Current Affairs | All stories

The Prague Transport Authority recently launched a chip card system similar to London's Oyster card. The Opencard itself is not a novelty: Prague citizens have already been using it to pay their parking fees and take out library books. However, as of October, they can also use their Opencard as a public transport pass, charging it up with credit beforehand. I spoke to Michal Opatrný from the Prague Transport Authority to find out more about the new system:

The fighting over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia, and the fragile ceasefire which Georgians claim is repeatedly violated by Russian troops, has raised fears of a prolonged conflict between Moscow and the pro-Western, ex-Soviet state. And, on a broader scale, it has fuelled speculation about how Russia’s military offensive into South Ossetia could affect international relations, the balance of power in Europe and plans to expand NATO and the EU. Veronika Kuchynova Smigolova is head of the Security Policy Department at the Czech

The Edinburgh fringe is one of the biggest arts festivals in the world, with the Scottish capital more than doubling in population during the three weeks each August when the fringe takes place. Parks, churches and even public toilets are all transformed into venues, attracting performers and visitors from all over the globe. This year, five Czech theatre groups are in Edinburgh to perform at the festival. They are part of the ‘Czech Republic @ The Fringe’ season, coordinated by Ladislav Pflimpfl from the Czech Centre in London. I caught up with

The fall of communism and the arrival of the free market produced a boom in a number of sectors of the Czech economy, but one area that’s enjoyed unparalleled growth is what’s sometimes called the world’s oldest profession. Prostitution – much of it street prostitution run by criminal gangs – is commonplace in towns close to the Austrian and German borders. One of them is the industrial city of Chomutov, in northwest Bohemia. There the local authorities have come up with a novel plan to push prostitution out of the city limits. But as Rob Cameron

Beginning in January 2009, foreigners from outside the EU who seek permanent residency in the Czech Republic will have to pass a Czech language exam to qualify for the permit. The authorities have now launched a website with information on the language test, a list of language centres where they can take the exam, as well as places where they can receive a voucher that will entitle them to one exam free-of-charge. And the website also features a sample exam in which seekers of permanent residency can test their Czech language skills.

Czech scientists have made a breakthrough discovery, one that research teams all over the world have been striving for for years. Scientists from the University of South Bohemia have detected the structure of an enzyme that can change the DNA in bacteria. The discovery should in time prevent bacteria from being resistant to antibiotics. Ruth Fraňková spoke to Ruediger Ettrich, the head of the Centre of protein structure and function and one of the people behind the discovery:

It isn’t an unusual practice: a well-known sports celebrity sets up a line of sports clothing. From a marketing perspective, the idea seems perfect: capitalize on the name-recognition of said sportsperson and either open a bar, sports-shop or even set up a line of clothing. Dominik Hašek, former ice-hockey legendary goalkeeper did the latter. But now it seems that his business venture has hit some bumps in the road. DJ reports:

The conflict between Russia and Georgia continued on Monday, as both sides accused each other of launching new military attacks and western diplomats scrambled to negotiate a ceasefire. All eyes were meant to be on Beijing and the Olympic Games this August, but it’s the Caucuses that have grabbed the world’s attention, and the Czech Republic is no exception.

Investigations have been continuing into Friday’s tragic train accident near the city of Ostrava which caused seven deaths and dozens of injuries. Over the weekend, Czech Railways also announced a compensation plan for the relatives of the victims running into hundreds of thousands of crowns.

Seven people have died and more than sixty are reported injured in a train crash in the eastern part of the Czech Republic. The accident happened at approximately 10:30 am on Friday, some 20 km south of the city of Ostrava, when a Prague-bound Eurocity train from Krakow, in Poland, hit fallen debris from an overhead bridge which had collapsed onto the railway tracks.