Czech news for March 27: Police charge anti-govt. protesters, missing Czech in Ukraine reported alive

Czech Environment Minister Petr Hladík has this afternoon announced that the country’s Agriculture Ministry will issue a tender for the renting of two helicopters that may help extinguish a potential wildfire in Czechia this summer. Last year, the country experienced its largest-ever forest fire, which spread over an area of 1,060 hectares. Hladík says that the state hopes to buy its own helicopters – with a minimum water capacity of 3,000 liters – for natural disasters next year.

Some passengers in Czechia today have been affected by a 24-hour transport strike (due to pay demands) in Germany, which involved train, bus, and air travel. People using trains operated by České dráhy (Czech Railways) and other carriers were relatively unaffected, as the strike – Germany’s largest in about a decade – had been planned well in advance. Originally scheduled flights between Czechia and its neighbor for March 27 had also been postponed in advance, minimizing disruption.

The total number of temporary protection visas issued by Czechia to Ukrainian refugees has now surpassed over half a million since February 2024, data from the Czech Interior Ministry shows. In recent months, over 2,000 visas – allowing Ukrainians free entry to the labor market and state healthcare system – have been granted every week. The exact number of Ukrainian refugees is not exactly known in Czechia, but estimates put the figure at over 300,000. Last month the Interior Ministry reported that Czechia took in the highest amount of Ukrainian refugees per capita.

A survey by polling agency Ipsos has found that good salaries and flexible working are the most important aspects for Czech employees. For a huge 95 percent of those surveyed, the basic criterion for feeling good at work is the salary level. Two-thirds of people who had worked remotely during the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic wish to continue doing so. Over 75 percent of people who work remotely reported increased feelings of well-being compared to when they had only worked in an office. Seven in 10 employees expressed a desire for a shorter working week.  

President Petr Pavel this afternoon told media outlet Deník.cz that current security measures for visitors to Prague Caste may be softened following the publication of a security report, due to be published in the next two to three weeks. In the past, Pavel repeatedly criticized the existing security checks – involving people walking through an airport-style scanner –  of people entering the castle grounds. Checks were introduced in the summer of 2016.

Chamber of Deputies Speaker Markéta Pekarová Adamová met today with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen for a discussion on Czechia-Taiwan relations and the importance of overcoming authoritarian rule. The two women also emphasized the significance of democracy and freedom after their talks. Adamová who is accompanied by a group of about 150 people from Czechia, mentioned that she hoped more European countries would foster strong ties with Taiwan. The Chinese embassy in Prague has sharply criticized the meeting.

A Czech volunteer who had been missing for several days in Ukraine has been reported found, according to Czech volunteer project zdravotnizajisteni.cz. The man, code-named Sendy Storm, reached out to the organization himself. He had been transporting military equipment from Kyiv to the east of Ukraine. The volunteer is said to have left his residence in Gran Canaria, Spain, to fight in Ukraine.

Czech President Petr Pavel will today move to Prague Castle to establish his official office, moving from the nearby Hrzánský Palace (Hrzan Palace) where he has been working so far. Pavel had several weeks ago conducted a search for wiretapping; nothing suspicious was found. He will use the same working office as his precessors Miloš Zeman, Václav Klaus, and Václav Havel. Pavel will reside there, but will occasionally return to his home in the north of Bohemia for weekends.

A Moldovan football stadium Sunday unveiled a plaque commemorating the life of Josef Seidl, a Czech who organized the first professional football match in the Moldovan capital Chisinau in 1911. The unveiling ceremony at Dinamo Stadium, attended by Czech Football Association chairman Petr Fousek, came shortly before the Moldova versus Czechia qualifying match for the UEFA Euro 2024 championships, due to be played tonight. Seidel, who spent his life teaching in Yalta (a city in modern-day Crimea) and Moldova, arranged a match between the Moldovan national team and a Ukrainian secondary school squad.

Czechia’s Minister of Digitization Ivan Bartoš announced over the weekend that he will propose a change to the way that data box users’ personal information is made public online. At present, holders of data boxes have their full name and business address published online – even though this is often their place of residence, too. There are over 2 million registered data boxes in Czechia, and from this year self-employed persons and companies are obliged to use them.

Czech soldier Vladimír Stránský who fought on the Eastern Front in World War II and in the Battle of the Dukla Pass in 1944 has died at the age of 95, according to his family. At just 16 years old, he became one of the youngest scouts of the 1st Czechoslovak Army Corps established in the then-Soviet Union. He was able to enroll by falsifying his age to appear older than he actually was. According to information from the Community Centre for War Veterans in Prague, Czechia still had more than 100 World War II veterans last November, but this number has been shrinking rapidly.

Czech snowboarder Eva Adamczyková ended her World Cup snowboard cross season in fourth place over the weekend. The previous Olympic gold medalist won three heats leading up to the final race in Canada, but finished last in the actual final. An overall result of fourth is notable, given Adamczyková’s late entry into the World Cup series following a serious injury over 12 months ago. "Overall, I'm satisfied with the season, I'm mainly still very happy to be able to ride at all," she said after her weekend races.

In the Miami Open women’s tennis competition on Sunday, Markéta Vondroušová defeated Karolína Plíšková in an all-Czech affair. Vondroušová, who is outside the world’s top 100, claimed a surprise (and dominant) straight-sets win over world number 17 Plíšková. Vondroušová, aged 23, will now face Romanian Sorana Cîrstea, who is ranked 74th in the world, in the final 16. Three more Czech tennis players will play in the round of 16 in Miami: the top-ranked Czech Petra Kvitová will face Donna Vekič from Croatia, Barbora Krejčíková will play against American Madison Keys, and Marie Bouzková will face world number two Aryna Sabalenka from Belarus.

Czech police announced Sunday that they have launched criminal proceedings against seven people who congregated directly outside the National Museum during an anti-government protest on March 11. Several people that day attempted to break into the museum building and remove a Ukrainian flag hanging from its front. About 20 people were detained during the protest – the police say that they acted in accordance with the law. Those arrested either delivered speeches on March 11, attacked police, or vandalized private property.

A Czech volunteer fighting in Ukraine, nicknamed Sendy Storm, is missing according to the Memorial - International Legion Defense of Ukraine non-governmental organization. Fighters last saw Sendy Storm near the towns of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in the Donetsk Oblast. Last week, a Czech volunteer fighting for Ukraine was killed, which was the second death of a Czech fighting in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.