Timur I., Author at Prague Morning

Million Moments for Democracy, a civic organization of pro-democratic nature, has announced a demonstration against the inclination of President Miloš Zeman and other Czech politicians towards Russia.

Planned on Thursday, demonstrations will be held in Prague and dozens of other cities, including Plzeň, Hradec Králové, Ústí nad Labem and Brno.

“Instead of supporting his own country, the president repeats the same fairy tales as pro-Russian disinformation sites and Russian propaganda. His continued presence in the office is a security threat to our republic,” said Benjamin Roll, chairman of the organization.

“We will meet on Wenceslas Square and in other cities across the Czech Republic and demand the end of President Zeman. This is the only chance for our country to get out of the current marasmus state in time. We call on all citizens of the Czech Republic to join the protest in their municipalities,” was stated in a Tuesday press release of Million Moments.

President Miloš Zeman was criticized by the opposition for a speech on Sunday, in which he said that two investigative versions were being worked on in the case of the explosion of an ammunition depot in Vrbětice in 2014.

First Deputy Prime Minister Jan Hamáček (ČSSD) noted on Monday that there was only one investigative version, which was associated with the movement of members of unit 29155 of the Russian military intelligence service GRU.

Prime minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) made a similar statement on Monday after an evening meeting with Zeman in Lány.

Babiš’s conflict of interest also contributes to the disintegration of the Czech Republic, Million Moments notes. The organization brought up the final audit report of the European Commission, according to which the prime minister co-decides on the direction of EU subsidies and at the same time controls the holding Agrofert.

Michael Kocáb, former minister for human rights and national minorities and a co-author of the petition for a constitutional action against Zeman, or Eugenie Číhalová, representative of the Russian minority in the government council for national minorities, will speak in Prague during the demonstration.

According to Million Moments, anti-coronavirus hygiene measures and recommendations will be followed during the event. The organization prepared a guideline for the participants, in which they listed all the measures needed to be observed, including maintaining safe distances, wearing respirators and having a negative coronavirus test.

As of now, 17,7 thousand people responded to a Facebook event created by Million Moments. 14,3 thousand responded with “Interested” and 3,4 thousand with “Going”.

The illuminated towers of the Church of Týn were seen by millions of viewers who watched the live broadcast of the American Academy Awards on Monday night, Blesk.cz reports.

Claudia Stolze, who was one of the nominees for the Best Makeup and Hairstyling award for the film adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Emma, spoke live from the terrace of a hotel in the center of Prague.

Claudia Stolze, a makeup artist and wig maker of British-German descent, has worked on a number of major films and TV shows and has been living in the Czech capital for more than half a year.

After the gifted artist received a nomination for the prestigious Oscar award, it was necessary to ensure that Stolze could make a speech on the air during the ceremony.

The Hollywood production chose the terrace of the hotel U Prince on Old Town Square for the speech. “We were reached out to because of the view we have here. Our terrace offers a landmark in the form of the astronomical clock and the Týn Church,” said Petr Bauer, executive director of the hotel.

When Claudia Stolze performed, millions of viewers around the world who watched the Oscars could admire the marvelous Church of Mother of God before Týn.

Stolze received the nomination for Best Makeup and Hairstyling for the British film Emma, where she took care of the actress who played the main role, 25-year-old Anya Taylor-Joy.

“The lady I looked after is a beautiful person, and I’m so grateful that she let me do what I needed to do with her hair. It wasn’t difficult on this occasion, it was joy,” said Stolze in an interview with an agency Aktu.cz.

Stolze added that she adored the city of Prague. “It’s the most beautiful city I’ve ever been in. I’m astounded at the architecture, the people of Prague are so friendly – it’s a beautiful place,” the artist commented.

The film Emma was based on the famous novel of the same name by the English writer Jane Austen. Emma received a total of two Oscar nominations: Alexandra Byrne was nominated for costume design; Marese Langan, Laura Allen, and Claudia Stolze received nominations for make-up and hairstyles.

Ultimately, the film did not win any of the nominations.

Organizers of the Prague Pride Festival will obtain a grant of CZK 650,000 from the capital, Pražský Patriot reports.

Proposed by Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates), mayor of the city, the grant was approved by Prague representatives at a Thursday meeting.

The prospect of supporting the festival was discussed in March, but representatives did not decide on the matter back then.

„The grant is not intended for the source itself, but for a weekly educational program. From my point of view of the price-performance ratio, this is a matter that will definitely pay off for the city. This is an event that will attract a lot of tourists to Prague, so I daresay that it deserves support,” Hřib said.

