Petr Pavel: Ex-general beats populist rival in Czech electionJanuary 30, 2023Source: BBC News / https://www.bbc.com / By Rob Cameron in Prague and Maria Zaccaro in London / Retired Nato general Petr Pavel has been elected as the new president of the Czech Republic, seeing off his populist challenger Andrej Babis. The 61-year-old took 58.32% of the vote, results released by …
Putting Ideas Behind Bars: Here’s Why It Doesn’t WorkJanuary 6, 2023Source: Political Violance at a glance / https://politicalviolanceataglance.org / By Christoph Dworschak and Christoph V. Steinert / We tried to bury them—we didn’t know they were seeds —Dinos Christianopoulos, 1978 On September 13, Iranian police arrested Mahsa Amini in Tehran for alleged dress code violations. The young woman died three …
Death of Meta-Narratives and Postmodern EraJanuary 6, 2023Source: The Nation / www.nation.com / By Muhammad Ali / 17th-century French philosopher René Descartes’s probably had never envisaged, in his wildest dreams, that his famous dictum ‘cogito, ergo sum’ (“I think, therefore I am”) would be completely rejected by the Generation Z, Y and A, especially during the postmodern …
A City Where Socrates Need Not DieJanuary 6, 2023Source: The American Conservative / www.theamericanconservative.com / By Colin D. Pearce / Jan Patocka (1907-1977) was the philosophical godfather of the Czechoslovakian “Charter 77” movement and the corresponding politics of the famous dissident playwright and later president of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel (1936-2011). In a Times column, Roger Scruton …
Michael Walker: Have a great final but let’s not forget how Fifa landed us hereDecember 17, 2022Source: The Irish Times / https://www.irishtimes.com / By Michael Walker / Sunday night in Doha and the anticipation will be mighty. The World Cup holders, France, against the legend that is Argentina. Kylian Mbappé versus Lionel Messi, colour in the packed stands and a potential classic on the pitch. Watching …
TV review: Simon Schama on the power of the arts to challenge autocracyDecember 4, 2022Source: The Irish News / https://irishnews.com / By Billy Foley / Simon Schama: History of Now, BBC 2 and iPlayer Simon Schama’s cri de coeur on the power of the arts to challenge autocracy feels significant. It’s clear that the celebrated historian fears there is a danger that the Russian …
Putin’s war on Ukraine is also a war on truthOctober 15, 2022Source: The Washington Post / https://www.washingtonpost.com / By Vladimir Kara-Murza / “It takes incredible courage in today’s Russia to stand against the power in place,” Tiny Kox, the president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, said this week in awarding Washington Post contributing columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza the …
Vladimir Kara-Murza wins Václav Havel Human Rights PrizeOctober 12, 2022Source: Radio Prague International / https://english.radio.cz / By Ruth Frankova / Russian publicist and opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza has been awarded this year’s Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, news agency AFP reported on Monday. Mr Kara-Murza, who chose to remain in Russia despite allegedly being a repeated target of poisoning …
Three candidates shortlisted for the 2022 Václav Havel PrizeSeptember 7, 2022Source: Council of Europe / www.coe.int / The selection panel of the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, which rewards outstanding civil society action in defence of human rights in Europe and beyond, has announced the shortlist for the 2022 Award. Meeting in Prague the panel, made up of independent figures …
What legacy does Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, leave behind?September 2, 2022Source: Atlantic Council / www.atlanticcouncil.org / By Experts react / The last premier of the Soviet Union has died. A complicated figure who succeeded in ending the Cold War but failed to save his own country from collapse, Mikhail Gorbachev, who died on Tuesday at the age of 91, will …
On this Day, in 1990: the Rolling Stones held a historic concert in PragueAugust 17, 2022Source: Kafkadesk / https://kafkadesk.org / By Kafkadesk Prague Office / On August 18, 1990, legendary English band the Rolling Stones held a historic concert in the Strahov Stadium in Prague, the first major rock concert organised in then Czechoslovakia after the fall of communism. Sympathy for the Devil: the Stones …
Heroes, Not VictimsAugust 15, 2022Source: ASHARO AL-AWSAT / https://english.aawsat.com / By Hazem Saghieh / In 1978, Czech playwright Vaclav Havel smuggled a long text he had written, “The Power of the Powerless,” in which he discusses life and forms of civil resistance under the communist regime in former Czechoslovakia. In the text, the eventual …
Gerald Nagler, leading human rights activist since Cold War, dies at 92August 9, 2022Source: The Washington Post / www.washingtonpost.com / By Brian Murphy / Gerald Nagler, a prominent human rights activist who made risky Cold War forays into the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to lend support to dissidents including Nobel laureate Andrei Sakharov and future Czech President Vaclav Havel, died July 23 …
