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As the Academy Awards loom the Czech Republic once again finds itself rooting for one of its own - Ondrej Trojan - the director of Zelary - who brought a cycle of stories by writer Kveta Legatova to the big screen. The story, set in the rugged mountainous Walachia region of Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia during World War II, brings together characters from opposite social backgrounds. The male lead, the role of a blacksmith played by Gyorgy Cserhalmi, is wounded and brought to hospital where Anna Geislerova, a nurse in the resistance tries to save

A meeting at the Prague Municipal court took place on Tuesday to thrash out the ongoing issue in the Czech Republic, "Why are the courts so slow?" Existing efforts to modernize the current system were discussed with a primary focus on information exchange, or shall we say lack there of. The transparent judicial system of Canada was presented as an exemplary model, where detailed court proceedings are posted on the Internet for the public.

In August of 2002 devastating floods swept through the Czech Republic leaving behind a trail of destruction and despair. You could hear a pin drop this week as an audience of EU representatives, investors and town hall officials watched a video documenting the post-flood operations. Nevertheless, the occasion was a happy one - marking the end of flood repair work. Czech officials expressed gratitude for the EU's generous and speedy support during and after the crisis- and the head of the EU delegation to the Czech Republic Mr. Ralf Dreyer commended

A report in the newspaper Mlada Fronta Dnes containing details of plans to modernise the Prague Castle complex caused a minor stir this week. The paper claimed the plans included everything from new shops and restaurants to a hairdressers and even a branch of McDonald's! The article hasn't gone down well with the President's Office, which has accused the paper of blowing things out of proportion. Chancellor Jiri Weigl is the Head of the President's Office.

British stag parties careering noisily through the streets have become an increasingly common sight in Prague. These male drinking groups are evidently attracted by the cheap beer on sale in the Czech capital, among other things. We have a look at this growing phenomenon.

Holocaust Remembrance Day is marked around Europe on January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz death camp. Here in Prague the day has been marked by the country's first ever performance of the Song of Terezin, an oratorio written by the German-American composer Franz Waxman which is based on poems written by children imprisoned at the Terezin ghetto (known in German as Theresienstadt). The performance, co-sponsored by Czech and Austrian agencies, took place on Tuesday afternoon at the State Opera. A day before the premiere

Last week, the Governmental Board on Coordination of Drug Policy in the Czech Republic published data from the European School Survey on Alcohol and Other Drugs, revealing that every second Czech sixteen-year-old has got some experience with drugs. Not much to be proud of. Even so there are some positive improvements.

Last week we reported from the Czech Republic's second city of Brno on a major festival devoted to the Czech composer, Leos Janacek. But the festival isn't the only event under way in the city related to the Moravian capital's greatest musical son. This year is the 150th anniversary of the composer's birth, and on Friday two new exhibitions opened in Brno, devoted to Leos Janacek. David Vaughan spoke with the director of Brno's House of the Arts, Jitka Vitaskova.

A new book called "Can You Hear Us?" is about to hit book shelves in the Czech Republic. Its author Pavla Gomba, head of the Czech branch of UNICEF, has lent her voice to those who have trouble making themselves heard: victims of famine, AIDS and poverty in Africa and Asia. In the book Mrs. Gomba tells the life stories of 3 people whom she encountered during her working visits to this part of the world. It is a book that portrays not only the suffering but also the hope and courage of those for whom life is a daily fight for survival. At the book

The third year of the Make a Connection program was officially launched this week. The programme aims to help instil civic values in young people by supporting youth development projects. The programme also hopes to help youngsters learn valuable life skills.