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Healthcare has emerged as one of the major issues in this election campaign, not least because of the vocal protests of many Czech health workers against the recent reforms launched by Health Minister, David Rath. A "week of unrest" staged by healthcare professionals drew to a close on Friday with a demonstration and march through the streets of Prague.

The Czech Republic is now days away from a general election that will decide on the country's next government: in all likelihood led either by the Social Democratic Party, that has ruled for the last eight years, or their rivals - the right-of-centre Civic Democrats. The race is far from decided and even two final opinion polls have predicted opposite results: one giving the Social Democrats a slight edge, the other predicting a decisive Civic Democrat victory. Clearly, final televised debates between the parties' two leaders - Prime Minister Jiri

From R2D2 to the Terminator, robots are a common theme in modern fiction, but not many people realize that the robot was born in Prague exactly 85 years ago. To celebrate its birthday a project last week at the University of Cambridge in England examined the life of robots and their Czech creator.

The Khamoro world Roma festival is once again under way in Prague. For the eighth year running Roma musicians have been flocking to the Czech capital from all over Europe and the United States to perform everything from Gypsy jazz to traditional Roma folk songs. The festival has also been offering film screenings, book readings, and an exhibition of photographs. It all culminates with a gala concert of traditional music and an international seminar - a tribute to Milena Hubschmannova, who founded the Romany studies department at Prague's Charles

For the first time ever internet users have been given access to formerly top secret documentation compiled by Czechoslovakia's Communist secret intelligence - which spied on and plotted extensively against opponents of Communist Czechoslovakia in the 1970s and 80s. Targeted were dissidents and notable exiles and opponents whose moves were monitored and phone-lines tapped.

This week the Czech translation of one of the most fascinating and widely discussed books on the history of Central Europe to be published in recent years went onto the bookshelves. The book "Microcosm", by the English historians Norman Davies and Roger Moorhouse, looks at the history of Wroclaw, the capital of the southern Polish province of Silesia and one of the great cities of Central Europe. Wroclaw, known in German as Breslau and in Czech as Vratislav, is just a few dozen kilometres to the north of the Czech border and has had a long, often

The Czech Republic's political parties are busy with last minute campaigning in the lead-up to next week's parliamentary elections. Green party leaders on Wednesday held a public meeting featuring a talk by co-President of the European Greens, Daniel Cohn-Bendit.

The media has been full of reports in recent weeks of plans by the US to build a missile defence system in Central Europe - largely a response to Iran's sabre-rattling over its nuclear programme. This summer - according to the New York Times - the Pentagon will choose between two countries: Poland and the Czech Republic. Rob Cameron spoke to Radek Khol, head of the Centre for Security Analysis at the Institute of International Relations in Prague.

The Balkan state of Montenegro this week voted for independence from Serbia. Supporters of the break are optimistic that their new nation will eventually join other former communist states like the Czech Republic in the European Union. But at a conference this Tuesday in Prague, experts discussed how now is probably the wrong time for Montenegro or any other nation to join the long line waiting for EU membership.

It is official and without a doubt the biggest Czech transfer this season: Borussia Dortmund midfielder Tomas Rosicky to Arsenal in the English Premiership. The transfer fee - not officially disclosed has been put at 8 million British pounds - the equivalent of 15 million US dollars.