#Czech justice ministry

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Rory Carroll and Sam Jones at The Guardian:

Ireland, Spain and Norway have announced they will formally recognise a Palestinian state on 28 May, triggering an immediate response from Israel, which recalled its ambassadors from Dublin and Oslo. The Irish, Spanish and Norwegian governments made the long-awaited announcements in coordinated moves on Wednesday morning that they said were intended to support a two-state solution and foster peace in the Middle East.

“We are going to recognise Palestine for many reasons and we can sum that up in three words – peace, justice and consistency,” Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, told the parliament in Madrid, earning applause. “We have to make sure that the two-state solution is respected and there must be mutual guarantees of security.” Ireland’s taoiseach, Simon Harris, said Palestine had a legitimate right to statehood. “It is a statement of unequivocal support for a two-state solution, the only credible path to peace and security for Israel, for Palestine and for their peoples,” he told a press conference in Dublin. “I’m confident that further countries will join us in taking this important step in the coming weeks.” In Oslo, Norway’s prime minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, said there could not be peace in the Middle East without recognition, and that Norway would regard Palestine as an independent state “with all the rights and obligations that entails”.

Israel launched a swift diplomatic counteroffensive to try to deter other European countries such as Slovenia and Malta that have signalled a willingness to recognise Palestine. The foreign minister, Israel Katz, ordered his ambassadors in Dublin and Oslo to return immediately for “urgent consultations” and promised further measures. He accused Ireland and Norway of sending a message that “terrorism pays”, a reference to the Hamas attacks of 7 October that triggered the war in Gaza. Recognition would impede efforts to return hostages held in Gaza and made a ceasefire less likely by “rewarding the jihadists of Hamas and Iran”, Katz said. He also threatened to recall Israel’s ambassador to Spain. Israel’s foreign ministry on Tuesday warned Ireland it risked becoming a “pawn in the hands of Hamas” and would fuel “more terrorism, instability in the region and jeopardise any prospects for peace”. The developments came amid a grinding seven-month war in Gaza that has sparked global calls for a ceasefire and lasting solution for peace in the region, as well as the pursuit of arrest warrants on war crimes charges by the international criminal court.

3 European Union members-- Norway, Spain, and Ireland-- will recognize the State of Palestine as part of the two-state solution. In 2014, Sweden was the first EU nation to recognize Palestinian statehood as a current EU member.

Several current members of the EU, such as Czech Republic, Romania, Bulgaria, and Slovakia, have recognized the State of Palestine prior to joining the EU.

As a result of the recognition of Palestine by Ireland and Norway, the Israel Apartheid State recalled its ambassadors in protest.

See Also:

HuffPost: More Countries Will Soon Recognise Palestine As A State. Why Is That Such A Big Deal?

The Guardian: How significant is Spain, Norway and Ireland’s recognition of Palestinian state?

[djuvlipen]

/!\ 11/07/2022. Czech Health Ministry has REJECTED compensation to a woman whose Romani origin is listed as the reason for her sterilization

This is what RACIALIZED MISOGYNY looks like. This is awful. This Romani woman was threatened by authorities that her children would be taken away from her if she didn't undergo the operation. Her Romani origin was even listed by the health authorities as the reason for her sterilization.

Because she was a **ROMANI WOMAN** she had her reproductive rights taken away from her and was sterilized against her will. Yet the Ministry is disregarding her account of the events and their own documents to deny her any form of justice

Romani women and feminists have been fighting for YEARS to receive justice from the Czech Republic with regards to forced sterilizations but to no avail. Fighting for reproductive rights and bodily autonomy is so important for Romani feminists because Romani women were forcibly sterilized in the Czech Republic (from 1966 to 2012), in Slovakia (from 1966 to 2003 at least), in Hungary (case from 2001), in Sweden (1935-1976), and throughout history, most notoriously during the IIIrd Reich (specifically, from 1935 to 1945)

This is scandalous

[mariacallous]

The Kyiv Independent Ukraine Daily: Friday, December 2

Reznikov believes Russia behind letter bomb attacks in Spain. “The world is beginning to recognize that (Russia) is a terrorist state. And terror knows no borders,” Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said. “They use terrorist means to cause terror.”

Media: US Embassy in Madrid receives letter bomb similar to one that exploded in Ukraine's embassy. This is the sixth explosive sent to administrative or military buildings in Spain. All of them contained similar, homemade substances, according to Spanish authorities.

General Staff: Russian troops withdraw from some settlements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast. Russia is withdrawing some of its military units and preparing to evacuate occupation administration personnel from some settlements in the Russian-occupied part of Zaporizhia Oblast, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces said in its evening update.

ISW: Russian military movements in Zaporizhzhia Oblast suggest that it can't defend critical areas amidst increasing Ukrainian strikes. Russia may be withdrawing its military personnel from positions closer to the front line in Zaporizhzhia Oblast to reduce the impact of increasing Ukrainian strikes on Russian manpower and equipment concentrations, the Insitute for the Study of War said in its latest report.

Energoatom fires engineer Russia made ‘head’ of occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. Ukraine’s state nuclear energy operator Energoatom Head Petro Kotin on Dec. 1 fired Yury Chernichuk, acting chief engineer of Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, for collaborating with Russia. On Nov. 30, Russia’s state nuclear power operator Rosatom said it made Chernichuk run the Russian-occupied nuclear power plant.

50 Ukrainian soldiers return home in new prisoner exchange with Russia. President’s Office Head Andriy Yermak said on Dec. 1 that Russia had released 50 Ukrainian prisoners of war under the prisoner exchange. Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that it also received 50 people back as part of the prisoner swap.

