A total of 44 special cargo flights with medical supplies were able to land at Prague Airport since 20 March 2020 when the first aircraft with medical supplies on board landed.
Producers of illegal drugs in the Czech Republic are suffering due to border closures enacted due to the coronavirus crisis.
The Czech government banned Czech citizens from traveling abroad when declaring a state of emergency on March 16, but in an attempt to stimulate domestic demand, the government is looking to financially support Czechs who want to travel within their own country. Travel restrictions were partially eased a month later on April 14 after the government drafted a list of exceptions for those who wish to travel abroad. Since then, people traveling due to family or business reasons are allowed to leave the Czech Republic. If they stay abroad for more than 24 hours, they must undergo a two-week quarantine after returning to Czechia. Such a blanket measure banning Czechs from traveling abroad is unique compared to other countries worldwide. While most states limit the entry of foreigners into their territories, most have not explicitly restricted citizens from traveling abroad. In addition to the Czech Republic, Belgium is an exception in Europe, forbidding its citizens to travel outside the country in all “non-essential” cases, writes the New York Times. Czech law experts see no support for the travel ban Experts point out that Czech law allows the borders to be closed to those who wish to enter the country, it does...
Since the beginning of April, Czechs are spending on average CZK 360,000 on beer and food vouchers every day to be consumed “in better times”. Following the success of Zachraň pivo! (Save the Beer!) website, the new Zachraň svou hospodu! (Save Your Pub!) site enables concerned drinkers to buy vouchers for use when cash-strapped Czech pubs re-open. The initiative partners include a dozen of the Czech Republic’s biggest breweries, alcohol, and soft drinks producers. Among them is Plzeňský Prazdroj, the makers of Pilsner Urquell. “The brewers who work in the pubs all their lives are inherently connected with the pub. We need to support each other,” says Plzeňský Prazdroj’s chief brewmaster emeritus Václav Berka, who has personally bought several vouchers. Berka called on his colleagues in the industry to support their pubs as well. “I was pleasantly surprised by the interest in this initiative, but on the other hand, I was surprised at how many pubs are not involved, yet. I don’t want to use any strong words, but beer is our destiny. Our lives have been associated with it for decades.” “More than 90 percent of establishments are now closed. Czech pubs are part of our culture, an important...
Czech PM Andrej Babiš sees no reason to extend the State of Emergency, which expires on April 30. The government will discuss it further on Thursday. According to Babiš, the whole ANO party will vote unanimously against the extension. However, ČSSD chairman and the head of the country’s Central Crisis Staff, has repeatedly stated that an “extension of the State of Emergency would be necessary.” “If the Prime Minister does not want to extend the State of Emergency, then it makes no sense to ask the government. I will order the Ministry of Internal Affairs to prepare the documents to stop the centralized distribution of protective equipment by April 30,” wrote Hamáček on Twitter. “>Můj dopis panu premiérovi, v němž vysvětluji důvody pro pokračování nouzového stavu: pic.twitter.com/jCNvzj1Fkl — Jan Hamáček (@jhamacek) April 21, 2020 Hamáček warned that it would no longer be possible, for instance, to purchase protective equipment centrally or to control the regime at the country’s borders. Minister of Labor Jana Maláčová (ČSSD) is also skeptical about the consequences of the end of the State of Emergency on April 30. “If this happens, I want to know how to protect the elderly after the emergency, how we will...
As all schools, kindergartens and other school facilities (such as forest kindergartens, children’s groups, etc.) have been closed in the Czech Republic, government measures have been extended to self-employed persons who are forced to stay with their children at home. Šárka Pelikánová, owner of the accountancy and tax office of Connect Economic Group s.r.o. Who is eligible for the nursing allowance? Self-employed persons have never been entitled to a nursing allowance. Now all entrepreneurs who undertake self-employment as their main activity and who are not employed anywhere have the possibility to apply for a nursing allowance. However, self-employed persons who undertake self-employment as their secondary activity due to disability pension, maternity leave, etc., and the reason for their secondary activity is not related to employment, are also entitled to apply. If at the same time, the entrepreneur, whether for the main or secondary activity, has a signed contract on the performance of the office of the company executive, this person is not entitled to receive the nursing care allowance. Other conditions for receiving the nursing allowance It should be taken into account that self-employed persons must be registered for income tax at the tax office. At the same time, it...
