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Czech Republic & Former Czechoslovakia Czech Republic: Child Soldier Global Report 2001 From the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers There are no indications of under-18s in government armed forces. The Czech Republic has been a strong supporter of the "straight-18" position. June 12, 2001 Czech Republic: Landmine Monitor Report 2000 Key developments since March 1999: The Czech Republic ratified the Mine Ban Treaty on 26 October 1999 and it entered into force on 1 April 2000. National implementation legislation was passed on 18 November 1999 and entered into force on 3 December 1999. The original timeline of 20 June 2001 to complete mine/UXO clearance will likely slip to the end of 2001. By the end of 1999, a total of 9,972 hectares of land and 2,022 buildings had been cleared in and around the two main former Soviet bases. August 1, 2000 Czech Republic Roma in the Czech Republic Foreigners in Their Own Land Since 1989, Czech authorities have failed to adequately protect Roma from the ever-increasing danger of racist attacks. When attacks do occur, Roma are often denied equal treatment before the law, a direct violation of both Czech and international law. The biggest problem stems from the local police, who sometimes display an open sympathy for Askinheads, allowing them to hold unauthorized marches and threaten non-ethnic Czechs. Police are often slow to respond to Romani calls for help and hesitant to make arrests, even after a violent attack. In some cases, police themselves have used excessive force against Roma, sometimes causing death. Overall, the Czech record on human rights has been admirable since the 1989 Avelvet revolution toppled the communist government. But the otherwise laudable reforms of Czech democracy have failed to ensure many basic human rights to the Roma minority. The effects of the citizenship law and the states unwillingness to combat racist violence reveal an undeniable pattern of discrimination along ethnic lines. June 2, 1996 Download PDF, 306 KB, 52 pgs Printer friendly version Roma in the Czech Republic: Foreigners in their Own Land In 1995 alone, there were at least 181 reported attacks against Roma or foreigners in the Czech Republic and many other assaults go unreported. One murder in particular, that of Tibor Berki in May 1995, incited a public debate about racism and prompted the government to take more forceful measures. The government condemned the attack, proposed stiffer penalties for racially motivated crimes and introduced a special department within the police to deal with "skinheads" and other extremist groups. While these changes are steps in the right direction, they do not go far enough to combat the serious problem of racist violence and discrimination against the estimated two to three hundred thousand Roma in the Czech Republic. Since 1989, Czech authorities have failed to adequately protect Roma from the ever-increasing danger of racist attacks. When attacks do occur, Roma are often denied equal treatment before the law, a direct violation of both Czech and international law. HRW Index No.: D811 June 1, 1996 Struggling for Ethnic Identity Czechoslovakia's Endangered Gypsies The Roma people, commonly known in English as Gypsies, have been misunderstood ever since their migration from Northern India sometime around the 10th century. Ignorance of their origin initially led to a widespread belief that they were spies, arsonists, and hooligans. Some nations mistakenly called them "Gypsies," assuming they were from Egypt. In Czechoslovakia, as in many other European lands, they are called Cikani (pronounced tsigani), a pejorative term that is thought to have originated from a mistaken belief that they were Athinganoi (in Greek, this means "untouchables"), a Persian sect of magicians and fortunetellers that came to Greece in the eighth century. This report begins with a brief overview of the history of the Romanies since their arrival in what is now Czechoslovakia. In the following chapters, past (when relevant) and current conditions of Romanies in the areas of education, housing, employment, relations with the police, cultural and linguistic rights, health care, access to services, and media portrayal are discussed. The chapter on International Law describes the obligations of the Czech and Slovak Federal Government under international law. The final chapter summarizes our recommendations to the government of the Czech and Slovak Federal Republic. August 1, 1992 Download PDF, 1010 KB, 153 pgs Printer friendly version Czechoslovakia "Decommunization" Measures Violate Freedom of Expression and Due Process Standards When he took office in January 1990, Czechoslovak President Vaclav Havel spoke out against the impulse for vindictiveness in the wake of over forty years of Communist rule. "We cannot lay all the blame on those who ruled before," President Havel asserted, "not only because this would not be true but also because it could detract from the responsibility each of us now faces." Unfortunately, Czechoslovakia has not followed the course suggested by President Havel. In February 1991 a special commission was asked to review the files of the StB, the repressive former secret police agency; it publicly named Parliamentary "collaborators," using procedures that lack basic elements of due process. In October, a new "lustration" law was passed that bars from a variety of governmental and other public positions individuals who held certain Communist party or related posts or who are alleged to have collaborated with the secret police. As many as a million people could be affected, according to the International Labor Organization, and Helsinki Watch has observed evidence of a "witch hunt" that already exceeds the literal terms of the law. In December, Parliament declared it a crime to propagate such ideologies as communism and fascism. Although the December law is vaguely worded and may prove impossible to enforce, it strikes at core freedom of expression values and raises serious concerns about the government's respect for international human rights guarantees. April 30, 1992 Download PDF, 82 KB, 16 pgs Printer friendly version Prison Conditions in Czechoslovakia In 1989, Helsinki Watch severely criticized conditions in the Czech prison system. The criticism was in a report prepared by Professor Herman Schwartz, Chairman of the Human Rights Watch Prison Project Advisory Committee, and was based on numerous interviews in early 1988 with recently released prisoners. After the November 1989 revolution and in response to the report, the Czech and Slovak governments invited Helsinki Watch to inspect prisons in the Czech and Slovak Republics. The results of the inspection were very encouraging. In 1988, whatever could be wrong with a prison system, could be found in the Czech system. Severe overcrowding, brutality and exploitation of every variety, inhumane living and working conditions, miserable medical care - all were reportedly there, and more. Things have dramatically changed. Although many problems remain, ranging from outmoded and inadequate physical facilities to continuing staff-inmate hostility and still unacceptable working conditions, most of the worst evils are gone. Perhaps even more encouraging is the attitude of the prison administrators who, like many prison authorities in other formerly Communist-dominated countries, seem genuinely committed to creating and maintaining a humane prison system. Nevertheless, serious problems remain and will be explored in the course of this report. Because problems remain, and because the prison authorities are eager to create a modern system that will be both efficient and humane, Helsinki Watch and the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation, together with the Czech and Slovak Ministries of Justice, are convening a conference and workshop in Czechoslovakia in 1991 that will bring prison experts from North America and Western Europe together with Czech and Slovak prison officials to discuss ways to modernize and humanize the Czechoslovak prison systems. September 1, 1991 Download PDF, 190 KB, 42 pgs Printer friendly version
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