International response

Macron, Biden say West will 'never persuade Ukraine' to unacceptable compromise with Russia. "We will never call on Ukrainians for a compromise that will be unacceptable. Because they are defending their lives, nation, and our principles, and because this will never lead to lasting sustainable peace," French President Emmanuel Macron said during a joint press conference with U.S. President Joe Biden.

France, its partners discuss creation of special tribunal for Russia’s crimes. France has started to work with international partners, including Ukraine, on a proposal to set up a special tribunal to investigate Russia’s war crimes during its full-scale war, the French Foreign Ministry reported. “We mobilized in support of both the Ukrainian justice system and the International Criminal Court, which are competent to conduct impartial and independent investigations so that those responsible for these crimes are held accountable,” reads the report.

Germany to supply Ukraine with bridge-laying tanks, border protection vehicles. Germany has handed over to Ukraine unmanned surface vessels, some bridge-laying tanks and dozens of border protection vehicles as part of their new batch of military aid, according to a statement posted on the German government website.

Spanish minister: Letter bombs won't change decision to help Ukraine. Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles said on Dec. 1 that no letters with explosives or any other violent actions would change the country's "firm and clear" commitment to support Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression, BBC reported.

Reuters: EU governments 'tentatively' agree on $60 a barrel price cap on Russian seaborne oil. The decision envisages an adjustment mechanism to keep the cap at 5% below the market price, according to diplomats and a document seen by Reuters.

Ukrainian soldiers to train on Czech territory. The Czech Republic's parliament on Dec. 1 approved a proposal to train Ukrainian soldiers in the country and deploy Czech soldiers in European Union member states to train Ukrainian service members, Radio Prague International reported.

Switzerland freezes almost $8 billion in Russian assets under EU sanctions. Switzerland has frozen financial assets worth nearly $8 billion as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) said on Dec. 1. Fifteen Russian properties have also been blocked as of Nov. 25, the agency reported.

In other news

Ukrainian authorities seek to ban Moscow-backed church amid Russian invasion. Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council has proposed banning Russian-affiliated religious groups, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on Dec. 1. The most significant of the groups is the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, an affiliate of the Russian Orthodox Church.

SBU finds Russian propaganda, xenophobic literature in Moscow Patriarchate monastery in Zakarpattia Oblast. The Security Service of Ukraine said it had found brochures where Ukraine's right to independence is denied, while stating that Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus "cannot be divided."

Parliament appoints Infrastructure Minister Kubrakov as Deputy PM for restoration of Ukraine. Oleksandr Kubrakov has served as Infrastructure Minister since May 2021.

[xnewsinfo]

This handout photograph launched by Venezuela's Inside and Justice Ministry reveals Venezuelan Inside Minister Diosdado Cabello giving a information convention on September 14, 2024 in Caracas. Three US residents, two Spaniards and a Czech citizen have been detained in Venezuela on suspicion of plotting to destabilise the nation by "violent actions", the federal government stated, including that a whole lot of weapons had been seized. Inside Minister Diosdado Cabello stated the 5 had been detained on suspicion of plotting an assault in opposition to President Nicolas Maduro and his authorities. | Photograph credit score: AFP Two Spaniards, three US residents and a Czech have been arrested in Venezuela on suspicion of hyperlinks to alleged plans to destabilise the South American nation, a senior Venezuelan official stated on Saturday (14 September 2024).The announcement is prone to deepen the nation's already substantial tensions with Spain and the USA following Venezuela's disputed presidential election in July.Venezuelan Inside Minister Diosdado Cabello stated at a press convention that two Spaniards had been linked to Spain's secret service and had been planning the assassination of a mayor.Spanish media reported that the Spanish authorities denied this declare.Mr Cabello additionally accused three US residents and a Czech citizen of collaborating in terrorist acts, together with alleged plans to assassinate President Nicolás Maduro and different officers.The U.S. State Division didn't instantly reply to a request for remark."These teams are in search of to grab the nation's wealth and we as a authorities will reply firmly to any try at destabilization," stated Cabello, who added that round 400 rifles of U.S. origin have been seized.A supply from the Spanish Ministry of Overseas Affairs stated Reuters I used to be asking Venezuela for extra info."The Spanish embassy has despatched a verbal be aware to the Venezuelan authorities asking for entry to the detained residents to confirm their id and nationality and to know precisely what they're accused of," the supply stated, talking on situation of anonymity.The Spanish residents had been detained whereas taking images within the metropolis of Puerto Ayacucho, Cabello stated."These residents have hyperlinks, we all know they may say no, that it's a lie, they've hyperlinks with the middle," Cabello stated, referring to Spain's intelligence arm."Spain will resolve what to do if it continues to intrude in Venezuela's affairs."Venezuela recalled its ambassador to Spain this week and summoned the Spanish ambassador to look on the overseas ministry after a Spanish minister accused Maduro of working a "dictatorship," heightening diplomatic tensions following a disputed presidential election.Venezuela was additionally outraged by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez's determination to satisfy with Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González Urrutia, who fled to Spain final week after being threatened with arrest by the Maduro regime.Caracas has additionally confronted renewed tensions with the USA, which acknowledged opposition candidate González Urrutia because the winner of the July 28 elections. Revealed - September 15, 2024 05:55 am IST

[beardedmrbean]

The Czech Republic has extradited a man facing charges in the United States for plotting the murder of a prominent critic of Iran's government.

The Czech Justice Ministry said Polad Omarov was handed to representatives of U.S. authorities at Prague's Vaclav Havel Airport on February 21 after the suspect had exhausted all options of appeal.

Omarov was arrested in the Czech Republic in January 2023. The ministry said the justice minister had ruled in July last year in favor of extradition, but the action was delayed by the suspect's complaint with the Constitutional Court, which was rejected.

