In today’s open letter to the government, the Speaker of the Senate Miloš Vystrčil (ODS) says that reinstating a state of emergency in the country against the will of the lower house would be unconstitutional. According to him, this also applies to the case where the governors request a state of emergency. After today’s meeting with the government, the regional governors asked the cabinet to declare a new state of emergency for 14 more days. The current state of emergency will end at midnight today. The governor of the Moravia-Silesia region Ivo Vondrák said the decision had been unanimous. Prime Minister Andrej Babiš added the government will comply with the request. “If the Chamber of Deputies cancels the state of emergency or vote against its extension, the government may not immediately decide to declare a new state of emergency. In such a case, the government would effectively negate the role of the Chamber of Deputies,” said Vystrčil. Constitutional lawyers are divided over the matter. Without the state of emergency, the government cannot impose a curfew, which is currently in effect between 9 pm and 5 am. Deputy Prime Minister Jan Hamáček (CSSD) warned that: “It would bring about the loosening...
The regional governors agreed to extend the state of emergency for 14 more days. Interior Minister Jan Hamáček (CSSD) said that the priority will be the return of children to school. “Today we agreed that all governors will ask for a state of emergency. At the moment, it is the only way to manage the crisis situation in our country,” said the Moravian-Silesian Governor Ivo Vondrák (ANO). The current state of emergency expires on Sunday, February 14. In the morning, the governors discussed the conditions under which they would request the declaration of a new state of emergency with the Minister of Health, Jan Blatný (ANO). The South Bohemian governor and chairman of the Association of Regions Martin Kuba (ODS) stated that “the governors are asking the children to return to school on March 1.” The governor of Pardubice Martin Netolický remarked that the regions require the government to communicate to the public a plan for the coming days and weeks regarding the release of certain measures. “We want to have a clear timetable for gradual release at further negotiations. We also require self-testing in companies and large employers.” The governors want regular meetings every ten days of the association...
The Czech Republic is in talks with AstraZeneca to secure COVID-19 vaccine supplies on top of the three million doses reserved for the country under an EU deal, news website Seznam Zpravy reported on Saturday. Citing a Health Ministry spokeswoman, the report said the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker had offered the country further deliveries of its vaccine, and that the ongoing talks were about details such as the number of doses, price, and delivery dates. The European Commission, the European Union’s executive, has signed supply deals with vaccine makers for doses to be distributed on a pro-rata basis to member states, which have committed not to hold parallel talks. Saturday’s Seznam Zpravy report said the Health Ministry still had to verify to what extent bilateral deals were in line with the EU deal. The number of newly registered Covid cases reached 8,782 on Friday, roughly 160 more than on the same day a week ago. The Covid-related death toll crossed the 18,000 mark on Friday. AstraZeneca is scrambling to find more manufacturers to produce its coronavirus vaccine in Europe after the drugmaker’s bet on a limited number of sites fell short. By the end of January, only one continental plant — located...
The Czech lower house of parliament on Thursday rejected the government’s request to extend a state of emergency underpinning pandemic measures beyond February 14. The Chamber of Deputies rejected the extension of the state of emergency in force in the Czech Republic due to the coronavirus epidemic. Jan Wintr from the Department of Theory of Law at Charles University believes that several anti-epidemic measures could cease to be in effect on Monday. Without a state of emergency, the government cannot: Impose a curfew, which is currently in effect between 9 pm and 5 am. Prohibit sales in shops and the provision of services Restrict entry into the Czech Republic to foreigners Prohibit entry to sports facilities outside and inside. Due to the measures, the government had to close gyms, fitness centers, courts, ice rinks, swimming pools, wellness facilities including saunas, dance studios, and bowling alleys. Prohibit drinking alcohol in public places Prohibit meeting people from different households Which current measures could continue to apply: Visiting restaurants, pubs, and bars, providing accommodation services. Conferences, theater, and movie performances with the participation of spectators. Impossibility to organize pilgrimages, congresses, educational events, fairs. Participate in teaching at universities, high schools, and primary schools....
The Czech lower house of parliament on Thursday rejected the government’s request to extend a state of emergency underpinning pandemic measures beyond February 14. The Chamber of Deputies rejected the extension of the state of emergency in force in the Czech Republic due to the coronavirus epidemic. The minority government said the decision would mean the end of nationwide limits on movement, including a night-time curfew, the lifting of a ban on public gatherings, and a reopening of retail stores. Some other measures may still be extended under different legislation. The government of PM Andrej Babiš (ANO) asked to extend the state of emergency for another 30 days. The entire opposition did not support the government’s request. At least 54 parliamentary votes were required for its adoption. Babiš told MPs that” anyone who voted against extending the state of emergency would be directly responsible for the loss of human lives.” Early today, Interior Minister Jan Hamacek said that “the refusal to prolong the state of emergency implies a tremendous risk of collapsing healthcare and a negative development of the coronavirus pandemic in the Czech Republic”. “We will make history as a country that demobilized in the middle of a war,”...
Germany will impose an entry ban on travelers from the Czech Republic and Austria’s Tyrol region from Feb. 14, the mass-circulation tabloid Bild reported on Thursday, citing German Interior Ministry sources. Only a handful of exceptions are allowed to enter Germany from these countries, including returning Germans or residents and essential workers. The news comes after the Czech Republic earlier on Thursday announced a stricter lockdown in three districts, including two on the border with Germany, where coronavirus infections have soared above 1,000 per 100,000 residents over the past week. Bavaria Governor Markus Soeder praised measures taken by the Czech Republic to contain the spread of virus variants and criticized authorities in Tyrol, saying they appeared not to be taking the issue seriously. In a speech to Parliament on Thursday, Merkel defended her government’s decision to set a lower infection target for easing the lockdown further: a number of new weekly cases per 100,000 inhabitants below 35. The Robert Koch Institute on Thursday added 10,237 new confirmed COVID-19 cases and 666 deaths to Germany’s totals, bringing the country’s overall case count since the start of the pandemic to 2.31 million and the death toll to 63,635. Germany restricts travel from...
