Last week 19/09

Fires burned on Čarodějnice (Witches' Night). Thirty thousand new tulips bloomed at Flora, the spring exhibition of flowers in Olomouc. The outgoing government approved the proposal for a new civil code. In an attempt to climb to the top of Mount Annapurna in the Himalayas during bad weather, a Czech climber who overestimated his strength got lost. The Škoda Auto plant in Kvasiny began producing a new model, the Yeti. The growing global panic regarding the new H1N1 influenza, against which man has no antibodies, arrived in the Czech Republic.
"Pigs are quite close to us, and their bodies are very susceptible to viruses both avian and human, which they are then able to blend together and make a mix," epidemiologist Hana Roháčova replied in answer to a Mladá fronta Dnes reader's question, "Why did the new virus come from pigs?" Two children playing near a train track on the outskirts of Brno died under the wheels of an express train from Jeseník. Ivan Vyskočil celebrated his 80th birthday. The Czech Republic contributed two million crowns to repair the deteriorating buildings of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz-Březinka. Outgoing Human Rights Minister Michael Kocáb announced that, despite his dreams and pressure, the "totally politically impassable" government rejected his proposal to purchase the swine farm at Lety near Písek, which the Communists had built exactly in the location where, during the Protectorate era, the Czechs built and guarded a concentration camp for their fellow Roma citizens, who were sent from there to be murdered in Holocaust gas chambers.
"It was a pleasant surprise for me," said actress Kateřina Brožová, commenting on the fact that the Social Democratic (ČSSD) leadership decided to place her name on the candidate list for the parliamentary elections right next to those of ice-hockey player Jiří Šlégr and the head of the party himself, Jiří Paroubek. A Grafton poll confirmed there is growing interest in worse jobs. The Plastic People of the Universe played in Tel Aviv. A comparative survey by Mladá fronta Dnes newspaper revealed that the best place to live in the Czech Republic is Prague, followed closely by Olomouc; Havířov was declared the worst place to live, with Karviná a close second. In an international survey of the quality of urban life, organized annually by Mercer, Vienna beat Zurich, and Prague defended its position from last year, finishing 71st out of 215 cities. A rare replica of a 10th-century imperial Roman crown went on display in Karlštejn. The Czech crown strengthened against the euro. The Social Democratic Party leadership concluded that there is no need to fear the local Bolsheviks, and announced that, after winning elections, the party would evidently invite them to help govern somehow.
"When we win the elections, relations with Russia will be great again - and until then, I will try to do what I can for them from my position," said Chamber of Deputies (Poslanecká sněmovna) Chairman Miloslav Vlček (ČSSD) at a reception held at the Russian Embassy to mark a meeting of the board of directors of the Kremlin oil company Lukoil. The Hudební divadlo Karlín musical theatre began rehearsing Polská krev ("Polish Blood"). Ostrava hospital physicians reported that the condition of a two-year Roma girl, whose body was severely burned in an attack on her family's house in Vítkov by racist white Czechs, remains critical. Answering the major political parties' call, the caretaker government abolished the Ministry for Human Rights and National Minorities as unnecessary. TV Nova was fined 150,000 crowns for showing a close-up shot of a severed head before 10pm, while broadcasting an episode of CSI: Las Vegas that could have shocked children viewers. Tina Turner sang in Prague. A semi-truck loaded with furniture caught fire on the R35 highway in Přáslavice.
"The importance of domestic political tranquility is proven by the collapse of the chaotic Czech presidency, which finally exploded completely after three months of shockwaves," the Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet warned the Stockholm political scene over squabbling, which, following the Czech government's collapse, could also mark the forthcoming Swedish EU Presidency. Newspapers reported that Eduard Zeman had become a candidate for the vacant post of director of the Přátelé Miloše Zemana ("Friends of Miloš Zeman") association. Czech Telefónica O2's profits rose to 2.64 billion crowns. Multidisplay ceased production of LCD screens in Hranice and put the factory's equipment up for sale. During a visit to Prague, Albanian President Sali Berisha requested permission for his country to join the European Union. After many years of experiments with hot water and various kinds of afflictions, scientists came to the conclusion that fish feel pain - and fear it too. Following gale force winds there was a windstorm.