[urbanutopia]

India Responds to US Allegations of Official's Link to Murder Plot, Tensions Rise with Canada

India addressed concerns raised by the US over an Indian official's alleged involvement in the assassination conspiracy against Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, terming it contrary to government policy. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi emphasized the gravity of international organized crime and extremist connections, prompting a high-level inquiry committee's formation to investigate the matter.

The US Justice Department charged Nikhil Gupta, a 52-year-old Indian national, for his supposed role in the plot against Pannun. This charge followed a Financial Times report detailing the thwarted assassination attempt on Pannun on US soil. Pannun, the leader of 'Sikhs for Justice,' labeled a terrorist organization by India, holds dual citizenship in the US and Canada.

Court documents quoted by the US Justice Department identified an "Indian government employee" orchestrating the US-based assassination plot against Pannun, claiming roles in security management and intelligence.

US Attorney Damian Williams emphasized a staunch stance against efforts to harm American citizens, affirming readiness to investigate and prosecute such threats. Gupta allegedly agreed to pay $100,000 to a hitman for the murder, having already made a $15,000 payment in June, albeit contacting a confidential source within US law enforcement.

Nikhil Gupta's capture by Czech authorities under an extradition treaty with the US on June 30 remains pending for extradition to the US, facing charges that could lead to a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted.

India expressed dissatisfaction with Canada, accusing it of sheltering anti-India extremists and violence. Bagchi urged Canada to adhere to diplomatic obligations and criticized alleged interference in India's internal affairs. This tension escalated following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's accusations implicating Indian government agents in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

In recent exchanges between India and the US, discussions covered inputs on organized crime, terrorism, and other sensitive issues, but omitted specific mentions of Pannun or the Financial Times report.

White House spokesperson Adrienne Watson highlighted India's surprise and concern over the alleged involvement in Pannun's murder plot, mentioning that the US government had raised the issue at the highest levels, underscoring its gravity and seriousness in bilateral talks.

[cyberbenb]

Ukraine war latest: Russia’s war costs Ukraine $50 billion annually, PM says

Key developments on Aug. 3:

PM says war cost Ukraine over $50 billion

Interior Ministry identifies over 230,000 alleged Russian war criminals, collaborators

Czech-made components found in Russian kamikaze drone

Russia launches 15 kamikaze drones, 47 airstrikes over 24 hours

Russian attack injures 8, including 4 emergency workers in Kherson

Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Aug. 3 that the war costs Ukraine around Hr 1.8 trillion ($50 billion) per year.

“This is more than the peacetime’s budget revenue,” said Shmyhal, referring to the 2021 budget. According to the prime minister, Ukraine’s budget revenue in 2021 was around $48 billion.

Nearly 50% of the country’s budget is now subsidized by Ukraine’s foreign partners, with the U.S., and EU being the main backers.

The EU disbursed another $1.65 billion (1.5 billion euros) of macro-financial assistance to keep Ukraine’s services and infrastructure afloat, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on June 22.

The European Commission has pledged to provide financial support of up to $54.7 billion (50 billion euros) to Ukraine from 2024 to 2027.

This funding aims to ensure macro-financial stability, facilitate recovery and reconstruction efforts, and promote the modernization of the country while implementing crucial reforms on the EU integration track.

Meanwhile, the Kyiv School of Economics estimated on Aug. 2 that the Russian full-scale invasion caused over $150 billion of direct damage to Ukraine’s infrastructure.

A year into full-scale invasion, West struggles to seize Russian assets for Ukraine

Hundreds of potential international investors met with top Ukrainian and Western officials in London in late June to discuss how to rebuild the country, ravaged by Russia’s war. Those attending the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC) were unanimous — Russia should foot the bill. Said bill is devast…

The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Query

Ukraine identifies over 232,000 people helping Russia’s war effort

Ukraine identified over 232,000 people who allegedly took part in Russia’s war, including Moscow’s army personnel, and local collaborators, the Interior Ministry reported on Aug. 3.

The War Criminal database, filled by Ukrainian law enforcement agencies and military, includes the names of almost 198,000 Russian troops, 3,500 mercenaries and members of other military formations, 3,200 Ukrainian collaborators, and 401 top Russian officials.

According to the report, those added to the database are monitored by Ukrainian law enforcement agencies and Europol, the EU law enforcement agency.

The General Prosecutor’s Office has opened over 100,000 investigations into alleged Russian war crimes since February 2022.

Yurii Bielousov, the head of the War Crimes Department of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office, said on Aug. 2 that 386 Russians have been charged with war crimes, including 54 who have been convicted.

However, most have been tried in absentia, and only 15 have been brought to Ukrainian courts, Bielousov said.

He also said that 99% of war crimes are subject to a Ukrainian investigation, and international partners would prosecute the remaining 1%.

Ukraine’s fight to bring Russian leadership to justice puts legal systems to ultimate test

In pursuit of justice for Russia’s many war crimes, Ukraine is actively seeking the establishment of an international tribunal. The International Criminal Court (ICC) has already launched investigations into alleged Russian war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Ukraine. However, the…

The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet

Czech components found in Russian kamikaze drones

The Czech company AXI Model Motors said on Aug. 3 that it has “never supplied its products to the military” after a Ukrainian soldier found a component it had manufactured inside a Lancet drone Russian forces have been regularly using against the Ukrainian military on the battlefield.

The soldier published a photo on Aug. 2 of a Russian kamikaze drone downed near Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast. The drone’s electric motor was labeled with the “Made in the Czech Republic” mark and the AXI Model Motors logo.

The Russian military is using the Lancet drones for reconnaissance and strikes.

Model Motors said the component mentioned is no longer manufactured.

There is no information that the company supplied the motors directly to Russia, but rather, “companies from China, Taiwan, and Kyrgyzstan purchased the components before February 2022,” according to Czech newspaper Deník N.

