Czechia has been called out for its stance on violence against women and for the unequal position of Roma by the United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of human rights. A final report with recommendations for Czechia is to be released on February 10. UN member countries pointed out that Czechia still has not ratified the Istanbul Convention of the Council of Europe condemning domestic and sexual violence, including forced marriages or so-called crimes of honour and mutilation of genitals. Czechia has also been called on to redefine rape in its national legislation. Ratification of the Istanbul Convention has been opposed by conservative deputies in the ruling centre-right five-party coalition as well as by deputies from the far right and populist opposition. Ratification has fallen victim to culture wars led by the right aimed at steering emotions among the public. At a recent presidential debate at Czech Television between the runoff candidates, opposition leader and billionaire Andrej Babis and retired army general Petr Pavel, Babis referred to the Istanbul Convention as “nonsense” while at the same time conceding that “women are afraid to report rape” in Czechia. Only 5% of rapes get reported in Czechia and surveys show that some 40% of the population...
The campaign encourages people to give up alcohol for one month. On 21 January, the Czech City of Prague announced that it is supporting the Dry February awareness campaign for the eleventh year. It aims to encourage Czechs to abstain from alcohol for the full month, which organisers say leads to “greater self-awareness, higher energy levels and better sex”. The rules are simple. Not a drop of alcohol for the entire month of February. Czechs are among the world’s biggest drinkers per capita and about 15 percent of the population regularly drinks to excess, as defined by the World Health Organization. According to the municipality, the reason behind the Dry February campaign is the excessive alcohol consumption in the country. Commenting on this, the Mayor of Prague Zdeněk Hřib shared: “I was happy to support the Dry February awareness campaign this year. Alcohol consumption in the Czech Republic is not something we should be proud of. Dry February is, therefore, a great opportunity to test how much control we have over our alcohol consumption. Sometimes we forget that alcohol is also an addictive substance that can have very negative effects on the health and lives of others.” Last year, according...
A group of nine nations including the Czech Republic, Britain, Poland and the Netherlands on Thursday pledged to pursue providing an “unprecedented set of donations” including main battle tanks to help Ukraine in its conflict with Russia. “We commit to collectively pursuing delivery of an unprecedented set of donations including main battle tanks, heavy artillery, air defence, ammunition, and infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine’s defence,” a joint statement said. The statement, published on the british government website, was made by the defence ministers of Britain, Estonia, Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, and representatives from Denmark, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Slovakia following a meeting in Estonia. The statement, called the Tallinn Pledge, says the 11 nations urge other allies and partners to “follow suit and contribute their own planned packages of support as soon as possible.” US to donate more vehicles and ammunition The US Department of Defense (DoD) has confirmed an additional $2.5bn tranche of military platforms and weapons to fulfill Ukraine’s crucial defence requirements. The new package, which has been authorised from the 30th drawdown of equipment from the US’ defence inventories, includes eight Avenger systems, 590 TOW anti-tank missiles, 90 Stryker vehicles, 20 mine rollers, and 53 mine resistant ambush...
Text messages citing Czech presidential candidate Petr Pavel and calling on recipients to come to the nearest Czech army post to get arms for mobilisation in Ukraine appeared on Wednesday. Czech police are now asking recipients to contact the authorities. “Hello, this is General Pavel. With this message, I would like to thank you for your vote in the presidential election campaign. Please come to the nearest Czech army station where you will be equipped with necessary weapons for mobilisation in Ukraine,” reads the text message. It was first shared online by Mayor of Tetin town Matej Hlavaty, who is part of the Pavel campaign team. Pavel has been in a fierce campaign with the opposition leader and populist billionaire Andrej Babis over the presidential office which is culminating at the runoff vote on January 27-28. Babis has been accusing his opponent, a former army chief of staff and chairman of the Nato Military Committee, of being a warmonger and has been styling himself a peacemaker seeking the end of the war in Ukraine. “I am the only one who seeks peace,” Babis’ profile posted on Wednesday in block letters and added that “I don’t want the war to spread. I am not a...
As living costs rise, raising a family is becoming a more expensive endeavor. Priorities are changing too — more families are seeking out areas that offer easy and affordable access to education and childcare, low crime rates and family-friendly policies to help support a growing family. A good education will shape your child’s future, so it’s important to have good and affordable schooling nearby. Salaries and rental prices provide a good indication of cost and quality of living, where higher salaries and lower rental costs suggest a higher standard of living. Family and social policies, particularly around parental leave, are essential, though it’s surprising to see how many countries lag behind, particularly when it comes to paid paternity leave. With this in mind, BigTravel compiled a list of the best places in the world to raise a family using a comprehensive points system. They ranked more than 100 countries in the following five categories: Global Safety Index Healthcare OECD Median Salary Rent Index United Nations Education Index For maternity and paternity leave, countries were ranked 25 points each, bringing the total overall points to 150. The Czech Republic ranks 10th and is described as: “The Czech Republic frequently ranks as...
Meteorologists have warned of heavy snowfall on Wednesday and the days to follow. The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute has announced a warning for heavy snowfalls. They will occur in most areas of the country on Wednesday, January 18. The warning is valid from midnight to 15:00 on Wednesday for Prague, Vysočina, Central Bohemia, Plzeň, South Bohemia, South Moravia, Pardubice, Olomouc. Up to 5 centimeters of snow are expected to fall in the lower altitudes around the country, and up to 15 centimeters in the north-east in the Jeseníky and Beskydy mountains. The snow may cause complications for transport and energy and may also break tree branches. Drivers are advised to refrain from driving at night, if possible, and to take into account heavy weather conditions when driving. Find further information about the current warning in the Czech Republic from CHMI.
