Czech Republic | GlobalPost

Could I please have my painting back?

Bruce I. KonviserJuly 1, 2009 07:13Updated May 30, 2010 12:59

PRAGUE — With little more than paper, pen and her own detective skills, Miriam Friedman Morris has been on a personal mission for nearly 30 years to track down a lifetime's worth of her father's artwork that was plundered by the Nazis. David Friedman was a prolific, if not famous, artist whose portraits were published in more than 250 German newspapers before World War II, according to his daughter. After Kristallnacht — the night of broken glass in November 1938 — Friedman fled Berlin, with his wife and infant daughter, for the Czech capital.

A stock bet in Poland

Jan CienskiJune 15, 2009 13:11Updated May 30, 2010 12:58

WARSAW — The Warsaw Stock Exchange, a leading symbol of the country’s transformation from communism to capitalism, is being sold by the government to ensure its continued viability. The WSE has undergone remarkable growth over the last 18 years, but now its continued ownership by the government is an anachronism that is harming its chances of becoming the region’s leading exchange.

Czech MPs not so special

Bruce I. KonviserJune 13, 2009 14:25Updated May 30, 2010 12:58

PRAGUE — An attempt to expand the fighting capabilities of the Czech Republic's military police into the realm of special operations forces has ended in failure. The defense ministry announced this week that their military police will no longer be trained for special operations tasks, nor be assigned to carry them out in the field, according to ministry spokesman Andrej Cirtek. “They will return to their original purpose,” he said. “One unit should not mix police and special forces capabilities — it's nonsense.”

Czechs fear rise of the right in EU vote

Bruce I. KonviserJune 6, 2009 12:05Updated May 30, 2010 12:57

PRAGUE — Like others throughout the continent, Czechs are voting in European parliamentary elections on Saturday. And there is growing concern over the rise of right-wing extremist parties. More than 30 parties are competing for the 22 Czech seats in the European parliament, and the two leading parties from the left and the right are expected to gain the lion's share of those seats.

Egg attacks signal a dark turn of events

Bruce I. KonviserMay 30, 2009 09:04Updated May 30, 2010 12:56

PRAGUE, Czech Republic — It began as a form of political pranksterism, with a lone protester pelting eggs at the leader of the Social Democratic Party. But what started out as a limited outburst of hostility — against Jiri Paroubek, during a campaign stop two weeks ago for the European parliamentary elections — has this week erupted into the most violent political demonstrations since the revolution that ended communism in 1989.

Missile defense suffers setbacks

Bruce I. KonviserMay 21, 2009 00:38Updated May 30, 2010 12:56

PRAGUE, Czech Republic — U.S. missile defense plans for Europe, once a foreign policy priority, have suffered a series of setbacks in the past two days. The Czech Republic's interim government announced Wednesday that it will not put missile defense ratification on the parliamentary agenda during its time in office, a fresh blow to U.S. plans. That decision came after a clutch of new developments in the United States, Russia and Iran.

Fighting to honor the Roma

Bruce I. KonviserMay 18, 2009 17:59Updated May 30, 2010 12:55

LETY, Czech Republic — In a small grassy clearing marked with boulders, dozens gathered last week to pay homage to the hundreds of Roma who perished in a concentration camp that is now home to a pig farm. For more than a decade, the Committee for the Redress of the Roma Holocaust has been calling on successive Czech governments to either close down or relocate the pig farm, which they say is an affront to the Romani — or Gypsy — victims of the Holocaust.

EU tries to boost ex-Soviet states

Bruce I. KonviserMay 10, 2009 12:01Updated May 30, 2010 12:55

PRAGUE — Frustrated with the slow pace of political and economic reforms in several former Soviet republics, the European Union has launched a program intended to help these struggling countries develop democratic principles and market economies. The so-called Eastern Partnership will give Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan an opportunity to gain free-trade benefits typical of EU member-states if they work toward harmonizing their laws with EU standards and developing civil society and rule-of-law infrastructure.

Lisbon treaty is finally ratified by Czech Senate

Bruce KonviserMay 6, 2009 19:22

After many months of delays, false starts and raised hopes, the Czech Senate finally ratified the European Union's far-reaching reform measure known as the Lisbon Treaty. Among other things, the treaty would — ironically — streamline the decision making process of the EU, which now includes 27 members states and nearly 500 million people. It would also create a more stable EU presidency. The current format — a rotating presidency that changes country's every six months — would be replaced by an elected official who would serve a two-and-a-half year term.

Witches Night becomes a spring festival

Bruce KonviserMay 2, 2009 16:14

Paleni Charodejnic, or Witches Night, in the Czech Republic is a ritual that dates back centuries. Just how many is unclear, as is the original meaning, although one of the primary notions is that it had to do with a cleansing of evil spirits associated with winter. This so-called cleansing was done via bonfires and — to some unknown extent — the burning of witches.