CZECHIA. Czech Republic
A state in Central Europe. Area - 78,864 km². Capital - Prague (1.2 million), major cities: Brno, Ostrava, Plzeň, Ústí nad Labem, Hradec Králové. Administrative-territorial division - 13 regions. The capital is the 14th entity with regional rights, governed by a special law.
Population - 10.3 million (2001); Czechs - 94.4%, Slovaks - 3.8%, Poles - 0.7%, Germans - 0.5%, other nationalities - 0.6%.
Official language - Czech. Religion: Roman Catholicism (83.4%), Hussite (1%), Evangelical (1.2%), Orthodox (0.2%), Greek Catholic, and others. Currency - Czech koruna.
Has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (since January 1, 1993, after the division of the federal Czechoslovakia into two independent states; relations between the USSR and Czechoslovakia were established on June 9, 1934).
Main state holidays: October 28 - Day of the Establishment of the Independent Czechoslovak State (1918), May 8 - Day of Liberation, July 5 - Day of the Slavic Preachers Cyril and Methodius, July 6 - Day of the Burning of Jan Hus (1415), November 17 - Day of the Struggle for Freedom and Democracy.
Czechia is a republic. The constitution, adopted by the National Council in December 1992 (with an amendment in 1997), is in effect.
The head of state is the president, elected by parliament for a term of 5 years; since February 2003 - Václav Klaus. Legislative power belongs to parliament, which consists of two chambers - the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The Chamber of Deputies (200 members) is elected for 4 years, the Senate (81 senators) for 6 years, with one-third of its members renewed every 2 years. The highest executive body is the government (coalition, consisting of representatives of the Czech Social Democratic Party, Christian Democratic Union - Czechoslovak People's Party, and the Freedom Union - Democratic Union); the chairman is J. Paroubek.
The main political parties represented in parliament include: Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD) - a center-left party with 18,000 members. Initially established in 1878. Merged with the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia in 1948. Resumed activities in 1989. Holds 70 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. Chairman - Bohuslav Sobotka. Civic Democratic Party (ODS) - emerged in 1991 as a result of the dissolution of the Civic Forum, a right-conservative party. Has 23,000 members; 58 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. Chairman - Mirek Topolánek. Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSČM) - formed in 1990 from the transformation of the former Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. Approximately 108,000 members. Holds 41 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. Chairman - Vojtěch Filip. Christian Democratic Union - Czechoslovak People's Party (KDU-ČSL).
The merger of the two parties occurred in 1992. It is considered a right-center party. Approximately 50,000 members, 21 seats. Chairman - Pavel Kalousek.
Freedom Union - Democratic Union (US-DEU). A party of a pro-liberal orientation. Approximately 1,000 members. Holds 10 seats in the Chamber of Deputies. Chairman - Petr Němec. More than 80 parties and movements are registered in the Czech Republic.
The largest trade union association in the Czech Republic is the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions, which includes 34 sectoral trade unions with more than 800,000 members.
The early feudal Czech state was formed in the 10th century after the collapse of the Great Moravian Empire; from the second half of the 12th century - a kingdom within the Holy Roman Empire. In the first half of the 15th century, a popular Hussite movement arose against feudal oppression, German dominance, and the Catholic Church, culminating in the Hussite Wars of 1419-37.
It was prepared by the reformist activities of the national hero and inspirer of the popular movement Jan Hus (1371-1415) and several other figures. From the 16th century, the Czech lands came under the rule of the Austrian Habsburg dynasty. After the defeat of the anti-Habsburg uprising at White Mountain in 1620, the Czech lands completely lost their independence.
On October 28, 1918, after the collapse of Austria-Hungary, the National Council in Prague announced the establishment of an independent Czechoslovak state, which included Czechia and Slovakia. Its first president was T. G. Masaryk.
According to the Munich Agreement of 1938, Nazi Germany seized Sudetenland (the Sudeten region). In March 1939, the entire country was occupied by fascist troops and declared (except for the part annexed in 1938) a "protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia." In early May 1945, armed uprisings against the occupiers began in several Czech cities. Prague rose up on May 5. On May 9, Soviet troops entered Prague, completing the liberation of Czechoslovakia.
After World War II, the territorial integrity of the country was restored, and Czechia and Slovakia became part of the Czechoslovak Republic. On January 1, 1969, the Czech lands were granted the status of a republic within the federal Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (ČSSR), in 1990 - the Czechoslovak Federal Republic (ČFR), and then - the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic (ČSFR). Since February 1948, after the Communist Party came to power, the country was proclaimed to be on the path of socialist construction. In the late 1960s, the so-called process of renewal of socialism began, known as the "Prague Spring," which was interrupted in August 1968 after the invasion of troops from the Warsaw Pact countries.
In November 1989, amid a severe socio-political crisis, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia was removed from power.
The Civic Forum (GF) movement took a dominant position in the political life of Czechia. In the parliamentary and municipal elections held in 1990, opponents of socialism won and began dismantling the previous system.
After the Slovak parliament adopted the Declaration of Sovereignty of the Slovak Republic in July 1992, the Federal Assembly of the ČSFR passed a law on the separation of the federation in December 1992. On January 1, 1993, the Czech Republic was proclaimed an independent, sovereign, and independent state. According to the law on the separation of the federation, the succession of the ČSFR was extended to both republics - Czechia and Slovakia.
Czechia is a member of the UN (since 1993; Czechoslovakia was a member of the UN since 1945), the Council of Europe (since 1993), OECD (since 1995), NATO (since 1999), and the EU (since 2004).
The Czech Republic is an industrial republic. Main industries: fuel and energy, metallurgy, machine engineering (energy equipment, machines, electrical engineering products, and other types of machinery and equipment), chemical, light, and food industries. The country is not rich in mineral resources and reserves of raw materials (except for coal and uranium).
At the present stage, one of the key tasks is considered to be the rehabilitation of the financial sector and the reduction of domestic debt. Structural restructuring of industry, support for small and medium-sized businesses, and strengthening the export potential of the economy remain relevant. The government's reforms in the social sphere involve targeted support for certain categories of the population, pension reform, and healthcare reform.
In recent years, Czechia has seen growth in most macroeconomic indicators. In 2004, GDP increased by 3.8% and amounted to
99.4 billion dollars. GDP per capita reached 73% of the EU average. The average salary is 17,267 korunas (about 660 dollars), and the inflation rate is 2.9%. The unemployment rate is 10.3%.
Foreign trade turnover in 2004: exports - 61.9 billion dollars, imports - 62.9 billion dollars, and the trade balance deficit in current prices exceeded 1 billion dollars. 80% of trade turnover is with EU countries. The main trading partner of the Czech Republic is Germany (35%). More than 50% of Czech exports consist of products from companies with a predominant foreign capital share.
The volume of foreign trade with Russia in 2004 was 3.7 billion dollars, with Russian exports (mainly energy carriers and raw materials) at 2.8 billion dollars; imports (primarily machinery) at 954 million dollars; positive balance for Russia - 1.82 billion dollars.
Czechia has a developed network of educational institutions: 3,961 primary schools, 343 gymnasiums, 800 secondary vocational schools, 1,462 special schools, 556 secondary vocational colleges, 162 higher vocational schools, 24 universities.
The largest periodicals include: "Mladá fronta dnes" (310,000 copies), "Právo" (250,000), "Hospodářské noviny" (over 100,000), "Lidové noviny" (100,000). There is an information agency - Czech News Agency (ČTK), public "Czech Television" (two channels: "ČT-1" and "ČT-2"), commercial TV channels "Nova," "Prima," "Czech Radio" (7 programs).