|
conventional long form: Czech Republic
conventional short form:
Czech Republic
local long form:
Ceska Republika
local short form:
Cesko
|
|
|
parliamentary democracy
|
|
|
name: Prague
geographic coordinates:
50 05 N, 14 28 E
time difference:
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
|
|
|
13 regions (kraje, singular - kraj) and 1 capital city* (hlavni mesto); Jihocesky (South Bohemia), Jihomoravsky (South Moravia), Karlovarsky, Kralovehradecky, Liberecky, Moravskoslezsky (Moravia-Silesia), Olomoucky, Pardubicky, Plzensky (Pilsen), Praha (Prague)*, Stredocesky (Central Bohemia), Ustecky, Vysocina, Zlinsky
|
|
|
1 January 1993 (Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia); note - although 1 January is the day the Czech Republic came into being, the Czechs generally consider 28 October 1918, the day the former Czechoslovakia declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, as their independence day
|
|
|
Czechoslovak Founding Day, 28 October (1918)
|
|
|
ratified on 16 December 1992, effective on 1 January 1993; amended in 1997, 2000, 2001 (twice), 2002
|
|
|
civil law system based on Austro-Hungarian codes; legal code modified to bring it in line with European Union obligations and to expunge Marxist-Leninist legal theory; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
|
|
|
18 years of age; universal
|
|
|
chief of state: President Vaclav KLAUS (since 7 March 2003)
head of government:
Prime Minister Petr NECAS (since 28 June 2010); First Deputy Prime Minister Karel SCHWARZENBERG (since 13 July 2010), Deputy Prime Minister Radek JOHN (since 13 July 2010)
cabinet:
Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections:
president elected by Parliament for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); last successful election held on 15 February 2008 (after earlier elections held 8 and 9 February 2008 were inconclusive; next election to be held in 2013); prime minister appointed by the president
election results:
Vaclav KLAUS reelected president on 15 February 2008; Vaclav KLAUS 141 votes, Jan SVEJNAR 111 votes (third round; combined votes of both chambers of parliament)
|
|
|
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (81 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms; one-third elected every two years) and the Chamber of Deputies or Poslanecka Snemovna (200 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections:
Senate - last held in two rounds on 17-18 and 24-25 October 2008 (next to be held by October 2010); Chamber of Deputies - last held on 28-29 May 2010 (next to be held by 2014)
election results:
Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ODS 36, CSSD 29, KDU-CSL 7, Open Democracy Club 6, others 3; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - CSSD 22.1%, ODS 20.2%, TOP-09 16.7%, KSCM 11.3%, VV 10.9%; seats by party - CSSD 56, ODS 53, TOP-09 41, KSCM 26, VV 24
|
|
|
Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; Supreme Administrative Court; chairman and deputy chairmen are appointed by the president for a 10-year term
|
|
|
Association of Independent Candidates-European Democrats or SNK-ED [Helmut DOHNALEK]; Christian Democratic Union-Czechoslovak People's Party or KDU-CSL [Cyril SVOBODA]; Civic Democratic Party or ODS [Mirek TOPOLANEK]; Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia or KSCM [Vojtech FILIP]; Czech Social Democratic Party or CSSD [Jiri PAROUBEK]; Green Party [Ondrej LISKA]; Open Democracy Club (a liberal parliamentary group within the Czech senate); Public Affairs (VV) [Radek JOHN]; Tradice Odpovednost Prosperita 09 or TOP 09 [Karel SCHWARZENBERG]; Union of Freedom-Democratic Union or US-DEU [Jan CERNY]
|
|
|
Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions or CMKOS [Milan STECH]
|
|
|
ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CD, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MONUC, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
|
|
|
chief of mission: Ambassador Petr KOLAR
chancery:
3900 Spring of Freedom Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 274-9100
FAX:
[1] (202) 966-8540
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
|
|
|
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Mary THOMPSON-JONES
embassy:
Trziste 15, 118 01 Prague 1
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
[420] 257 022 000
FAX:
[420] 257 022 809
|
|
|
two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side
note:
uses the pan-Slavic colors and is identical to the flag of the former Czechoslovakia
|
|
|
|