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The first round of Senate elections took place on the weekend. In the elections a third of the Senate were contested, only one candidate was elected in the first round. Among the remaining seats the opposition Civic Democrats, headed by former prime minister Vaclav Klaus, showed the strongest showing. The second round of Senate elections will take place on the weekend together with the local elections.

Although October 28th marks the founding of the Czechoslovak state, Slovaks do not recognize this date. In Slovakia, January 1st marks the date in which a national holiday celebrates the founding of the state which took place in 1993. Some might ask why is this so? After all, the first republic of Czechoslovakia was the first time in modern history where both Czechs and Slovaks had an independent state to call their own. I spoke to Andrea Kundrova from Radio Slovakia and asked her first, how significant the national holiday of January 1st is to

October 28th 2002, marks the 84th anniversary of Czechoslovak independence. Although Czechoslovakia was split into two separate states - the Czech Republic and Slovakia - in the so-called "Velvet Divorce" almost ten years ago, the Czechs, unlike the Slovaks, still celebrate October 28th as a national holiday. Dita Asiedu looks into its history and the importance it has held since 1918:

On the 28th of October, Czechoslovakia's first president, Tomas Garrigue Masaryk is always remembered. By saying 'always' I mean since 1989, as in the Communist era mentioning him was almost taboo.

If you have children and will be in Prague some time between now and January, there's an exhibition you shouldn't miss. It's called "The Czech Puppet" and opened at the Imperial Stables at Prague Castle on Friday. It celebrates the rich Czech puppet-making tradition. Alena Skodova went to the opening ceremony and has this report:

The Czech agriculture sector is facing a rocky season this year. Following the devastating floods in August, harvests are far worse than average and it looks as though neither the government nor the EU will come to the rescue with financial help. Furthermore, progress in the EU enlargement process was dealt a blow on Tuesday, when the Netherlands stated that they would block expansion if reform of the EU's costly farm aid policy were to fail. In Brussels this week EU representatives as well as candidate countries have come together for a summit

For the first time since arriving in Prague ten months ago, the Israeli ambassador to the Czech Republic, Arthur Avnon, opened up his residence yesterday to guests. On the invitation list: Holocaust survivors, people who saved Jews during the war, Jewish community leaders, Czech politicians and others. And the occasion: recognising the late Otakar Nesvadba as a "Righteous Among the Nations" - the highest Israeli tribute to non-Jews who saved the lives of Jews during the Second World War.

Rarely can a Czech election have aroused so little public interest. It's easy to forget that this Friday and Saturday, a third of the Czech electorate will have the chance to go to the polls. They'll be voting in elections to the Senate, the upper house of the Czech parliament, a political institution that since it came into being six years ago has never really captured the public imagination. Few Czechs are convinced by the idea of the Senate as a chamber of wise political elders and there have often been calls for it to be abolished altogether.

The ten countries in the forefront to join the European Union in the next round of enlargement put on a show of unity at a meeting in Prague on Tuesday. While the fifteen current EU members remain divided over how a bigger Europe will work, foreign ministers from the ten applicant countries said they were keen to proceed hand in hand in the final phase of their accession talks. Alena Skodova has more:

Preparations for the November NATO summit in Prague have accelerated and, amidst growing international concern over possible terrorist attacks and street riots, the summit's organizers are placing a huge stress on security. Debates on how many fighter jets will be protecting the skies over Prague, how many police officers will be out in the streets and how the two day summit will restrict movement around the Czech capital have become so widespread they have elicited a protest from President Havel who said he had the impression that Prague was preparing