Petr Pavel: Ex-general beats populist rival in Czech election January 30, 2023 Source: BBC News / https://www.bbc.com / By Rob Cameron in Prague and Maria Zaccaro in London / Retired Nato general Petr Pavel has been elected as the new president of the Czech Republic, seeing off his populist challenger Andrej Babis. The 61-year-old took 58.32% of the vote, results released by …
The National Security Archive salutes the distinguished Czech scholar, partner and inspiration for the Archive, on his 90th birthday: “Na zdraví!” January 11, 2023 Source: National Security Archive / https://nsarchive.gwu.edu / By Tom Blanton and Malcolm Byrne / Washington, D.C., January 9, 2023 – The National Security Archive today celebrates the 90th birthday of our longtime scholarly partner and moral inspiration, Vilém Prečan, with this Web publication using new mobile-friendly software for four electronic …
Putting Ideas Behind Bars: Here’s Why It Doesn’t Work January 6, 2023 Source: Political Violance at a glance / https://politicalviolanceataglance.org / By Christoph Dworschak and Christoph V. Steinert / We tried to bury them—we didn’t know they were seeds —Dinos Christianopoulos, 1978 On September 13, Iranian police arrested Mahsa Amini in Tehran for alleged dress code violations. The young woman died three …
Death of Meta-Narratives and Postmodern Era January 6, 2023 Source: The Nation / www.nation.com / By Muhammad Ali / 17th-century French philosopher René Descartes’s probably had never envisaged, in his wildest dreams, that his famous dictum ‘cogito, ergo sum’ (“I think, therefore I am”) would be completely rejected by the Generation Z, Y and A, especially during the postmodern …
Michael Walker: Have a great final but let’s not forget how Fifa landed us here December 17, 2022 Source: The Irish Times / https://www.irishtimes.com / By Michael Walker / Sunday night in Doha and the anticipation will be mighty. The World Cup holders, France, against the legend that is Argentina. Kylian Mbappé versus Lionel Messi, colour in the packed stands and a potential classic on the pitch. Watching …
TV review: Simon Schama on the power of the arts to challenge autocracy December 4, 2022 Source: The Irish News / https://irishnews.com / By Billy Foley / Simon Schama: History of Now, BBC 2 and iPlayer Simon Schama’s cri de coeur on the power of the arts to challenge autocracy feels significant. It’s clear that the celebrated historian fears there is a danger that the Russian …
Putin’s war on Ukraine is also a war on truth October 15, 2022 Source: The Washington Post / https://www.washingtonpost.com / By Vladimir Kara-Murza / “It takes incredible courage in today’s Russia to stand against the power in place,” Tiny Kox, the president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, said this week in awarding Washington Post contributing columnist Vladimir Kara-Murza the …
Three candidates shortlisted for the 2022 Václav Havel Prize September 7, 2022 Source: Council of Europe / www.coe.int / The selection panel of the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, which rewards outstanding civil society action in defence of human rights in Europe and beyond, has announced the shortlist for the 2022 Award. Meeting in Prague the panel, made up of independent figures …
What legacy does Mikhail Gorbachev, the last Soviet leader, leave behind? September 2, 2022 Source: Atlantic Council / www.atlanticcouncil.org / By Experts react / The last premier of the Soviet Union has died. A complicated figure who succeeded in ending the Cold War but failed to save his own country from collapse, Mikhail Gorbachev, who died on Tuesday at the age of 91, will …
On this Day, in 1990: the Rolling Stones held a historic concert in Prague August 17, 2022 Source: Kafkadesk / https://kafkadesk.org / By Kafkadesk Prague Office / On August 18, 1990, legendary English band the Rolling Stones held a historic concert in the Strahov Stadium in Prague, the first major rock concert organised in then Czechoslovakia after the fall of communism. Sympathy for the Devil: the Stones …
Czech Republic strengthen ties with Tibetan People: Representative Thinlay Chukki concludes Maiden visit to Prague August 15, 2022 Source: Central Tibetan Administration / https://tibet.net / By Staff Reporter / Geneva: Representative Thinlay Chukki successfully completed a four-day visit to Prague, Czech Republic from 07 August to 10 August 2022. This is her maiden visit to the country and the first country to visit, outside of Switzerland, as the …
Gerald Nagler, leading human rights activist since Cold War, dies at 92 August 9, 2022 Source: The Washington Post / www.washingtonpost.com / By Brian Murphy / Gerald Nagler, a prominent human rights activist who made risky Cold War forays into the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to lend support to dissidents including Nobel laureate Andrei Sakharov and future Czech President Vaclav Havel, died July 23 …