Czech Republic
Landlocked country in E central Europe, bounded N by Poland, NW and
W by Germany, S by Austria, and E by the Slovak Republic.
Government
The 1992 constitution, which came into force 1 Jan 1993, provides for
a two-chamber parliament, comprising a 200-member chamber of deputies
and an 81-member senate, elected for four-year and six-year terms
respectively, by universal adult suffrage. The president is head
of state, elected for a five-year term by a joint session of the
parliament, and is eligible for a second consecutive term. The
president appoints the prime minister, who in turn appoints a
council of ministers (cabinet) commanding a majority in the chamber
of deputies. There are eight regions, subdivided into municipalities.
History
From the early 1990s there was evidence of increasing Czech and Slovak
separatism in Czechoslovakia. In the 1992 assembly elections the
Slovak- based Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (MDS), led by
Vladimir Meciar, won the largest number of seats. President Václav
Havel resigned, and in Aug, after proposals for a federal style
of government were rejected, the creation of separate Czech and
Slovak states was agreed. The Czech Republic came into being 1
Jan 1993, with V áclav Klaus of the Civic Democratic Party (CDS)
as premier. Havel was elected president, completing the ` velvet
divorce´.
In June 1993 the new republic was admitted into the United Nations
and was formally invited to apply for European Community (now
European Union (EU)) membership. In the same month a new currency
was introduced, and a major realignment of political parties took
place. In Jan 1994 the Czech Republic joined NATO's ` partnership
for peace´ programme as a prelude to full membership of the alliance.
An official application for full membership to the EU was submitted
by the Republic Jan 1996.
In the June 1996 general election, in spite of an expanding
economy, falling unemployment, and low inflation, the ruling conservative
coalition of the Civil Alliance, Christian Democrats, and the
Civic Democrats lost its parliamentary majority. However, the
coalition remained in power as a minority government on the understanding
that the Social Democrats would be granted leadership of parliament
and that the pace of privatization would be curbed.
In Nov 1996, with unemployment down to 4% and the economy still
strong, the ruling centre-right coalition, led by Prime Minister
Vá clav Klaus's CDS, won a decisive victory in the two rounds
of elections to the newly created Senate, the upper house of parliament.
The CDS, Christian Democratic Union-Czech People's Party (KDU-CSL)
and Civic Democratic Alliance (CDA) coalition won 52 of the 81
seats and 65% of the vote.
In Dec 1996 President Havel, suffering from lung cancer, successfully
underwent surgery to remove half a lung.
In April 1997, 74-year-old Milos Jakes was charged with treason
for his role in the 1968 Soviet-led invasion that crushed the
`Prague Spring´ reforms.
Economy
From 1992, under the Klaus administration, market-centred economic
reforms were implemented with the aim of establishing a Western
-style capitalist economy. Despite an initial significant decline
in GDP 1991 -93 and a concurrent rise in crime, the republic's
economic reform programme was one of the most successful in central
Europe. VAT was introduced Jan 1993 and the Prague stock exchange
reopened April 1993 after more than 50 years' closure. Inflation
was kept at around 10% per annum and by 1994 the private sector's
share of GDP had surpassed 50%, with more than six million Czechs
participating in the first wave of voucher-based mass privatization.
By 1996 the economy was expanding at an annual rate of 5 %, with
70% of the economy privatized; unemployment had fallen to 2.9%
and inflation to 8%.
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