A two-day Czech presidential election began on Friday, with one contender believing the vote has already been affected by a cyberattack. Opinion polls suggest a tight race between billionaire and populist ex-prime minister Andrej Babis, former army general Petr Pavel and economics professor Danuse Nerudova. Pavel said his campaign websites were difficult to access. “Russian hackers apparently don’t want voters to access my websites on this key day,” the 61-year-old former NATO general complained on Twitter. The polling stations opened at 2 p.m. and close at the same time on Saturday for 8.3 million eligible voters. If none of the eight candidates receive an absolute majority, as is expected, a run-off second round follows in two weeks. The Czech president’s powers include appointing constitutional judges and having the right to send laws back to parliament once. In a final televised debate on Thursday, the favorites exchanged blows. Babis, prime minister between 2017 and 2021, tried to portray Pavel and Nerudova as politically inexperienced. He was meanwhile accused of presiding over “chaos” during the coronavirus crisis of 2020 and 2021. The campaign was otherwise dominated by personality but issues such as high inflation and the Ukraine war were also top themes....
RegioJet, Central Europe’s largest private passenger rail operator, was awarded a single safety certificate for passenger rail operations in Germany in December 2022. Germany has thus become the next foreign market where RegioJet has been certified, alongside Slovakia, Poland and Austria. “RegioJet is certified to operate passenger rail services in Austria. As of March 2022, we started to fully operate the routes to Vienna and Budapest on this certificate with our own resources. We have now obtained the following from the European Union Railway Agency (ERA) certificate, which will allow us to develop new routes not only with a destination in Germany but also services going further into Western Europe via Germany in the next few years,” says Jakub Svoboda, Managing Director of RegioJet’s train operations. With the German certificate, RegioJet has been able to extend its Austrian certificate to include a certificate for rail freight operations. Regiojet also wants to obtain freight rail operating certificates in all neighboring countries. RegioJet a.s. is a purely Czech company and one of the largest private operators rail and bus transport in Central Europe. It was established in 2009 as a subsidiary of STUDENT AGENCY of founder Radim Jancura. Since 2011 it has been operating RegioJet regular...
Voters in the Czech Republic are heading to the polls this Friday and Saturday to choose their next president. The winner will become head of state in a country battling record inflation and bulging public finance deficits because of the war in Ukraine. Eight contenders are in the running, but three challengers appear to be in serious contention for victory. Among the favourites is former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, 68, a billionaire populist who was recently acquitted in a fraud trial. He has been plagued by his communist past as an alleged secret police agent and has also had to defend questions about his business dealings. Retired army chief Petr Pavel, and former University head Danuše Nerudová are also in the running. Pavel is campaigning on a bid to “restore order” in the EU member and offer “experienced and calm leadership”. His military career included leading the NATO Military Committee from 2015-2018. Nerudová is a career academic who rose to become the rector of Mendel University in her hometown of Brno, and has vowed to “leave the ego behind” and “communicate with all groups of people”. They’ll be hoping to galvanise the centrist voters who ousted Babiš at the last general election in 2021....
Rising energy prices, construction costs and rents, the crisis of restaurants, pressure for ESG compliance and changes in the Prague high street: these are the main trends that will affect the Czech real estate market in 2023. Substantial changes will occur both in the field of industrial and office real estate, as well as in the residential housing. According to Colliers, a leader in the provision of diversified professional services in the field of commercial real estate and investment management, the real estate market in the Czech Republic will be influenced by following 10 main trends this year: 1. Construction and financing costs will remain high It is unlikely that construction materials prices will decrease dramatically in the short term, and we assume that newly developed projects will have more difficulty proceeding without a business plan or profit revision, partially depending on the sector. A similar situation exists with the cost of financing. This can limit construction activity, especially among smaller developers where financing banks are more cautious and request greater levels of security. 2. Pressure for inflation caps and the savings struggle As Czech and Eurozone inflation spiked during 2022, many tenants reviewed their contracts and opted to add...
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control recently reported a notable spike in the number of STD’s across Europe, connecting it to a ‘decade-long trend’ of growing STD rates in the continent. Despite a slight decrease in case numbers during the pandemic, the alarming trend continues to grow again, leaving reason to worry. In Czechia alone, the past decade has seen a rise in cases of STDs such as gonorrhea, syphilis, and HIV. And one issue with this is, you may not even know if you have an STD or not, because many of them are symptom-less. However, this can cause issues later in life, not to mention the danger of spreading the disease to a partner. That’s why it’s truly important to consider getting tested at least once a year, as recommended by several health organizations such as WHO and CDC. In Prague, there are a number of opportunities to be tested thanks to the availability and accessibility of Unilabs, a diagnostic laboratory service provider that offers comprehensive healthcare solutions in Prague and the Czech Republic. With a network comprising 28 collection points in Prague and more than other 50 nationwide, Unilabs offers an array of specialized of...
A Prague court on Monday acquitted former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš of fraud charges in a $2 million case involving European Union subsidies. A prosecutor requested a three-year suspended sentence and a fine of CZK 10 million for the populist billionaire. The prosecution still can appeal. Babiš pleaded not guilty and repeatedly said the charges against him were politically motivated. He wasn’t present at Prague’s Municipal Court on Monday. His former associate, Jana Nagyova, who signed the subsidy request, was also acquitted. A man in the audience tried to disrupt the verdict by shouting that he had an objection and had to be escorted from the courtroom by guards. Babiš had also clashed with the European Commission over concerns of conflict of interest concerning his businesses, which receive the bloc’s funds, during his term as premier. The trial follows a seven-year investigation and is at the centre of media attention, especially in light of the fact that Mr. Babiš is one of the frontrunners in the presidential race. Babis is considered a front-runner in Friday’s election, along with retired army Gen. Petr Pavel, former chairman of NATO’s military committee, and former university rector Danuse Nerudova.
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