The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned companies from Kyrgyzstan for helping Russia to bypass Western sanctions on July 20.

The sanctioned companies imported Western-made electronics for Russia’s military, including microchips and telecommunications equipment used in Russian missiles, tanks, helicopters, drones, and radio systems in the war against Ukraine.

According to the U.S. Treasury, Kyrgyzstan-based entities have been frequent exporters of controlled electronics components and other technology to Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Investigative Stories from Ukraine: Massive leak reveals how Putin’s oligarchs evaded Western sanctions imposed due to Ukraine invasion

Welcome to Investigative Stories from Ukraine, the Kyiv Independent’s newsletter that walks you through the most prominent investigations of the past week. If you are fond of in-depth journalism that exposes war crimes, corruption and abuse of power across state organizations in Ukraine and beyond,…

The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet

Russian attacks

Russian forces launched 15 Shahed loitering munitions, conducted 48 airstrikes, and shelled Ukraine 23 over the past day, the General Staff of Ukraine’s Armed Forces reported in its evening update on Aug. 3.

Air Force reported the same day downing all Shahed kamikaze drones as well as seven reconnaissance drones.

The Kyiv City Military Administration reported that Ukraine’s capital was targeted by Russian drones overnight. Ukrainian defenses destroyed “almost 15 air targets” approaching Kyiv, according to the administration’s chairman Serhii Popko.

Russian shelling of Kherson on Aug. 3 injured at least eight people, including four emergency workers, the Prosecutor General’s Office reported.

The first responders were injured in a Russian double-tap attack when extinguishing the fire caused by the first Russian shelling against the southern city earlier that day.

Kherson is located on the west bank of the Dnipro River, just across the river from the Russian troops occupying the east bank and deliberately shelling the southern city and other settlements daily.

Ukraine’s counteroffensive lurches forward: Key moment looms as more forces committed

Fresh videos of Western-made armor rolling across open fields, a new settlement liberated, and a lot of noise on Russian military blogger Telegram channels heralded to the world on July 28 that the Ukrainian summer counteroffensive had upped its gear. Almost eight weeks into the long-awaited operat…

The Kyiv IndependentFrancis Farrell

[swldx]

Voice of America 0323 8 Apr 2023

6080Khz 0258 8 APR 2023 - VOICE OF AMERICA (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA) in ENGLISH from MOPENG HILL. SINPO = 55434. English, s/on with dead-carrier. @0259z Yankee Doodle int fb news anchored by Tommy McNeil @0300z. North Korea conducted another test of a nuclear-capable underwater attack drone, state media said on Saturday, the latest in a show of force against the U.S. and South Korea. China began three days of military exercises around Taiwan on Saturday to express anger at Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen's meeting with the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, as the island's defence ministry said it would respond calmly. The drills, announced the day after Tsai returned from the United States, had been widely expected after China condemned the meeting with Speaker Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles. Russia lost elections to three United Nations bodies this week, a sign that opposition to its invasion of Ukraine over a year ago remains strong. Russia was overwhelmingly defeated by Romania for a seat on the Commission on the Status of Women. It lost to Estonia to be a member of the executive board of the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF. And it was defeated by Armenia and the Czech Republic in secret ballot votes for membership on the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice. Russian Federal Security Service investigators have formally charged Evan Gershkovich with espionage but the Wall Street Journal reporter denied the charges and said he was working as a journalist. Israel launched airstrikes in Gaza and Lebanon in retaliation for rocket attacks on Israel that the government blamed on the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas. Two Israeli sisters were killed and their mother was wounded in a shooting in the occupied West Bank, and soldiers were hunting for the gunman. Ramadan prayers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, where violence between Israeli police and Muslim worshippers erupted earlier in the week, were conducted without major incident Friday. Apart from some stone-throwing, police said the compound was quiet. A federal appeals court sided Friday with the Justice Department in a case that could have upended hundreds of charges brought in the Capitol riot investigation. In a 2-1 ruling, a three judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said a lower court judge was wrong in dismissing the charge in three cases in which the judge concluded it didn't cover the defendants' conduct. Those defendants may ask the full appeals court or the U.S. Supreme Court to review the decision. America's employers added a solid 236,000 jobs in March, reflecting a resilient labor market and suggesting that the Federal Reserve may see the need to keep raising interest rates in the coming months. The unemployment rate fell to 3.5%, not far above the 53-year low of 3.4% set in January. Last month's job growth was down from February's sizzling gain of 326,000. Friday's government report suggested that the economy and the job market remain on solid footing despite nine rate hikes imposed over the past year by the Fed. The March jobs gain may lead the Fed to conclude that the pace of hiring is still putting upward pressure on wages and inflation and that further rate hikes are necessary. @0305z "Issues In The News" panel discussion anchored by Kim Lewis. Backyard fence antenna, Etón e1XM. 100kW, BeamAz 350°, bearing 84°. Received at Plymouth, United States, 14087KM from transmitter at Mopeng Hill. Local time: 2158.

[gurcanpartners]

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[djuvlipen]

Czech Government Commissioner for Romani Minority Affairs Lucie Fuková has informed the Czech News Agency (ČTK) of the updated numbers. Human rights and Romani organizations complained last year that the ministry is only recognizing original medical records as evidence of the forced sterilizations.

The organizations asked that the procedure be adjusted. The Czech Government Council for Romani Minority Affairs has repeatedly met on the issue.

Czech Government Human Rights Commissioner Klára Šimáčková Laurenčíková recently told ČTK that expansion of the kinds of evidence in the procedure is being considered. Fuková said she also plans to contact her Slovak counterpart regarding compensation for such sterilizations performed in Slovakia when the two countries were still part of Czechoslovakia.

Suspicions that Romani women in particular were being forced to undergo sterilization were raised in 2004 by the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC). Dozens of women then applied to the ombudsman and some sued in court.