Mayor added that the grant commission had endorsed the support for the Prague Pride Festival as well. The city allocated money for the event as a part of the distribution of grants intended for tourism.

According to Hřib, tens of thousands of people come to Prague for the occasion. “Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, we will need every single tourist this year,” he said.

Data available on an official website of the festival show that 92,000 people attended the event in 2019, only 62% of whom resided in Prague.

The grant was criticized by the coalition representative Jan Wolf (KDU-ČSL). He was dissatisfied with the fact it was once again a subject of discussion despite not being approved in March.

„It is April, we had this event here in March, we put it to a vote, and it didn’t pass. If it doesn’t pass today, we will vote on it in May. If it doesn’t pass then, we will vote on it in June…“ he said.

Opposition representative Ondřej Prokop (ANO) said that Prague should provide the event with a symbolic sum of money. He called the proposed sum too high and claimed that the city should use the money in a different field. Prokop proposed to reduce the amount to 250,000 crowns during the discussion.

The amount was also criticized by another opposition representative, Martin Sedeke (ODS), who also proposed a reduction. Eva Horáková, representative of Pirates, responded by saying the event would help young people in the search for sexual identity.

The rainbow flag was first raised on Prague City Hall building by mayor Hřib in 2019. The first Czech festival of lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals (LGBT) was held in Prague in 2010.

Year-on-year sales prices for new apartments in Prague have increased by an average of 5.5 percent to CZK 112,233 per square meter compared with 2.2 percent appreciation last year, housing developers report.

Data from construction companies also showed that the number of apartments sold has skyrocketed by about three-fifths to 2100, the most in the last ten years. At the same time, the number of apartments offered has dipped by more than a one-tenth to 4200, the least in the last three years.

By category, developers sold mostly two-room apartments, namely 44 percent. They were followed by one-bedroom apartments (23%), three-bedroom apartments (22%) and four-bedroom apartments (11%).

Of the individual districts of the city, developers sold the most apartments in Prague 5 (23%), Prague 9 (18%) and Prague 4 (16%). In contrast, in Prague 1 and 2, only three percent of all the apartments were sold.

Housing developers claim prices will continue to rise provided that local governments approve new projects at the same pace as they do now.

“Currently, the market is experiencing record-high demand for new housing. The highest in ten years, actually. However, the situation is still complicated due to the lack of new residential housing construction, which is currently insufficient to respond to the needs of the public in a timely and flexible manner. The reason remains the same – the complicated and lengthy process of permitting new projects,” said Marcel Soural, chairman of the board of the firm Trigema.

“The situation is becoming critical. The new supply has absolutely no time to cover the increased demand, which is why now we observe the least number of apartments on the market in three years. Because of this, prices for new apartments continue to rise. If the situation with the permitting of new apartments does not change and local governments remain reluctant to approve new construction, the current state will not improve,” said Dušan Kunovský, owner of the housing company Central Group.

According to the real estate portal Bezrealitky, prices for renting apartments with a separate working area are also rising. The portal associates this trend with a prospect of working from home even after the coronavirus restrictions are lifted.

The greatest interest in apartments with a workroom by far is observed in Prague and Brno, which are also the cities with the highest density of office space per capita.

This type of apartments is offered at a higher price – flats with a workroom are about fifteen percent more expensive than comparable layouts.

Czechs mostly perceive Russia as a security threat to the Czech Republic. This follows from the poll released by the research agency Median for Czech Radio.

The agency has recently conducted a survey in connection with the deterioration of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

1037 respondents over 18 years old took part in a canvass, which took place this week on Monday and Tuesday. On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means no threat and 10 means a huge threat, they rated the risk Russia posed to the Czech Republic with an average of 6.4.

Almost a fifth of those polled believed Russia posed a grave peril. 10 percent of interviewees, on the contrary, were convinced it did not constitute a threat at all.

The former were primarily represented by people from large cities or ODS voters (Civil Democratic Party), whereas the latter were comprised of KSČM voters (Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia).

One-fifth of people who do not consider Russia a threat are over 60 years old. “At the same time, respondents in this age group maintain the most hostile attitude towards Russia, both in the perception of the country as a minimal threat and a huge threat,” Czech Radio notes.

According to Přemysl Čech, Median agency director, this is arguably related to the fact that they remember the occupation of Czechoslovakia by Soviet troops. “A strong memory of what happened here in 1968 lingers among older people,” he said.

