Radio Prague International - latest articles

Top international credit rating agency Fitch has downgraded its outlook for the Czech economy from stable to negative. This has sparked fears it could also cut the Czech Republic’s credit rating – only adding to its mounting economic woes. I discussed the revised outlook with Lukáš Kovanda, chief economist at Trinity Bank.

Jan Patočka is regarded as perhaps the greatest Czech philosopher of the 20th century. A new book makes several of his writings available in English for the first time.

Prague 8 has chosen the winner of a public tender for a memorial to Jindřiška Nováková, the 14-year old “girl with the bike” whose family hid the paratroopers that assassinated high-ranking Nazi Reinhard Heydrich. The memorial will be in the shape of a sphere made of multiple circles resembling bike wheels, with the illuminated figure of a girl sitting on top.

The Czech National Bank (ČNB) has chosen to raise interest rates by 0.75 percentage points to 5.75 percent, the highest rate since 1999. The hike is also slightly higher than most analysts expected and some have even warned of a stagflation effect as high interest rates may cripple economic growth. To find out whether these concerns are justified, I spoke to Vít Hradil, the chief economist at the investment firm Cyrrus, and began by asking him whether he was surprised by the ČNB’s decision.

After a six-year renovation, the main hall of the Spring Colonnade in Karlovy Vary reopened to the public. The Functionalist structure is located right in the heart of the picturesque spa town and houses its warmest and most popular spring, called Vřídlo or Hot Spring.

The Czech Republic is due to take up the rotating presidency of the European Council in July of this year. Alongside preparations for the daunting tasks ahead at a difficult time for Europe and the world at large, there are plans for a series of cultural and promotional events. I asked Marek Zeman, spokesperson for the minister of European affairs, what is in the pipeline.

The Czech Republic is one of the countries that have called for a two-to-three-year transition period from the EU’s plan to ban Russian oil imports. Within this timeframe, the government hopes to enlarge alternate delivery systems such as the TAL pipeline running from Italy. But to do this, Czechia first needs to secure approval from current TAL users – Germany, Italy and Austria.

Bohéma is the name of a new Prague shop selling T-shirts and other items featuring classic Czech images, from Sokol gymnasts to writer Karel Čapek. The company, previously online only, has opened the outlet in a building associated with major figures in the Czech National Revival. At its opening I spoke to Oldřich Neuberger, who founded Bohéma with his wife Eliška.

As part of a number of educational reforms, the government has proposed making the learning of a second foreign language in Czech primary schools voluntary for students rather than compulsory as it is at present, sparking criticism, controversy and debate among academics, politicians, language teachers, and even ambassadors from EU countries. Almost 2500 people, including foreign language teachers and representatives of three different pedagogical faculties, have signed a petition in support of keeping the second foreign language requirement.

The High Court in Prague has decided to reopen the cases of General Jan Syrový and Rudolf Beran, who served as prime ministers during Czechoslovakia’s tumultuous turn from First Republic to occupied Nazi protectorate. The two men were originally sentenced to 20 years in jail for treason, but with the court now acknowledging shady evidence, their families finally have a chance to restore their reputations.