in Prague yesterday, including two resistance fighters, a soldier who defended Tobruk, and a woman who escaped a death march. Jana Háková of the organizing association Post Bellum told the Czech News Agency that on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, this year was dedicated to figures from the Czech Republic and Slovakia who stood up to Nazism.  full story

Czech university administrators, students issue statements about police banning access for students and teachers to 17 November memorial

18.11.2015 19:18 Statement from Bohumil Gaš, Dean of the Faculty of Science, Charles University  full story

Czech Police intervene against 1 000 extremists protesting refugee reception on state holiday marking November 1939 and 1989

18.11.2015 5:02 The main theme of today's events in the Czech Republic ostensibly commemorating the student victims of Nazism in 1939 and the student demonstrations in 1989 was in fact the current refugee crisis. Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka (Czech Social Democratic Party - ČSSD) called on people to moderate the anger they feel about refugees.  full story

Berlin Economic Institute: Refugees will be of long-term economic benefit to Germany

17.11.2015 18:46 Refugees can be of economic benefit to Germany in the long run as long as the country manages to employ them. In the current issue of the weekly Der Spiegel that statement is made by the President of the Berlin Economic Institute (DIW), Marcel Fratzcher.  full story

Czech Police refuse students access to 1989 memorial in advance of President joining anti-Islam activists for their event

17.11.2015 16:42 Czech President Miloš Zeman addressed an event organized by the Bloc against Islam (Blok proti islámu - BPI) on the occasion of the state holiday today and said those who disagree with the receiving of migrants should not be "labelled" Fascists, Islamophobes or racists. BPI is against refugee reception.  full story

Analysis: Will Czech President Zeman make it into the 2015 extremism report?

17.11.2015 15:13 For almost 14 days the group called "We Don't Want Islam in the Czech Republic" (Islám v ČR nechceme - IVČRN) and its political wing, the Bloc against Islam (Bloc proti Islámu - BPI) have been constantly calling for people to attend an assembly in support of Czech President Miloš Zeman "in his opinions about immigration and Islam". The event is to take place at Albertov in Prague today on the anniversary of 17 November 1989 and 1939.  full story

Czech President's spokesperson calls proponents of refugee reception "the real extremists"

17.11.2015 2:16 Tuesday's state holiday in the Czech Republic will see reverent commemorations of the events of 17 November from the years of 1989 and 1939, as well as demonstrations against migration, against the rejection of refugees, and against Government policy. Police are warning against extremist provocation and will be deploying several hundred officers in Prague alone.  full story

Czech ministers warn that extremists may attempt provocations on state holiday 17 November

17.11.2015 0:54 During the public events in the Czech Republic on the 17 November state holiday there is the risk that extremists will attempt provocations, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and Interior
Minister Milan Chovanec (both Czech Social Democrats - ČSSD) said today after meeting to discuss the current security threats facing the country. Sobotka said concerns over the course of the celebrations are connected to tensions in society sparked by the terrorist attacks in Paris.  full story

Czech Republic: Detainees condemn attacks in Paris and end hunger strike

16.11.2015 20:14 Refugees in the detention facility in Drahonice (Louny district) have condemned the terrorist attacks in Paris. They have reportedly ended their hunger strike to show respect for the suffering of Europeans.  full story

Police identify more of the Paris attackers

16.11.2015 19:17 French detectives are gradually managing to identify the attackers who murdered at least 129 people in Paris on Friday and to accumulate more information about them. The following is an overview of the basic facts about the individual presumed perpetrators as reported by the international media.  full story