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Polish pop culture magazine Machina has hit the stands again after a three year absence. And its return did not go unnoticed. The cover features the Black Madonna icon, Poland's revered religious painting, but it appears with the superimposed picture of pop star Madonna. The published image has led to protests by Polish Roman Catholics. And it has raised ethical questions concerning media freedom not unlike those involving the Danish Islamic caricatures.

Hungary held its 37th national film festival - Hungarian Film Week - early this month and for the first time, foreign critics were invited to the jury. In another change - music competed as a separate category, and for the first time two quite young directors shared the top prizes.

President Vaclav Klaus caused dismay in the gay community on Thursday when he vetoed a law on registered partnerships for gay couples recently approved by the Czech parliament. Mr Klaus said his long-term opposition to gay marriage remained unchanged. The bill now goes back to parliament, where MPs must vote on whether to override Mr Klaus's veto. Rob Cameron has more.

Slovakia's number two tennis player, Karol Beck has been given a two year ban for testing positive for clenbuterol. The prohibited substance was found in a urine specimen taken last September during the semi-final of the Davis Cup between Slovakia and Argentina in Bratislava.

Central Europe is caught up in the debate over press freedom and religious sensitivities after papers in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and Poland re-printed caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed. The caricatures were first printed in a Danish newspaper sparking protests around the world. In Poland the debate has led to questioning of the extent of media freedoms and there's been an apology by Polish authorities to the Arab world.

Slovakia is heading for elections 3 months ahead of schedule after a junior coalition party pulled out and the minority government of Mikulas Dzurinda came close to collapse. Mr Dzurinda asked Parliament for early elections and all parties agreed on June 17th. The centre right government is credited with economic reforms creating strong economic growth but which were not always popular with Slovaks.

February 8th is a national holiday in Slovenia, honoring the great national poet France Preseren. During the holiday, museums and cultural institutions traditionally offer free admittance. Cultural awards are also conferred on outstanding Slovenian artists.

The massive protests against the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed have rocked the world. Buildings have been burnt down; people have died at demonstrations. To avoid further offence to the Muslim community, the mayor of a little Belgian coastal town recently banned a local exhibition from displaying a sculpture of Saddam Hussein, made by the Czech artist David Cerny.

Fancy a weekend getaway in a five-star hotel? Most of us do from time to time and of those who can afford it a surprising number spend that indulgent weekend in Budapest. A survey by a worldwide reservation system ranks Budapest the third most popular destination in the world for luxury weekend getaways.

This past week Poland has been in mourning, remembering the victims of the country's worst tragedy in twenty years: the collapse of a trade fair centre in the southern city of Katowice. The roof of the packed building where a trade show was underway caved in, apparently under the weight of uncleared snow. 64 people were killed including eight foreigners. Czechs and Slovaks were among them.