Dukovany

After the emergence of reasonable suspicion of the involvement of Russian secret services in the explosion in Vrbětice, Minister of Industry and Trade Karel Havlíček declared that the government no longer counted on the participation of the Russian company Rosatom in the impending tender for the completion of the Dukovany Nuclear Power Station.

Respondents were asked to evaluate this step by the Czech government. An overwhelming majority of those surveyed – 65% – supported the exclusion of Rosatom from the tender, compared with 27% who spoke against it. Former were mainly residents of large cities with higher education.

For the most part, those who rejected the expulsion of Rosatom also stated that Russia posed no threat to the Czech Republic.

Sultan Khamzaev, a member of the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation and chief executive of the project Sober Russia, proposed to ban Czech beer on Russian territory as a reaction to the expulsion of eighteen diplomats on Saturday.

In his opinion, such a measure will make Czech political groups realize that their statements and actions will have economic repercussions for the entire country. Russians, according to Khamzaev, will be able to live without a beverage, and the embargo will help reduce the alcohol consumption among the population.

“In Russia, people consume about eight billion liters of beer annually, including a certain percentage of Czech beer. We need to ban it and let them consume it there themselves,” Khamzaev asserted in an interview with the radio station Moscow Speaks.

A number of Russian politicians spoke out against the proposal. They consider the measure to be childish, inefficient, and potentially pernicious for Russia.

“I am always very suspicious of such initiatives. What will it lead to? What does beer and all these conflicts have to do with it?” said Andrey Panferov, First Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Novosibirsk Oblast.

“Time will pass and everything will fall into place. And the initiative about beer – well, if the public man does not like to drink Czech beer, let him not drink it,” he added.

“I do not know how to interpret such measures. This one is clearly inadequate; serious political decisions must be made in this situation. To limit beer is nothing but a mosquito bite, which only adds tension but does not solve the problem. In this case, it is worth sitting down at the negotiating table and resolving the issues that have arisen between our countries. These mutual attacks will not bring anything good to Russia, the Czech Republic, or the rest of the world,” Vera Ganzya, State Duma deputy, argued.

Russia is the second most important non-EU market for the Czech Republic in terms of agricultural trade after the UK. For a long time, in addition to beer, poppy seeds or hops have been exported there.

In 2020, the Czech Republic approximately doubled its exports of beer, hops, and Czech poppies to Russia compared to 2016.

Trade Representation of the Russian Federation in the Czech Republic reported in March that last year’s deliveries in value terms amounted to 812.8 million crowns against 374 million crowns in 2016.

The impact of the first phase of resumption of work of establishments will be evaluated, and the future reopening schedule will be presented, said Karel Havlíček, Minister of Industry and Trade.

Last Monday marked the first phase of easing of previously introduced restrictions. The government decided to implement the so-called rotational learning for pupils of the first grade of primary schools.

Preschoolers could attend kindergartens once again, and special schools returned to normal teaching.

Children’s clothing and footwear shops, stationery stores and some services such as locksmiths, dry cleaners, and laundries had welcomed their customers for the first time in months.

If the pandemic situation develops well, the government will present the plan for the reopening of other facilities. According to Havlíček, the cabinet is to wait for ten days from April 12^th to assess whether the measures taken were adequate.

“If the situation develops well and if the incidence goes to the key threshold that we have agreed upon – that is 100 [cases] per week for 100,000 people, we are ready to present the system of loosening of restrictions in regard to shops and services on Thursday,” Minister said.

“On Thursday, the government will meet to assess the figures that relate to the influence of Easter [on the development of the pandemic]. If we observe that the epidemiological situation allows it, we will decide on further easing,” said Petr Arenberger, Czech Minister of Health, after the government meeting on Monday.

According to earlier statements of ministers, cancellation of precautions should take place every two weeks. The last time the cabinet eased the measures on April 12^th. The next round of easing is thus expected on April 26^th.

The operation of shops and services was last allowed by the government for about three weeks in December. After Christmas, however, most stores could not open because of the worsening pandemic situation.

As a result, swimming pools, fitness centers, saunas, and services such as hairdressers and beauty salons were not allowed to function.

Rummage through trash cans, beg, steal, consort with criminals – do what it takes to survive the harsh winter.

This is the content of the new Czech computer game Hobo: Tough Life, in which players take on the role of a homeless person in the streets of Praslav, a made-up city located in the center of Europe.

Perun Creative, a small independent team of Czech developers, was inspired by the reality of Prague, as well as by real stories of homeless people while developing the game.

