Czech Republic.Capital: Prague Head of State: President Vaclav Klaus (since March 2003) Elected by Parliament for a five-year term Head of Government: Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla (since July 2002) Appointed by the President Parliament: Parliament consists of the Senate (81 seats; members are elected by popular vote, to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) POLITICS Vaclav Havel Noun 1. Vaclav Havel - Czech dramatist and statesman whose plays opposed totalitarianism and who served as president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 to 1992 and president of the Czech Republic since 1993 (born in 1936) Havel , who was a playwright and dissident during the communist era, was the Czech Republic's first post-communist president until his retirement in 2003. He led his country through its separation from Slovakia in 1993 and to the threshold of membership in the European Union European Union (EU), name given since the ratification (Nov., 1993) of the Treaty of European Union, or Maastricht Treaty, to the European Community . His successor as president is Vaclav Kiaus, who was prime minister between 1992 and 1997. During those five years, Mr. Klaus pushed ahead with ah ambitious privatization privatization: see nationalization. privatization Transfer of government services or assets to the private sector. State-owned assets may be sold to private owners, or statutory restrictions on competition between privately and publicly owned program. However, serious economic problems became apparent in 1997 and financial and ban king scandals contributed to the fall of his government. Integration into the European Union is going to force the Czech government to deal more fairly with its Roma (Gypsy) minority. There are about 300,000 of them, and they suffer disproportionately high levels of poverty, illiteracy illiteracy, inability to meet a certain minimum criterion of reading and writing skill. Definition of Illiteracy The exact nature of the criterion varies, so that illiteracy must be defined in each case before the term can be used in a meaningful , and unemployment. ECONOMY One of the most stable and prosperous of the post-communist states, the Czech Republic Czech Republic, Czech Česká Republika (2005 est. pop. 10,241,000), republic, 29,677 sq mi (78,864 sq km), central Europe. It is bordered by Slovakia on the east, Austria on the south, Germany on the west, and Poland on the north. has been recovering from recession since mid-1999. Growth in 2000-02 was supported by exports to the EU, primarily to Germany, and a near doubling of foreign direct investment. Domestic demand is playing ah ever more important role in underpinning un·der·pin·ning n. 1. Material or masonry used to support a structure, such as a wall. 2. A support or foundation. Often used in the plural. 3. Informal The human legs. Often used in the plural. growth as interest rates drop and the, availability of credit cards and mortgages increases. Real GDP Real GDP This inflation-adjusted measure that reflects the value of all goods and services produced in a given year, expressed in base-year prices. Often referred to as "constant-price", "inflation-corrected" GDP or "constant dollar GDP". growth slowed to 2.1% in the second quarter of 2003, and remains narrowly based on household consumption that is fuelled by credit. Real GDP growth is expected to accelerate to four percent in 2004 and 4.1% in 2005. However, unemployment remains high, in the ten percent range. The government continues to run up high budget deficits, which will have to be brought under control to comply with EU regulations. |
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