The Czech government on Thursday announced a stricter lockdown in three districts from east to west where coronavirus infections have soared and hospitals are struggling to cope. The order means a ban on movement from and into the eastern district of Trutnov on the border with Poland and the western districts of Cheb and Sokolov on the border with Germany, Health Minister Jan Blatny said. The restrictions will take effect on Friday, Blatny said, but they depend on an extension of a national state of emergency beyond Sunday which the minority government may be unable to secure in a parliamentary vote expected later in the day. The three districts are home to around 300,000 people, and infection rates there were at 1,091-1,183 per 100,000 in the past week, according to ministry data. “These are areas where the number of infections is three to four times higher than elsewhere,” Blatny told reporters. “We have decided to limit free movement in these regions beyond the national measures, and, apart from exceptions, to ban people who live here to leave and people who do not live here to enter.” There will be exceptions for people who can prove they are on the way...
If you decide you have the means to help Prague’s homeless population, the nonprofit organization Mistni Mistnim (Locals for Locals) is launching three new projects. Vouchers for hot drinks and meals for people in need We are just starting our call to support people without homes who are out in the cold weather to show them that we care! With this project, we will also help our network of solidarity cafés to cover at least some of their basic costs. “We would love to start one more path to connect our Prague community in solidarity – we’re all in this together. There is no better time than now to help each other and, especially, the ‘invisible’ ones around us,” says Ester Pacltová, founder at Místní místním Mobile phones collection Místní místním will collect, in cooperation with our solidarity network, old and new phones, sim cards, pre-paid credit, chargers, which we will then distribute to NGOs or distribute directly to people in the street. A phone can help in many ways, from keeping in touch with family and friends to finding a warm place to sleep, finding a job, contacting social or emergency services. These days a phone is more and...
Almost half of Czechs do not stay at home with the symptoms of COVID-19. According to scientists, this may be one of the reasons for the massive spread of coronavirus in the Czech Republic. The study was conducted by the World Health Organization and the German University of Erfurt. The surveys were conducted among one thousand respondents last August, November, and January this year. “Almost half of the people, 46 percent, did not stay at home and are still going out with COVID symptoms. These are more often people who think they are prone to infection but expect a mild course. In Czech society, there is a large proportion of those who prefer personal freedom over others, which proves to be very disadvantageous during a pandemic,” said Helena Hnilicová from the Faculty of Medicine at the Charles University. According to the study, the 3R rule (ruce, roušky, rozestupy – hands, masks, distancing) is most respected in the Czech Republic, especially by seniors, women, and people whose economic situation has worsened due to the coronavirus epidemic. On the contrary, Czechs are the least disciplined to the recommendation not to visit their relatives. According to the survey, 41 percent of people still...
Hundreds of women in the Czech Republic who were sterilised under an unofficial policy to curb the country’s Roma population are hoping to finally win a long battle for compensation. A bill expected to be debated in the Czech parliament on Wednesday envisages granting each woman a one-off payment of 300,000 CZK. Most of the sterilisations occurred in the 1970s and 1980s during the communist regime of former Czechoslovakia, but activists say the practice continued into this century. Although the Czech government expressed “regret” in 2009 for the sterilisations, it did not offer compensation. Elena Gorolova, who was sterilised at 21 and has helped lead a 15-year campaign for compensation, said some women were offered financial incentives in exchange for being sterilised or told their children would be taken away if they had more babies. Others, like Gorolova, were sterilised during Caesarian births or told the procedure was a temporary form of contraception that could be reversed. Europe’s human rights watchdog has urged lawmakers to pass the bill, saying it may be the last chance to deliver justice. Some victims have already died. “This opportunity should not be wasted,” Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Dunja Mijatovic said in...
Finding the newest relevant information about issues as important as the current COVID-19 pandemic may be difficult. There are many often rapid changes to restrictions announced on short notice. It is, however, even more, complicated to understand the situation when you are stuck in a foreign country whose language you don’t speak. So what are the English-written sources where you can find out what is currently going on? Comprehensive Overview From the Ministry of the Interior About three months ago the Czech Ministry of the Interior launched a special website mapping the current epidemiological situation and restrictions. It was created by NAKIT (National Information and Communication Agency) and MP Dominik Feri to provide Czechs with all the necessary information, so they don’t have to go through all the complex and often confusing documents released by the government, or different ministries. Fortunately, the creators kept expats living in the Czech Republic in mind as well and made an English version of the website. The only problem is that it takes time to translate everything and so the website doesn’t provide all the information the original Czech version of the website does. Despite this, there is all the information one really needs,...
In the future, Czech police are expected to gain access to a list of people and even businesses who repeatedly violate coronavirus measures in an effort to bring down the deaths and infections that have assailed the country. On Monday, the amendment presented by the Czech Ministry of the Interior, which expands the register of offenses to include offenses committed under the Crisis Act, was approved by the government. According to the amendment, in the case of repeated violations of government measures, companies and entrepreneurs could also be banned from operating for one year. The adjustments and higher sanctions concern violations of crisis measures ordered by the government, such as a ban on the operation of services or movement. On the contrary, it does not apply, for example, to the wearing of face masks. Thanks to the register, the administrative body and police officers should be given the opportunity to take into account whether the offense is committed repeatedly, and to adjust the extent and type of sanction accordingly. Interior Minister Jan Hamáček told reporters on Monday that the amendment to the Crisis and Misdemeanor Act is intended to eliminate complications in enforcing the rules. “No new register is being...
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