The authors have been working on the game for almost four years and plan to continue improving it. Hobo: Tough Life is out on PCs and available on Steam; later it should also come out on game consoles. Up to four players can participate in the survival.

“Welcome to Praslav, a cold Central European city that grows even colder with the coming winter. Praslav is recovering from the political turmoil that followed the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Communist regime, which held the country in its iron grip for decades. While most people eagerly awaited the coming of democracy and capitalism, some were unable to adapt to the new socio-economic climate. Soon they found themselves on the streets with nowhere to go. You are one of those people,” says the game description on Steam.

According to the developers, it is necessary to pay attention to a number of factors that may affect survival on the street. The enemy is not only hunger but also cold weather, as well as cleanliness.

“Poor hygiene and dirty clothes produce odors, low temperatures increase the risk of disease, and every piece of eaten food must also sometimes come out,” the creators note.

To successfully survive, players can build improvised shelters made from materials that they find in various corners of Praslav. The authors took heed of the know-how they received when interviewing actual homeless people.

However, other means of survival should not be neglected either, the creators claim. Begging, pickpocketing, raids on shops are all viable options to get by in the fierce world of Praslav.

Some situations can be resolved diplomatically, some will require brute force – that is, of course if there are no police patrols in the vicinity.

Hobo: Tough Life is highly rated by players. As of April 19^th, 76% of player reviews on Steam are positive.

Prague can now take pride in yet another creative project. Mapamátky, a brainchild of students Marie Zákostelecká and Ivana Čuříková, is a website with several thematic routes around Prague.

Initially a part of the university work at the Prague University of Economics and Business, Mapamátky’s goal is to inspire as many people as possible to explore the splendor of Prague architecture and offer alternative entertainment in times of the pandemic.

“The Mapamátky project aims to popularize architecture and present it to people so that they enjoy it and learn something new at the same time. Just choose a route and go for a walk”, the website says.

Marie Zákostelecká, a great lover of architecture, came up with the idea of Mapamátky as a part of a university project. “There were ten of us in our team, and I thought that if I could get everyone excited for this project and for architecture at the same time, it would make sense,” Zákostelecká explained to Blesk.cz. Classmates shared her excitement, and the project emerged.

Although the university work was successfully completed, members of the team decided to continue the work in their spare time. At the moment, those interested can choose from five thematic routes: brutalist, film, empty, literary, and glass.

mapamatky prague

“There is a clear map for each route, where individual stops, the start, and destination are marked, including the nearest public transport stop,” explained another of the creators, Ivana Čuříková.

If one chooses, for instance, a literary route, Mapamátky will take them through the houses of famous Prague writers. The journey will commence on Mala Strana and end on Vodičková street.

During the walk, one will stop at the birthplace of Jan Neruda, Franz Kafka, or the Brothers Čapek and visit the Werich villa.

Project participants are cautious when it comes to sponsorship. “Of course, this has occurred to us and we are actively discussing the option [of sponsorship]. We have one such cooperation on the glass route. On the other hand, we do not want to be limited by the fact that a sponsor will give us money and we will have to tailor the routes to him. Cooperation with some parts of the city is also an option, but so far everything is but a discussion”, Zákostelecká said.

The new route is under development, confirmed Zákostelecká. She promised to publish it at the turn of April and May.

The Czech Republic respects the agreement of the ministers of defense and foreign affairs of NATO states on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan and is ready to do its part, confirmed Lubomír Metnar, Czech minister of defense.

As NATO reports, the drawdown will commence on May 1^st.

“We cannot continue the cycle of extending or expanding our military presence in Afghanistan, hoping to create ideal conditions for the withdrawal and expecting a different result,” said US President Joe Biden in his ardent speech on Wednesday.

He declared that “it is time to end the forever war” and promised that US troops would leave Afghanistan by September 11^th.

All NATO members, including the Czech Republic, followed suit and made a statement, in which they pronounced they would start removing troops next month.

“In light of… recognizing that there is no military solution to the challenges Afghanistan faces, Allies have determined that we will start the withdrawal of Resolute Support Mission forces by May 1”, was stated in the press release of the alliance.

“NATO Allies and partners will continue to stand with Afghanistan, its people, and its institutions in promoting security and upholding the gains of the last 20 years. Withdrawing our troops does not mean ending our relationship with Afghanistan. Rather, this will be the start of a new chapter,” NATO members added.

The readiness to remove Czech forces from the country was confirmed by the Czech minister of defense Lubomír Metnar, who made a Twitter post after an extraordinary videoconference session with NATO states.

