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The Government of the Czech Republic has decided to close down our 90 year old Consulate General of the Czech Republic in Montreal on March 31. 2010

For 90 years the Czech Consulate in Montreal, a landmark and relevant member of the diplomatic community in Canada and Montreal in particular, has efficiently provided consular services and placed its substantial cultural, educational, humanitarian and scientific resources, not only for the disposition of Czechs and Canadians, but also for persons and institutions of a wide array of nationalities from the rest of the world.

Furthermore its staff has been awarded various honors, the most recent granted to the present Consul General, The Honorable Ms. Jaroslava Jeslinkova, Woman of the Year 2009 by the Fédération des Caisses Desjardins du Québec. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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Author: Josef Cermak (CzechFolks.com PLUS)

The author of the book “Czechoslovakia: The State That Failed”, Mary Heinmann, is an American historian teaching at the Strathclyde University in Scotland. Her book was published by the Yale University Press.

According to the review (an example of how reviews should be written) in the Economist (Nov.21, 2009), Ms Heinmann sees the former Czechoslovakia as a political entity which was born out of trickery and died in failure; as an artificial creature, essentially a fraud, and the wily duo responsible for the fraud, Tomas Masaryk and Edward Benes, who duped the victorious Western allies into creation of a new country, which ignored the interests of all ethnic groups (particularly the Germans) except Czechs and Slovaks; its treatment of the Sudeten Germans in the first republic as the ultimate cause of the first Czechoslovak republic’s downfall and (together with reparations imposed on Germany) in large part responsible for the Second World War; following the Munich agreement, it engaged in anti-Semitism, which - in her view - was simply continuation of existing tendencies; and the work of Edward Benes and Jan Masaryk during the Second World War she sees as a story of Czech guile and Western gullibility, while describing the three postwar years before the communist seizure of power as a horrible period of racial revenge, rape, robbery and deportation inflicted on guilty and blameless Germans alike. And the Prague Spring was simply a by-product of a factional fight in the Communist Party. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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This is the title of a presentation given by Peter Petrik on November 2nd, 2009 at the University of Texas, Dallas. Mr. Petrik was born in the former Czechoslovakia giving him the insight and experience to deliver a great presentation accompanied by his personal photographs and stories that kept the audience entertained. The lecture describes the transformation of Eastern Europe since the end of the Cold War and its impact on international business. If you are interested in the history of the Czech Republic, Slovakia and other European countries, you should watch the video below. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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Today is Thanksgiving, a harvest festival celebrated in the United States and Canada. On this day people give thanks for the harvest. Even though Thanksgiving is not celebrate in the Czech Republic or Slovakia, many Czechs and Slovaks express their gratitude while living in the USA and Canada or other democratic countries. For them, living in a free country brings with it more appreciation than just during this holiday. Many of them left the country, while it was still controlled by the Communist party and found their freedom far away from their homes, while risking their lives during their escapes. The article named “Giving Thanks for Freedom, Remembering the Czech Revolution” posted on the San Diego News Network by Marketa Hancova, the dean of education at Platt College, San Diego School of Art and Design, speaks just about that and more. The English version can be found HERE and its translation is posted below. Enjoy and happy Thanksgiving! Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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This is the title of a social event that is taking place in Prague. Some of you may think it is an ironic title since the Communist party rules in the current Czech Parliament; however, the event is reminiscent of the communist era of the last century, when both countries, the Czech Republic and Slovakia were united as Czechoslovakia and the country was “sheltered” by the powerful Iron Curtain. The event itself is directed to the public of all ages; however, the major contributors to the event are in fact children and young adults that did not live during this era in Czech and Slovak history.

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The number of people with deep national values and knowledge of Czech and Slovak history over the last half century is shrinking. One of the people that fell in this small margin of the Czech and Slovak population just passed away. Jakub Cermin (May 2nd, 1917 – August 27th, 2009), the former head of the Freedom Fighters, could really say a lot about his life experiences. As a matter of fact, he wrote hundreds of articles reflecting his memories, feelings, views, and hopes about our nation. His blindness, towards the end of his life, however, did not stop him as he still continued in sacrificing his life and dignity for our liberty until his passing. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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Today, like every year, Czechs and Slovaks commemorate the infamous anniversary of the invasion of Czechoslovakia. On that day the former liberator put an end to Dubcek’s effort to build “socialism with a human face.” The invasion reflected the disapproval of the rebirth of social and political freedom known as “Prague Spring.” On the night of August 20 to 21, 1968, the country was invaded by five Warsaw Pact countries. On that day the Prague Spring ended and was followed by the cold “Brezhnev’s Doctrine” that brought a new chill to the Cold War. The “Détente” was over. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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The Russian song, set to a popular 1970s Czech tune Jozin z Bazin (Joey of the Marsh) by a Czech singer Ivan Mladek, is becoming trendier on YouTube in recent days. Today, over three million people have seen the video. The Russian lyrics say, “Putin, Putin goes to Pikalyovo. Putin, Putin will make it cool for us… Putin, Putin is quick to do justice. Putin, Putin is our Prime Minister… Jozin z Bazin is the people’s choice … oligarchs, miners and even cops know that Jozin z Bazin will be our new president.” The spoof song was made to make fun of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, a former KGB spy, who was ineligible to run for a third consecutive term as President in 2008 and became Prime Minister. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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According to Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kohout, the chances that Canada would re-impose visa restrictions on Czechs are getting slimmer. The visa reinstatement came to mind after the massive refugee claims submissions in the past six months. The Czech Republic was the second highest country contributing about 1700 claims submitted between January and June 2009, right after Mexico with about 5500 claims during the same time period. The Roma, also known as Gypsies, complain about living conditions and racism, however, others believe that they only seek asylum in Canada for its generous welfare system and due to the lenient immigration laws. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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Today the official act of passing the EU glass relay pin to the next country, Sweden, ended the EU presidency by the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic presided over the European Union for an entire six months. This special task was very challenging for the country taking into consideration the worldwide economic situation, the dissolution of the government and other activities associated with this task. We should not forget about the infamous Entropa display in Brussels that made our presidency less forgettable than the colorful logo and its slogan “Europe in Sweet Harmony.” Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »

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The first memorial of political prisoners and victims of communism available to the public was revealed yesterday in Valdice in the Czech Republic. The Valdice prison is an appropriate place for this statue because most of the prisoners were sentenced there for political reasons. The author of the statue, Jiri Sozansky, wanted to contribute by acknowledging the harm to political prisoners; mostly those that are still alive.

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The controversial artwork Entropa created by Czech artist David Cerny will be on display in Holesovice Center for Contemporary Arts DOX from the 12th of June until the 4th of January 2010. This art project was created on the occasion of the Czech Presidency over the European Union and was placed at the European Commission building in Brussels. Entropa received enormous publicity around the world, but was not actually displayed in Cerny’s home country. That is why he decided to display it in DOX center to give Czech citizens and others an opportunity to make their own opinions about his creation. Read the rest of this entry (Čtětě více ZDE) »