The Czech Government Committee against Torture proposed introducing compensation in 2006. In 2009, the Czech Government expressed regret for the illegal surgeries.

Victims have been able to apply for compensation since last year. Persons who were sterilized between 1 July 1966 and 31 March 2012 without choosing the surgery of their own free will or being fully informed as to its consequences will be able to receive CZK 300,000 [EUR 13,000].

The Health Ministry has 60 days to handle each application and the money is to be sent within 30 days after a claim is acknowledged. “As of 20 March, 630 applications have been received, 110 of them since the start of 2023, and 480 applications have been processed, of which compensation was awarded in 275 cases,” Fuková said.

According to her, the Health Mnistry has suspended 42 applications for flaws in the procedure or an applicant’s failure to submit additional materials. Bureaucrats have rejected another 163 applications.

Appeals of those rejections are decided by an appeals commission at the ministry. Some cases have ended up in court.

“We know now of one case that is before the Supreme Administrative Court. We await its decision,” Fuková said.

Last year human rights organizations and Romani organizations called for the awarding of compensation to be adjusted. They complained that the ministry was not meeting the prescribed dealine by which to handle the applications and failing to acknowledge any evidence other than original medical records.

The organizations pointed out that after so many decades, many original medical records have either been destroyed, lost or lawfully shredded, and the law itself allows for other kinds of evidence. The Czech Government Council on Romani Minority Affairs has repeatedly discussed the acknowledgment process.

The problem was reviewed in December 2022 at the previous meeting of the Council. “It is quite important that the evidentiary means be expanded which the Health Ministry will recognize when awarding compensation, otherwise it would not be possible to fulfill the original purpose of the legislation and of justice,” the Human Rights Commissioner told ČTK recently.

According to the Human Rights Commissioner, the other kinds of evidence being considered are personal testimonies or solemn declarations. The Commissioner for Romani Affairs plans to contact the Slovak Government Plenipotentiary for Romani Communities, Ján Hero, about compensation for such victims in that country.

“I will contact my counterpart in Slovakia and ask whether they are considering financial compensation for women who were living in Slovakia. Currently women living in the Czech Republic who are Czech citizens are unable to apply for compensation because the surgery was performed in Slovakia,” she explained.

[dailyinsomnia-deactivated]

Valerie K., a 7 years old girl, from the Czech Republic has been missing since 2017. She has vanished overnight with no trace. Valerie and her siblings lived with their grandmother Soňa Kvasničková who abused and tortured Valerie and her brother. Could Kvasničková be involved in Valerie’s disappearance?

Valerie and her siblings first ended up in Klokánek (an institution for children requiring immediate help). In 2016, Soňa Kvasničková got Valerie and her siblings into foster care after her son’s death as their biological mother was not able to take care of them. However, the grandmother did not provide a lovely and caring home, she rather provided a home full of abuse and torture of little Valerie and her brother. According to a court, Kvasničková was brutally punishing Valerie on a daily basis with excessive beatings with her hands and also various tools, such as a kitchen turner, ladle, wooden spoon, vacuum cleaner stick, tape and other household items, all over her body - including head and face. She punched her face, beat her and kicked her until she got multiple bruises and bloody injuries.

When the minor cried, Kvasničková shoved a rag into her mouth and masked the bruises on her face with powder. Kvasničková left Valerie tied for many hours to a pipe in the hall or to a toilet bowl without any food and drink. She even forced her siblings to beat her. The abuse has been confirmed by witnesses and Valerie’s siblings. Two witnesses stated that Kvasničková wanted Diazepam pills from them for Valerie so she’d “calm down”. The biological mother of the children also noticed signs of abuse on Valerie, as well as teachers from kindergarten. What is more, there was even a photo evidence from a swimming pool in Kvasničková’s phone. The kindergarten teachers alarmed police, however, after police investigated Kvasničková, they postponed the case as “there had not been any signs of abuse”.

Valerie’s siblings expressed they haven’t seen their 7 years old sister since December 2017. One day, Kvasničková beat Valerie that much that her face was swollen. In the morning the next day, Valerie’s sister found her in bed, not moving at all. She though her little sister is dead. The children had to go to school but when they came back in the afternoon, Valerie was gone. The grandmother claimed Valerie went to an orphanage for some kind of a treatment because she was “a bad girl”. Kvasničková claimed, for more than 6 months, that Valerie is with her aunt in Germany. Another version of Valerie’s location was that she was with a woman “she really liked”. The grandmother also forbid the children to talk about it. A lot of people believe Valerie is dead, this has never been confirmed.

Soňa Kvasničková never admitted to beating her granddaughter and claimed that her siblings’ statements were manipulated. She explained to the court that her children were satisfied. But there is more to the case.

In 1983, Soňa Kvasničková stood in front of a court for abusing and torturing her own 3 children. She didn’t feed them and together with her boyfriend at that time, she brutally beat them as well. According to the court, one of her children (son) was treated brutally and beaten excessively, as evidenced by multiple scars in the hairy part of the head, shoulder, torso and back, causing fractures of the nose, right forearm and left upper limb. The boy was found to be completely neglected and showed signs of below-average nutrition, apathy and severe mental retardation. At the same time, the couple tortured their then seven-year-old daughter, who, due to excessive beatings, reduced her mental abilities to mental retardation. For this, she got 200 hours of community service, was then imposed by the court in 2002 for failing to send her son, the now deceased father Valerie, and three other children, to school.

Unfortunately, the district court did not know about any of the offenses, because the old convictions are eventually deleted from the criminal record in Czech Republic. They remain only in the so-called copy, which is received only by police officers, prosecutors, the Ministry of Justice, the President’s Office and criminal judges, and do not make their civilian counterparts.

