U.S. report mentions corruption, approach to Romanies in CzechRep

The fresh report by the U.S. Department of State, which labels the continuing genocide in Darfur, Sudan, the worst crime against human rights in 2006, also criticises corruption, discrimination against Romanies and violence inflicted upon kids in the Czech and Slovak republics.

In its regular report disclosed on the Internet, the Department of State says that apart from Darfur the situation last year also deteriorated in countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq. It also criticises Russia, China, Pakistan, Cuba, Libya, Venezuela and Syria.

As for the Czech Republic, the report presents corruption as the persisting problem. Also disquieting is the swelling of Romany ghettos, cases of violence inflicted upon children and excessively long investigation on the part of law enforcement bodies, the report says.

In the Czech Republic, widespread corruption has resulted in a few corruption scandals involving MPs and other government officials from almost all political parties and on the top government level, the report says.

Many politicians have escaped prosecution owing to gaps in the law, it continues, pointing to the cases of Czech ex-MPs Michal Kraus (Social Democrats, CSSD) and Vladimir Dolezal (Civic Democrats, ODS), to the arrest of high managers of the state-run bail-out agency CKA and to the case of Czech organised crime police squad (UOOZ) head Jan Kubice, whose secret report, featuring serious suspicions about organised crime penetrating high politics, leaked to the media before the general election last year.

In Slovakia, the human rights situation did not markedly change in 2006, the report says.

In spite of this, cases of bad treatment of people, mainly Romanies, by the police appeared in Slovakia, it adds.

The report also points to corruption in Slovak judiciary, in administrative offices and in the health sector, and to suspects’ inappropriately long stay in custody waiting for trial.