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The Czech Roman Catholic Church recently joined an on-going debate about sexual abuse of minors by priests. Several church officials, including both the outgoing and the newly appointed archbishops of Prague offered their views on the scandal, and on what the church should do to prevent such cases in the future. Although only a few cases of sex abuse have been disclosed in the Czech Republic, the debate now centres on how to tighten the rules of accepting candidates for priests.

The conditions in which the Czech Republic’s Roma minority lives have not improved in the last decade, in fact many of the groups working with Roma issues say their situation in Czech society, and relationship with Czechs, is in a gradual downward spiral. Unemployment among the Roma is said to be at more than 80%, high debt is rampant, and this has fostered social exclusion and breeding grounds for crime and drug use. And in turn violent crime against Roma communities has become, if not more prevalent, then more extreme. In this week’s Talking

Last month Prague hosted a major international conference on the crimes committed by the communist regimes of Central and Eastern Europe. Delegates from both sides of the former Iron Curtain discussed their research into atrocities that in many cases had been swept under the carpet for decades. To give a couple of examples: how many Europeans today remember that up to 130,000 people were executed in the Yugoslav republic of Slovenia in the aftermath World War II, or that in Romania hundreds of opponents to the Stalinist regime were shot by the Securitate

Not that long ago in the Czech Republic, parents with young children - babies or toddlers - were often hard-pressed to find venues catering specifically to their needs, but more and more that situation has changed. Arguably, more services are now available than ever – from restaurants offering children’s corners to centres organising all manner of activities for toddlers.

Two former foreign employees of the Prague-based, US broadcaster RFE/RL are fighting a legal battle against their former employer, accusing the radio station of discrimination. The argument is related to their contracts with the radio station, and the way the Croatian and Armenian nationals were fired. They claim that they and hundreds of other RFE Prague-based employees from non EU countries find themselves in a legal vacuum. But it seems that they fell into a gap in the system – which in the meantime has been fixed.

If you are looking for somewhere for Christian worship in Prague, there are several places where you can attend regular Sunday services in English. One thriving English-speaking Christian community is the Anglican congregation, which meets every Sunday at St Clement’s Church in the Old Town. Services are well-attended, but in the twenty years since the fall of communism, the Anglican chaplaincy has not always had a smooth ride, and for the second time in just over a decade its future is uncertain.

In 2006 the Czech Republic took four medals at the Winter Olympic Games in Turin. This year the Czech team is the biggest, and perhaps the strongest, in history. So what can the Czechs hope to achieve at the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, which get underway on February 12?

One of the most important documents concerning the future of Prague is the rather unimaginatively named “Development Plan”. Since 1999, the plan has been the key public document laying out the broad rules for what can be built where in the city and its suburbs. For investors, developers, property owners and Prague’s 57 local authorities, the plan outlines development and environmental priorities: in terms of land-use, new building and the transport infrastructure. Since the plan was first drawn up in the early days after the fall of communism,

In this week’s Talking Point we examine the future of shortwave broadcasting. Shortwave has undoubtedly been on the retreat in developed countries, forced to share its former primacy with upstart mediums such as the internet and satellite radio. But are its days numbered even in the developing world?

The number of HIV cases in the Czech Republic has been steadily rising, and 2009 could see the biggest jump in HIV infection in the country’s history. The Czech health authorities say that the surge is fuelled by ignorance and complacency within high-risk groups. But critics point out that following a recent overhaul of the government’s HIV/AIDS prevention programme, the situation has fast deteriorated.