The smart quarantine project will be extended to the whole country from Monday. The project involves tracing past contacts of people who test positive for the virus five days back by creating “maps of their movements” with the help of banks and mobile phone operators. The solution offered by the Covid19cz group of computer experts. “It generates a memory map showing… for instance that a man spent half an hour at the corner of two streets,” sais Covid19cz spokeswoman Irena Zatloukalova. “The public health officer can ask if the person visited or met someone to identify other people who may be infected. People won´t have to merely rely on their memory when they recall what they were doing over the last two weeks.” All those who they came into contact with are tested and quarantined until cleared. The plan is being implemented with the help of the army in order to speed up testing. The smart quarantine will contribute to the acceleration of activities ensuring population testing and identify new coronavirus cases. Those who test positive will then describe who they met and where to the Regional Hygiene Authority, and a map will be drawn from this information. Within three...
Prague’s airport said Saturday it had seen off several recent attempts to hack its IT network. In a statement sent to Reuters, an airport spokesperson said that “attempted attacks on web pages of the airport were detected in preparatory phase … that prevented their spreading and all further phases that could have followed and potentially harm the company.” A hospital in the city of Karlovy Vary in the west of the country was also attacked overnight on Saturday, according to Reuters. The Czech cybersecurity agency Núkib on Thursday warned the country is expecting “a large-scale campaign of severe cyber attacks” targeting health care institutions in particular. Two hospitals in the Czech Republic reported attempted attacks on their computer systems on Friday, a day after the country’s cybersecurity watchdog said it expected a wave of cyberattacks on the country’s critical infrastructure. Responding to the Czech warning, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday released a statement saying the United States had “zero tolerance” for malicious cyber activity designed to undermine efforts against the global pandemic. “Anyone that engages in such action should expect consequences,” he said. “Such activity against critical civilian infrastructure is deeply irresponsible and dangerous.” “I do hope that our...
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases in the country is now up to 6,657, with 105 new cases on Saturday.
In this time of unprecedented crisis, there are so many inspiring stories of people going above and beyond. Tireless healthcare workers and those on the frontline, neighbours looking out for one another, friends delivering meals to those in need, and supermarket stackers working literally around-the-clock. An American expat living in Prague (with the precious help of his daughter) recently decided to do its part and thank health care professionals, police, firefighters, and emergency services buying a billboard near Motol Hospital. “The idea sprang up one morning when I drove my daughter Eva Lily to her grandmothers where she would be tending to her homeschooling. After flashing my lights at a bus to allow him to merge in front of me, he flipped on his flashers to say ‘thank you’, says Dean Bedford. “We later pulled up beside him in a turn lane waiting for the light to turn green. I turned to the driver who was wearing a face mask, and caught his attention. I balled my right hand to a fist, bounced it above my heart twice and then threw him the Peace Sign. As my daughter Eva Lily stated as we turned light on the green light, ‘Daddy...
Croatia’s Tourism Minister announced that he would speak with the Czech Minister for Regional Development next week in a bid to come to a joint solution to provide conditions for Czech tourists with booked vacations in Croatia to visit this summer. Following a telephone discussion between Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and his Czech counterpart Andrej Babiš on the issue, Tourism Minister Gari Cappelli informed that he is set to speak with Czech Regional Development Minister Klara Dostalova next week to search for a way to ensure the arrival of Czech tourists in Croatia this summer. Minister Cappelli noted that tourism also falls within Minister Dostalova’s purview. “Both of us are determined to find ways of making this happen. And we plan on approaching other interesting markets with similar practices,” Cappelli said. Issues such as the possibility of re-opening tourist routes and tourism in general after coronavirus protection measures are relaxed will be discussed at the end of April at a major ministerial conference convened by Croatia. “We will also discuss various models, proposals, and opportunities for gradually resuming normal tourist traffic, including the establishment of tourist corridors, as proposed by the Czechs,” Cappelli said. The minister added that the ideas, solutions, and conditions for resuming tourism...
The Czech Prison Service has asked the courts to postpone accepting prisoners convicted of trivial offenses to prevent the spread of coronavirus in detention facilities. “This measure would concern convicts charged with minor offenses,” said General Director of the Prison Service Petr Dohnal before the meeting with court officials and Justice Minister Marie Benešová. With the agreement of the justice minister, the postponement of prison intakes under specific conditions is almost approved. No prisoners are known to be infected with the coronavirus yet. Of the 12,000 prison officers and civilian employees, 11 have tested positive for COVID-19. Those who were in contact with infected individuals have been placed in quarantine. Due to the pandemic, Dohnal said, the Prison Service had implemented extensive measures to prevent the spread of the virus to prisons. “One of these measures was also to ask presidents of regional courts to consider the postponement of prison intakes in the case of convicts who report to the prison on their own on a date set by the court. They are, therefore, not dangerous perpetrators,” said Dohnal. Even before the meeting, the reactions from regional courts have been positive, as presidents of the courts welcomed the proposed short-term...
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