Radio Prague International - latest articles

Russian journalist and politician Vladimir Kara-Murza received a 25-year jail term on Monday on charges linked to his criticism of the war in Ukraine. It is the longest sentence Russia has handed down to an opposition figure since it launched the invasion. Mr. Kara-Murza, who also has UK citizenship, won the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize last year and I discussed his case with Michael Žantovský, head of the Václav Havel Library in Prague.

Most checkpoints at Prague Castle began to be removed at noon on Monday, just minutes after President Petr Pavel announced a security overhaul. The head of state said that the checks had caused long queues and “negative emotions” at the popular tourist destination.

‘Giving birth in Brno’, ‘Five easy tips for passing the A2 Czech test’, and ‘How to leave your lover but stay in the Czech Republic’ – those are some of the kinds of workshops you can expect at the Brno Expat Fair on Saturday 22 April, along with a whole host of stands and exhibits showcasing what Czechia’s second-largest city has to offer international residents. I spoke to Marie Lungová of the Brno Expat Centre, which organises the event, about why it’s worth a visit.

Vojtěch Hynais is one of the lesser-known Czech artists, at least abroad. But recently a painting of his aroused the interest of the world-famous Pompidou Centre in Paris.

Czechia is sitting on the proverbial "roof" of Europe. All the rivers and streams flow out of the country, none into it.  Thus, Czechs are literally losing the ground under their feet because erosion takes away tens of millions of cubic meters of fertile soil each year.

President Petr Pavel and the First Lady received a group of Romany high school and university students at Prague Castle on Thursday. In an unprecedented gesture of support for young members of the Roma minority, he encouraged them to follow their dreams and inspire others.

Czech military chiefs have moved to quell public alarm sparked by the fact civilian doctors will take part in an exercise call-up drive next month. Top brass say the conscription readiness test is in fact a routine matter.

The government has nodded to the planned closure of 300 post offices around the country. The state-owned company Czech Post is in the red, due to a marked drop in demand for its services, but critics argue that the state must continue to meet the needs of the thousands of elderly citizens who depend on postal services.

For 85 years, a monument in Orlová to the fallen Czech soldiers of the 1919 Polish–Czechoslovak War has been a plain list of names on slabs of stone. But it used to be dominated by a huge statue of a Silesian eagle with soldiers at its feet, which was torn down by Polish troops after the 1938 Munich Agreement. Now a five-metre copy of the statue is being crafted and will soon adorn the monument in the east Moravian town once again.

Established in 1348 by Emperor Charles IV, Charles University is the oldest university in Central and Eastern Europe. The university enjoys international prestige and 20 percent of its students are from abroad.