Soňa Kvasničková was sentenced to 8 years in prison and she was also obliged to pay the injured.

The case has been reopened recently as a new person is involved in the case. In spring 2018, an employee of the Department of Social and Legal Protection of Children was checking up if Soňa Kvasničková took care of her four grandchildren. She noted that there was only a common mess at home, Kvasničková was cooking, and there was also a bowl of fruit on the table. The social worker closed the case, saying there were no concerns, althought she didn’t even see Valeria. Kvasničková told the social worker the minor was in kindergarten, in fact, Valerie hasn’t been in kindergarten for several months.

The investigation of the social worker is now ongoing.

Valerie’s disappearance remains unsolved. 

(Possible updates coming.)

note: this is everything i could find about the case. all sources are in Czech language only, unfortunately. that’s why i decided to write about it as i think Valerie deserves her voice back.

[mariacallous]

Interpol and Eurojust, the EU Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation, have been investigating five presidents of the Greek Super League 1 teams and 13 members of Super League 2 teams for two years for illegal activities related to an illegal betting ring, the website dikisports.blogspot.com has revealed.

Greek sports prosecutors have on their hands EU authorities’s findings, which found alterations in the results of Greek football matches through illegal betting.

The Greek Football Federation said it would urge the relevant ministries to speed up the investigation. At the same time, it will hold a special meeting on August 2 to decide on the proposed legal framework for illegal betting cases.

Of the 13 investigated teams in Super League 2, two are from northern Greece, two from Thessaly, five from Attica, one from the Peloponnese and three from the islands. Four of the involved teams no longer compete in Super League 2.

The sports show “I Diki [trial] sto Open” on the private TV channel OPEN revealed in April that European teams are involved in widespread manipulation and illegal betting of football matches.

A pan-European investigation, in which Interpol is participating, is ongoing. As part of the investigation, a meeting was held in The Hague of the prosecutors of the countries allegedly involved in match-fixing.

Austrian authorities, according to the TV show, have evidence that besides Austria, five more countries in Europe – Greece, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia and the Czech Republic – are involved in match-fixing.

In 2011, 70 people were linked to one of the biggest football match-fixing scandals in Greece. Among the people charged was the President of Olympiacos FC, Vangelis Marinakis, who, on the proposal of the prosecutor, was finally acquitted.

[mediocrelanguagelearner]

Politics vocab - Czech

politika (f): politics demokracie (f): democracy volby (pl f): elections vláda (f): government Parlament (m): parliament Poslanecká sněmovna (f): Chamber of Deputies Senát (m): Senate poslanec (f): deputy, member of parliament senátor (m): senator politická strana (or just strana) (f): political party premiér (m): premier, prime minister prezident (m): president ministr (m): minister, secretary of state, secretary ministerstvo (n): ministry ministerstvo kultury (n): ministry of Culture ministerstvo životního prostředí (n): ministry of the Environment ministerstvo pro místní rozvoj (n): ministry of Regional Development ministerstvo práce a sociálních věcí (n): ministry of Labour and Social Affairs ministerstvo vnitra (n): ministry of Interior ministerstvo zahraničních věcí (n): ministry of Foreign Affairs ministerstvo obrany (n): ministry of Defense ministerstvo průmyslu a obchodu (n): ministry of Industry and Health ministerstvo zdravotnictví (n): ministry of Health ministerstvo spravedlnosti (n): ministry of Justice ministerstvo financí (n): ministry of Finance ministerstvo školství, mládeže a tělovýchovy (n): ministry of Education, Youth and Sports ministerstvo dopravy (n): ministry of Transport ministerstvo zemědělství (n): ministry of Agriculture ústava (f): constitution zákon (m): law návrh zákona (m): bill opozice (f): oposition koalice (f): coalition

levicový: left-wing, leftist pravicový: right-wing liberální: liberal konzervativní: conservative volit: to choose, to elect hlasovat: to vote kandidovat: to stand as a candidate, to stand for election demonstrovat, protestovat: to demonstrate, to protest říct svůj názor: to say your opinion

This is our government's website in English

I was asked if I could do a government vocab and I tried? If you have some words you'd like to know but don't see here, tell me, I'll add them.

[newstfionline]

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

Minneapolis Braces for Verdict in Floyd’s Death (NYT) MINNEAPOLIS—Around midday last Monday, Samir Patel received a phone call from his friend, a dentist: Gunshots had rung out, his friend told him, and the contractors who were rebuilding the office he lost in last year’s unrest had fled. He was boarding up, and he told Mr. Patel he should move quickly to protect his own business, a dry cleaning shop. Elite Cleaners, Mr. Patel’s shop, is on a side street, not far from the shell of the Minneapolis Police Department’s Third Precinct station house, which burned last year in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. The surrounding community of Lake Street, a corridor of immigrant-owned businesses—taquerias, furniture shops, liquor stores and cafes—was devastated by looting in the days of protests and the riots that followed. The city has said that the unrest led to $350 million in losses, with more than a thousand buildings either destroyed or damaged. As the trial of Derek Chauvin, the white former police officer charged with murder in the death of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, draws to a close, the city is on edge, fearing that a not-guilty verdict would bring anger, chaos and destruction once again.

New migrant facilities crop up to ease crowding, again (AP) For the third time in seven years, U.S. officials are scrambling to handle a dramatic spike in children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border alone, leading to a massive expansion in emergency facilities to house them as more kids arrive than are being released to close relatives in the United States. More than 22,000 migrant children were in government custody as of Thursday, with 10,500 sleeping on cots at convention centers, military bases and other large venues likened to hurricane evacuation shelters with little space to play and no privacy. More than 2,500 are being held by border authorities in substandard facilities. So many children are coming that there’s little room in long-term care facilities, where capacity shrank significantly during the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, minors are packed into Border Patrol facilities not meant to hold them longer than three days or they’re staying for weeks in the mass housing sites that often lack the services they need. Lawyers say some have not seen social workers who can reunite them with family in the U.S. Both Donald Trump and Barack Obama faced similar upticks in Central American children crossing the border alone in 2019 and 2014. The numbers have now reached historic highs amid economic fallout from the pandemic, storms in Central America and the feeling among migrants that Biden is more welcoming than his predecessor.

