František Kostlán

Analysis: Czech Fascists and fascisizing politicians, yesterday and today (Part One)

25.3.2018 17:47 The Czech Republic is heading toward authoritarian government. The prime movers in this respect are Czech President Miloš Zeman, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babiš,
Czech MP Tomio Okamura and his "Freedom and Direct Democracy" (SPD), supported by the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia (KSČM).  full story

Commentary: By honoring Zeman, US Jewish organization is promoting the fascisization of Czech society

25.9.2017 9:57 It is always sad when educated, intelligent people lose their judgment thanks to the larger atmosphere in which they operate. A Jewish organization based in the USA has recently given Czech President Miloš Zeman an award calling him a "Warrior for Truth".  full story

Commentary: Czech politician takes photo with extremists who have records of racist violence

31.8.2017 9:52 There is a great deal that could be written about the long career of Czech politician Jiří Čunek. Some of his fellow Christian Democratic Party members (KDU-ČSL) look up to him, while others would be glad to kick him out if they only could.  full story

Commentary: The value of life in Central Europe depends on skin color

17.6.2017 11:12 The feeling that anything at all can be done to Romani people with impunity has long been sustained in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and other countries of our region by the approach taken by state bodies and institutions. The recent news from Zborov is not the first time that Slovak Police officers have raided a Romani settlement and committed groundless violence there, but this time there is evidence of their behavior in the form of video footage.
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Commentary: Romani people should not live in fear, but justice systems are not helping

9.4.2017 14:33 At the beginning of March 2012, after the arson attack was committed against a Romani-occupied residential hotel in Aš, I and other members of the Romea.cz editorial team set out to visit the crime scene. We were unable to find out anything more by being there in person.  full story

Commentary: Paradoxes in the war on political correctness

31.3.2017 21:01 The war against political correctness is a long-term process that was begun in the Czech Republic by ultra-right extremists during the 1990s. Their motive was apparent: They wanted to legitimize racism and xenophobia so their own "politics" would be acceptable to the broadest possible circle of voters.  full story

Commentary: Czech Foreign Minister is all over the map when it comes to the issue of freedom of movement - why?

28.3.2017 11:04 My favorite demagogue, Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek, is once again shining like a supernova in the night sky. He has declared war on the free movement of persons on the labor market inside the European Union.
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Analysis: The 2016 arson attack on Klinika Social Center - are the Czech Police incompetent, or omniscient?

7.3.2017 9:58 How can we recognize the democratic rule of law? In addition to many other factors, equality of all before the law is one sure way.  full story

Commentary: Online social networks censor photos of Syrian war, ignore dissemination of hatred

7.12.2016 13:14 Recently Facebook covered over a couple of photographs on my profile with a grey rectangle because they were not appropriate for children. One photo, from wartime Aleppo, showed the corpse of a child with his leg bent at a right angle at the tibia and other corpses mutilated by a bomb explosion after an attack by Assad's army and the Russians.  full story

Commentary: Trump won. Should we admire him?

9.11.2016 12:31 Donald Trump has won the election. His purposeful efforts, worthy of a successful businessman, have become the symbol of today.  full story

Czech broadcast regulator says TV Prima must explain its manipulation of news reporting about refugees

3.11.2016 7:48 The Council on Radio and Television Broadcasting (RRTV) has ascertained that the Prima television station manipulated its news reporting about refugees in at least four cases and has published an analysis of Prima's newscasts focused on the issue of migration between 28 March and 17 April of this year. The television channel must respond to the Council within 30 days of receiving its call for an explanation.  full story

Commentary: Schizophrenic "Barbie" running for ultra-right party claims to be shocked by backlash against her support for Romani arson victim

18.9.2016 8:20 The Czech celebrity Dominika Myslivcová is "Barbie". At least, that's the nickname given to her by the readers of Czech tabloids.  full story

Is Czech folk singer's new song racism or social commentary?

19.8.2016 10:05 Is the Czech folk singer Jaromír Nohavica continuing his previous racism, or is his most recent song actually an apt criticism of society? It's very difficult to unequivocally tell, but Nohavica's previous seriously-intended anti-Romani song should be a warning.  full story

Commentary: Czech Social Democrats compete with ultra-right to see who can be more racist and xenophobic

19.8.2016 8:24 Czech MP Stanislav Huml of the Social Democrats, who is infamous for his extreme positions against Islam or refugees, as well as for his conspiracy theories about 9/11, recently published a video on his Facebook profile denying the Holocaust. He called it "brutal, [politically] incorrect, but inspiring".  full story

Commentary: Merkel, refugees, no to terrorism, Echo24 "mooing", Putin has already won

12.8.2016 17:24 This commentary reflects on selected events from this past week in the media. Commentator František Kostlán gives us his take on the news.  full story

Commentary: Czech broadcast regulator begins proceedings against TV Prima over report about Klinika social center

8.8.2016 9:40 In addition to its other manipulative reporting about refugees and Romani people, the Prima television channel in the Czech Republic broadcast a manipulative news report this spring about the Klinika Autonomous Social Center in Prague, which provides aid to refugees and the socially vulnerable. The Czech Council for Radio and Television Broadcasting (RRTV) has now issued a press release announcing that it has begun an administrative proceedings with the station over its reportage about Klinika broadcast on 28 May 2016 in its News program.  full story

Czech Republic: More proof that TV Prima manipulated its reporting about Romani people returning post-Brexit

6.8.2016 17:28 The Prima television channel in the Czech Republic is not content just to incite its viewers against refugees, but is also inciting them against Romani people, as news server Romea.cz recently reported. TV Prima reporter Kristýna Vedralová alleged in a recent report that "2 500 Romani problematic families" could soon return to the Czech Republic because Britain has begun to take their welfare benefits away.  full story

Commentary: Czech TV Prima broadcasts manipulative report about Roma returning from Britain en masse

3.8.2016 20:00 The Prima television station in the Czech Republic must have some sort of "anti-ethics code" obligating it to constantly incite the public against minorities. Previously, for example, it was revealed that its news editors were instructed by their superiors to report about refugees in exclusively negative terms.    

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Commentary: After you visit the music festival in Ostrava, take a look at the ghetto

21.7.2016 9:57 It used to be called "Black Ostrava". That was in the days when the motto was "We're miners and we're the best."  full story

Commentary: Integration of impoverished Roma must begin immediately in the Czech Republic

18.7.2016 8:17 Czech Culture Minister Daniel Herman has said good-faith, intensive negotiations are underway with stockholders to remove the pig farm from the site of the former concentration camp at Lety where Romani people died. Czech Human Rights Minister Jiří Dienstbier has said he believes a law on social housing can still be approved before the next elections.  full story