Czech press survey - January 9

Last time Necas, chairman of the senior government Civic Democrats (ODS), appeared in a duel with his Slovak counterpart Robert Fico on public Czech Television (CT) on New Year and then he "disappeared," Sidlo recalls.

He writes that ODS presidential candidate Premysl Sobotka would definitely welcome his chairman´s support closely ahead of the election.

Moreover, Necas should also explain certain steps, primarily his signature on the controversial amnesty President Vaclav Klaus declared on New Year, Sidlo writes.

Yet Necas has been avoiding any risk of being asked unpleasant questions for over a week, which is rather undignified, Sidlo notes.

On Tuesday evening, Necas did not consider it important to attend a press conference on the future of his coalition government. This indicates that he is interested in it like in the rest of the country - that is not at all, Sidlo points out.

Though his behaviour might be understandable "humanly," Necas has chosen the extremely difficult role of the PM himself, including its impact on his personal life. This is why he can be rightfully expected to show up or at least send a message why he cannot do so and when he will return to his service, Sidlo writes in conclusion in HN.

Czech citizens are apparently fed up with the campaign of the presidential candidates Milos Zeman and Jan Fischer and many of them actively stand up against their possible victory a couple of days ahead of the direct election, Alexandr Mitrofanov writes in Pravo today.

Their campaigns have tried to persuade the public for months that both former PMs are clear favourites who will definitely advance to the election second round and one of them will become a new head of state, which all opinion polls have shown as well, Mitrofanov recalls.

Consequently, the public is now looking for a third behind them who would have a chance to beat the "favourites," choosing between Social Democrat (CSSD) candidate and senator Jiri Dienstbier and Foreign Minister and government TOP 09 leader Karel Schwarzenberg, Mitrofanov says.

He adds that Schwarzenberg´s adherents are at the same time opponents of the Communists (KSCM). However, it is exactly the policy of his government TOP 09 that has contributed to the rise in the KSCM popularity.

Dienstbier, for his part, is blamed for having asked the Communists for support in the presidential polls. Nevertheless, this was a step taken by a politician who realised the share of KSCM voters in the country.

It is true that without support of KSCM voters no candidate can win the presidential post, Mitrofanov concludes.

The proposal of Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg (TOP 09) that the state compensate the victims of the crime perpetrators to whom the presidential amnesty applies is rather a populist gesture to support his presidential candidacy, Daniel Kaiser indicates in Lidove noviny (LN) today.

He writes that this idea is nonsense in legal terms, according to lawyers.

On the other hand, the argument that the state should not damage its citizens otherwise it is (morally) obliged to compensate them should not be completely repudiated by legal and political considerations, Kaiser admits.

"However, would it not be more sensible to speak about it only after it becomes apparent to how many such cases the amnesty really applies? Yes, the minister (Schwarzenberg) is in a hurry since the presidential election starts in two days," Kaiser writes in LN.

Author: ČTK
www.ctk.cz