Students’ struggles pushed Peru teacher to run for president (AP) As schools across Peru closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, Pedro Castillo tried to find a way to keep classes going for his 20 fifth- and sixth-grade students. But in his impoverished rural community deep in the Andes, his efforts were futile. Seventeen of the students didn’t even have access to a cellphone. Tablets promised by the government never arrived. “Where is the state?” Castillo, 51, told The Associated Press after a day of planting sweet potatoes on his own land. It was the last straw for Castillo, who over 25 years had seen his students struggle in crumbling schools where teachers also cook, sweep floors and file paperwork. He’d already dabbled in activism with the local teachers’ union and helped lead a national strike in 2017. But now he went further, tossing his name into a crowd of 18 candidates in Peru’s presidential election. Defying the polls, the elementary school teacher came first in the April 11 voting, albeit with less than 20% of the overall vote. The stunning result gave him a place in June’s presidential runoff against Keiko Fujimori, one of Peru’s most established political figures and the daughter of former president Alberto Fujimori. It is her third attempt to become president. Castillo’s unlikely campaign comes at a turbulent time for the South American nation that has suffered like few others from the COVID-19 pandemic. It recently ran through three presidents in a week after one was removed by congress over corruption allegations. Every president of the past 36 years has been ensnared in corruption allegations, some imprisoned. One died by suicide before police could arrest him.

New direction needed: EU launches website for citizens to discuss its future (Reuters) The European Union launched on Monday a website for citizens to debate the future of the 27-nation bloc as the exit of Britain, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and the rise of nationalism force the EU to reflect on how it wants to develop. The website, available for contributions in the EU’s 24 official languages, is part of what EU institutions call the Conference on the Future of Europe—a forum for debate to help identify issues the EU needs to address in the changing global context. “The conclusions of the conference could be the backbone for reforms in the Union in the future,” one of the leaders of the initiative, member of European Parliament and former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt told a news conference. The website prompts debates on subjects including climate change, the environment, health, the economy, social justice and jobs, the role of the EU in the world, values and rights, the rule of law, security, digital transformation, democracy and migration. Citizens can also launch their own topics.

Cheating at Greek universities (Foreign Policy) Greek universities are experiencing a crisis of confidence in their students as remote learning takes the place of traditional education. Professors have noted surprisingly high marks from previously poor students, raising suspicions that the students may be using underhanded tactics. “Result averages are up, and people we haven’t seen in years are showing up for exams because the system makes it easy to cheat,” Kostas Kosmatos, an assistant professor of criminology at Thrace’s Democritus University told AFP. Sofia, a psychology student, admitted to have taken two exams “on behalf of two of my friends and nobody realized.” Resourceful students have created technological workarounds to boost their chances during exams, crowdsourcing answers in live chats with students at the University of Crete even enlisting a linguistic expert to help them during exams. “But even he got a verse wrong,” Angela Kastrinaki, dean of the University of Crete’s literature department, told AFP. “So I got 50 papers with the same mistake. It was funny.”

Russia Expels 20 Czech Diplomats as Tensions Escalate (NYT) A day after the government of the Czech Republic blamed operatives from Russia’s military intelligence agency for a series of mysterious explosions at an ammunition depot in 2014 and expelled 18 Russian diplomats, the Russian government announced on Sunday that 20 Czech diplomats would be ejected in response. The expulsions signal further escalation of tensions between the Kremlin and western governments, reaching an intensity not seen since the Cold War. The spat between the Czech Republic and Russia comes just days after the United States imposed heavy sanctions on Russian government officials and businesses in response to a large-scale hacking of American government computer systems. In a statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry called the Czech accusations “absurd” and accused the government of being an American puppet. “In an effort to please the U.S.A. following recent American sanctions against Russia, the Czech government in this instance even exceeded its overseas masters,” the Russian Foreign Ministry statement said.

Montenegro’s billion-dollar dilemma (NYT) Few Europeans thought it was a good idea for Montenegro to take a mammoth loan from China to build a highway. Now the tiny, mountainous country is asking the European Union for help to repay the debt—and the answer, so far, has been no. The situation in Montenegro is the latest skirmish in an escalating global push for influence by China, which has made inroads in economically weak countries by offering loans that demand loyalty to Beijing but otherwise have few strings attached. Montenegro’s first debt payments are due this summer. The $1 billion loan is nearly a fifth the size of the country’s entire economy. Montenegrin leaders say they won’t miss their loan payment this summer even if no E.U. aid is forthcoming. European officials said they wanted to help Montenegro but were searching for a palatable way to do so. Linking the aid to the loan too directly could be politically difficult, since many E.U. officials do not want to be in the position of effectively paying down a Chinese loan that E.U. leaders warned against in the first place. “China has been filling any opening it felt it could,” said Vuk Vuksanovic, a researcher at the Belgrade Center for Security Policy, a Serbian think tank. “Local capitals were hungry for cash, particularly on big development issues like infrastructure. And the Chinese were willing to go places where Western institutions were not.”

