Last week 28/2006

Meteorologists warned the public that after a short stormy break tropical heat would return to the Czech Republic. Border crossings in the south were bursting at the seams. The law on registered partnerships for same-sex couples came into force. Climbing to 1390 points, the Prague stock exchange recovered from its worst drop in history. A total of 760 architects entered a contest to design the new National Library building. “I’m afraid I’ve never been good at lying and hating my enemies, on the other hand, I’ve always excelled at having the courage to do things my way, at creative thinking, at generosity, at kind-heartedness, at open and optimistic communication, at erudition and insight with regard to culture, literature, history, music, etc.,” said dismissed Academy of Fine Arts rector Boris Jirků, describing himself in a Lidové noviny survey.

A memorial plaque to legendary sage and strongman Franta Kocourek, who died fifteen years ago, was unveiled in Hrdá Ves near Brno. Former National Security Office chief turned government-appointed manager of the state-owned company Čepro Tomáš Kadlec was arrested by police for suspicion of fraud involving billions. The state began paying out pastelkovné, i.e. a one-time benefit to parents of children entering first grade. The new driver violation point system ushered in the greatest safety on Czech roads since 1988, with just two traffic-related deaths in one weekend; Premier Jiří Paroubek, however, declared that the new law is “too drastic,” and announced that he intends to grant “amnesty” to all drivers committing infractions until the new law has been amended. “The government may only grant such a pardon retroactively, it simply can’t be granted beforehand,” remarked Pavel Zářecký, who heads the government’s legislative council, commenting on the premier’s idea. Some twenty thousand Sokol members descended on Prague for the physical fitness organization’s fourteenth gathering. At a speed of 17 kilometers per second and at roughly the same distance as the Moon, asteroid 2004 XP14 whipped past Earth. Radek Štěpánek advanced to the quarterfinals at Wimbledon. The International Council on Monuments and Sites concluded that the set of Renaissance houses in Slavonice is significant only in terms of national, not international, heritage, and on its recommendation the Czech Republic withdrew Slavonice’s candidacy for inclusion on the list of UNESCO world heritage sites. In the first half of 2006, the state treasury produced a surplus; analysts attributed it to record economic growth. Despite that, the outgoing government approved a budget proposal for the next half-year with another record deficit – 88 billion crowns. “Ten-thousand starlings are literally conducting air raids on cherry orchards these days, and the usual methods of frightening them off are ineffective; municipalities may permit shooting at the insatiable birds,” the daily Právo informed its readers. Manu Chao came to Český Brod for the Rock for People festival. A six-member geological expedition flew to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia to hunt for dinosaur skeletons. For “ethical reasons” the Interior Ministry refused to release a verdict from the early 1990s that allegedly exonerated current Communist Party Chairman Vojtěch Filip of accusations that he had worked as an informer for the “political police” under the totalitarian regime; Filip himself refuses to make the exculpatory ruling public, which is causing confusion, as a document was recently found in the Interior Ministry’s archive in which the Communist Party’s chairman and hot candidate for vice chairman of the Chamber of Deputies promised to cooperate with the communist-era secret police (StB) and confirmed his pledge with his own signature. “Well, if Filip became Premier – but by the way, alcohol can also have a beneficial effect: the StB contacted me, like many, to get me to cooperate, and, out of fear, I would always drink to courage and I would just keep on drinking to it until I told myself that I could just blow them off,” replied actor Oldřich Kaiser to Právo magazine’s question: “What would have to happen for you to start drinking again?” In Nošovice they started demolishing houses located on the grounds of the planned Hyundai factory. A Czech mountain climber fell from the Swiss peak Dom (4475 meters above sea level) and died on the spot. The seventh annual Month of Author Readings began in Brno’s Divadlo Husa na provázku theatre. The European Commission criticized the Czech Republic for shortcomings in meeting European rules for protecting citizens’ rights when judging the environmental impact of new infrastructure, industry or mining. Mikulov Cultural Center opened “Close to Life, Close to Death,” a photography exhibition of scarecrows by Rudolf Šmíd. Jan Hřebejk’s new film Beauty in Trouble screened at the film festival in Karlovy Vary.