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Disabled people from all parts of the Czech Republic gathered in Prague on Monday to protest against the government's proposal for a new law on social services and tax related issues. The protesters are dissatisfied with the distribution of money on regional and local levels, and the organizers from the National Council for the Handicapped say that it does injustice to many disabled people.

Over the weekend, the Czech Republic apologised for the first time to ethnic Germans living in Austria for their expulsion at the hands of the Czechoslovak authorities in the years following WWII. At a European Forum in the Austrian town of Goettweig over the weekend, Czech Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla said Czechs regretted that these events and actions ever happened.

When Czechs endorsed the country's membership in the EU in June's referendum the first to send congratulations were the Czech Republic's immediate neighbours. Austria and Germany, the country's leading EU trade partners said the country's accession to the union would open up new possibilities and help to resolve existing problems in bilateral relations. The reference was of course to sensitive issues arising from the Second World War, the Temelin nuclear power plant in south Bohemia and, last but not least, environmental pollution in central Europe.

Every year, thousands of visitors from all over Europe come to the Slavkov - or Austerlitz - battlefield in South Moravia. Recently, a new tourist path was opened to take visitors round the venue of the famous Battle of Three Emperors of 1805, in which Napoleon crushed allied Russian and Austrian armies. Vladimir Tax has the details.

In 1930, just seven years after radio broadcasting was established in the former Czechoslovakia, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs came up with the idea of creating a shortwave service which would present the country abroad. Five years later workmen began assembling shortwave transmitters and on August 31st, 1936 the station first went on the air with a speech in English by the technical director of Czechoslovak Radio. This day marked the birth of international broadcasting in Czechoslovakia.

In Egypt the Czech Republic is probably best known thanks to its archaeologists. Czech Egyptologists have been excavating in the country for decades and have achieved remarkable results. Now, the Czech Republic has the chance to become a synonym for quality architecture for Egyptians. Czech architect Martin Roubik was a member of the Norwegian team that designed the monumental library in Alexandria. This month, Mr Roubik and his colleagues won an award as part of a project to design the new Grand Egyptian Museum, announced by the government of

The latest attempt of the Czech Communist Party to abolish what is called the "lustration" or screening law was defeated on Wednesday in the Lower House. The law, introduced some twelve years ago, prevents officials of the former totalitarian Communist regime from holding important posts in public institutions. The communist proposal was rejected in the first reading by a majority of votes, although some of the members of largest party in the government, the Social Democrats, voted in favour. The main point of discussion in the parliament was,

Under the current law on drugs, people can possess "not more than a small amount" of marijuana, though what constitutes a "small amount" is not specified. Recently, Deputy Prime Minister Petr Mares caused divisions within the cabinet by proposing a clearer, more liberal drug law. It would make possession of less than a fixed amount (some reports said enough for 250 joints) a misdemeanour, not a crime. On the eve of Thursday's International Day Against Drug Abuse, Petr Mares explained why he was putting forward this new legislation:

Just one year after he hung up his goalie skates Czech star goaltender Dominik Hasek may soon be back in the NHL. There have been reports in the US press that the 38-year-old legend and 1998 Olympic gold medal winner has been talking to the Detroit Red Wings, with whom he won the Stanley Cup in his last season. Is Hasek still hungry for another shot at sport's oldest tournament trophy? Well, that's still a matter of speculation. But one thing is certain: a Hasek comeback would be welcomed by a great many fans, not least those in the Czech Republic.

Nove Herminovy, a village in North Moravia, which was first settled some 700 years ago, is now threatened with extinction. The reason: regional authorities are considering forcing the residents to leave their homes to make way for a flood prevention dam on the River Odra. As you might imagine, the people of Nove Herminovy are not too happy about the idea.