“We have always said that we will not do anything on our own, and we must address the issue of the Afghan mission collectively. We respect today’s alliance agreement and are ready to withdraw Czech troops as well. We will coordinate our further assistance with our allies and remain ready to fight terrorism,” Metnar asserted.

The long-standing International Security Assistance Force alliance mission in Afghanistan closed at the end of 2014, and a new advise and assist mission Resolute Support has been underway in the country ever since.

The Czech army can currently have up to 205 soldiers in Afghanistan according to the approved mandate. Since 2002, several thousand of them have been replaced in the country. 14 Czech soldiers died on the mission.

Police of the Czech Republic confirmed on their Twitter account on Tuesday that they would not control any type of meetings with the exception of mass events.

According to TV Nova, the Ministry of Health’s regulation on gatherings of at most two people only applies to organized mass events, whilst all other encounters are permitted. The police asserted that any deviation from this measure would constitute a violation of the pandemic law.

New health minister Petr Arenberger, who assumed office a week ago, announced on the weekend that inside and outside gatherings would be restricted to two people.

The regulation was approved by the government on Monday. However, as far as the police is concerned, it only applies to organized mass events.

According to the police, having a stroll with friends or a picnic is allowed. “The police are clear on the issue of gatherings of two persons, both in public and in private. The emergency measure of the Ministry of Health only binds restrictions to mass actions. The movement of people on the street, accidental and unorganized meetings cannot be covered by this measure”, was stated in their Twitter post.

The agency elaborated on the topic, claiming that police officers are not empowered to confine people in their right to exercise freedom of movement. “Neither the pandemic law nor the law on the protection of public health can regulate or restrict the free movement of people or their number. Thus, police officers cannot and will not orient their control activities in this direction”, the police added.

Arenberger did not mention the specific types of gathering to which the regulation would apply. His argument rests on the issue of the delicate and complicated process of reopening schools.

“This measure was approved. At the present time, when the pandemic situation is not yet optimal, it is necessary to think carefully and choose the option that ensures that children return to schools, stay there for a long time and study under the rotation system that is not repealed again”, the minister said at a press conference on Monday.

Prague 2 Municipal District disagrees with a Prague City Hall’s proposal which includes adjustments to the traffic regime in the area of Smetanovo Nábřeží and Malá Strana.

According to Prague 2, if the adjustments are implemented, the traffic load in the municipality will increase drastically as a result of moving the transit of up to thirty thousand cars a day.

Prague City Hall has previously announced that it wants to allow passage through Smetanovo Nábřeží and Malá Strana only to locals, whereas other drivers will have to return in the same direction whence they came.

Particularly, the regional office of Prague seeks to impose restrictions which will prohibit the passage of motor vehicles through the intersection of Letenská and Tomášská streets on Malostranské Náměstí and parts of Křižovnická street in the section Novotného Lávka – Platněřská street.

According to Adam Scheinherr, Prague’s Deputy Mayor for Transport, the ban will not affect residents of districts Prague 1, Prague 2, and Prague 5. It will only apply to drivers who pass through the area.

They will be able to enter the center of the city as before, but thoroughfares will be forbidden – drivers will have to return the same way from where they came.

As reported by City Hall, the aforementioned measure will reduce noise, emissions, increase pedestrian safety, and ensure that disabled people feel more comfortable and can move around the center confidently. Besides, public transport backbone lines will run more smoothly and with fewer delays.

Prague 2 opposes the proposal. Jana Černochová, mayor of the district, stated that every restriction on traffic in Prague is to entail an imminent negative impact across the board. Her argument was supported by Jan Korseska, deputy mayor of Prague 2.

“Intersection of Ječná, Sokolská and I.P. Pavlova was evaluated as the worst intersection in Prague due to the amount of harmful exhaust gases. Instead of tackling this life-threatening problem, City Hall plans to direct even more vehicles to the area. The fact that people today walk in respirators does not mean that in the future City Hall will force citizens to put on gas masks so that they do not collapse from emissions,” he asserted.

Vehicular restrictions will lead to a further increase in traffic in Prague 2, including residential areas or regions near schools and offices. Restrictions there will have a negative impact not only on the traffic and comfort of residents, but also on the environment.

Prague 2 has been continuously pointing to the ill-conceived decision-making of Prague City Hall. In February, Prague 2 noted that urban districts had not been a part of the decision-making process of the Hall in the field of transport for a long time and their opinions were not taken heed of. The issue was highlighted by Prague 5, too.

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