Afghan Women Fear the Worst, Whether War or Peace Lies Ahead (NYT) Farzana Ahmadi watched as a neighbor in her village in northern Afghanistan was flogged by Taliban fighters last month. The crime: Her face was uncovered. People silently watched as the beating dragged on. Fear—even more potent than in years past—is gripping Afghans now that U.S. and NATO forces will depart the country in the coming months. They will leave behind a publicly triumphant Taliban, who many expect will seize more territory and reinstitute many of the same oppressive rules they enforced under their regime in the 1990s. The New York Times spoke to many Afghan women about what comes next in their country, and they all said the same thing: Whatever happens will not bode well for them. Whether the Taliban take back power by force or through a political agreement with the Afghan government, their influence will almost inevitably grow. In a country in which an end to nearly 40 years of conflict is nowhere in sight, many Afghans talk of an approaching civil war. “All the time, women are the victims of men’s wars,” said Raihana Azad, a member of Afghanistan’s Parliament. “But they will be the victims of their peace, too.”

Hard-line Islamists take 6 Pakistani security personnel hostage amid deadly clashes (Washington Post) A hard-line Islamist group on Sunday took six Pakistani security personnel hostage after days of deadly clashes in the northeastern city of Lahore over a French satirical newspaper’s publication of cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad and the arrest of the group’s leader by Pakistani authorities. A senior police officer and two paramilitary fighters were among those taken after protesters surrounded a police station and stormed the compound, according to Lahore police spokesman Arif Rana. A week of violence across the country has left at least four dead, according to the protesters. Police officials say thousands have been arrested. The tensions driving the protests, led by the Islamist party Tehrik-e-Labbaik Pakistan, have been simmering for months after French President Emmanuel Macron honored a teacher who was beheaded last year in France after he showed a class the cartoons depicting Muhammad. For many Muslims, depictions of the prophet are blasphemous and deeply insulting. Macron’s comments sparked protests across the Muslim world last year.

India’s capital to lock down as nation’s virus cases top 15M (AP) New Delhi was being put under a weeklong lockdown Monday night as an explosive surge in coronavirus cases pushed the India’s capital’s health system to its limit. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a news conference the national capital was facing shortages of oxygen and some medicine. “I do not say that the system has collapsed, but it has reached its limits,” Kejriwal said, adding that harsh measures were necessary to “prevent a collapse of the health system.” Similar virus curbs already have been imposed in the worst-hit state of Maharashtra, home to India’s financial capital, Mumbai. The closure of most industries, businesses and public places Wednesday night is to last 15 days.

Pacific Ocean storm intensifies into year’s first super typhoon (Reuters) Strong winds and high waves lashed the eastern Philippines on Monday as the strongest typhoon ever recorded in April barrelled past in the Pacific Ocean, killing one man and triggering flooding in lower-lying communities, disaster officials said. More than 100,000 people were evacuated from coastal areas, according to provincial disaster agencies. The core of Surigae, or Bising as the storm is known locally, is not expected to hit land. But with a diameter of 500 km and winds reaching 195 km per hour, parts of the eastern islands of Samar experienced flooding, while several communities lost power. The first super typhoon of 2021 foreshadows a busy storm season for the region in the year ahead, experts say.

Lebanon’s crumbling capital (AFP) Beirut’s roads are riddled with potholes, many walls are covered in anti-government graffiti and countless street lamps have long since gone dark. At night, car drivers creep cautiously past broken traffic lights and strain their eyes for missing manhole covers, stolen for the value of their metal. Many parking metres have been disabled in protest over an alleged corruption scandal, while cars are parked randomly on sidewalks. To many, the dysfunctional capital has become emblematic of a country mired in its worst crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war after decades of mismanagement and corruption. Much of Beirut’s infrastructure started falling apart long before last August’s massive portside explosion killed more than 200 people, levelled the waterfront and damaged countless buildings. Amid the crisis, the Lebanese currency has collapsed and continues its downward slide at a sickening rate that in itself is deepening the problem. As the currency has dived by more than 85 percent on the black market, wary contractors are steering clear of any municipal repairs that are paid for in Lebanese pounds.

Eleven dead, 98 injured after train derails in Egypt (Reuters) Eleven people were killed and 98 injured on Sunday in a train accident in Egypt’s Qalioubia province north of Cairo, the health ministry said in a statement. The train was heading from Cairo to the Nile Delta city of Mansoura when four carriages derailed at 1:54 p.m. (1154 GMT), about 40 kms (25 miles) north of Cairo. More than 50 ambulances took the injured to three hospitals in the province, the health ministry said. The derailing is the latest of several recent railway crashes in Egypt. At least 20 people were killed and nearly 200 were injured in March when two trains collided near Tahta, about 440 kms (275 miles) south of Cairo.

South Africa wildfire (Washington Post) Cape Town ordered precautionary evacuations of communities living along the edges of city landmark Table Mountain on Monday as firefighters struggled to contain a fire that gutted historical landmarks, including the oldest working windmill in South Africa and a library housing African antiquities at the University of Cape Town. The fire started Sunday morning near the memorial to colonial leader Cecil Rhodes and quickly spread uncontrolled beneath Devil’s Peak in Table Mountain National Park in an area popular with weekend hikers and cyclists. By Monday morning, strong southeasterly winds, which were expected to reach more than 30 miles per hour (50 km/h) later in the day, had pushed the fire toward densely-populated areas above Cape Town city. Well-known tourist sites, such as the Table Mountain aerial cableway, were temporarily closed. Heavy smoke engulfed the city forcing the closure of a major highway and other nearby roads. Hikers, park visitors, visitors to the nearby Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and hundreds of students from the university campus were evacuated on Sunday.

NASA’s Ingenuity Makes First Powered Flight On Mars (NPR) “Orville and Wilbur would be proud. NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter has made the first-ever powered flight on another planet, 117 years after the Wright Brothers’ historic flight on this planet. The flight itself was modest. The 4-pound helicopter rose 10 feet in the air, hovered briefly, and returned to the Martian surface.