ZAGREB, November 29, 2018 - The Croatian-Czech Society and the Češka Beseda association on Wednesday held a round table discussion dedicated to the Prague Spring, a period of political liberalisation in Czechoslovakia as a Communist state after World War II. The year 1968 stirs up strong emotions among Czechs and Slovaks because it was a year of great hopes, enthusiasm and optimism, as well as a year of great disappointments, it was said at the event marking the Prague Spring anniversary.

The Prague Spring and its end, as well as the subsequent protest suicide of student Jan Palach, is probably the best known event in the history of the Czech and Slovak peoples in the world, said the president of the Croatian-Czech Society, Marijan Lipovac.

Around 50,000 Czechs and Slovaks were vacationing in Croatia at the time and could not return to their country as the borders were closed for about ten days.

The residents of Zagreb offered them to stay with them in their homes, said Češka Beseda vice-president Marina Kolaček Novosel, speaking of reports in Croatian newspapers at the time of the Prague Spring.

The Prague Spring was a reform movement led by Czechoslovak Communist leader Alexander Dubček and aimed at democratising and liberalising the country's social and political system, said Lipovac.

The hopes of reforms were destroyed in the occupation by five Warsaw Pact states – the Soviet Union, the German Democratic Republic, Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria, in August 1968.

The Prague Spring was supported by Yugoslavia and Romania since Josip Broz Tito saw in it the success of his concept of socialism, while Nicolae Causescu, with his rigid regime, defended the principle that each state has the right to develop its own kind of socialism.

After the occupation, Dubček and the Czechoslovak leadership were forced to capitulate and give up their reforms, even though they were allowed to stay in their positions for some time.

The only of the planned reforms that was implemented was the federalisation of Czechoslovakia, which on 1 January 1969 became a federal state consisting of the Czech Socialist Republic and the Slovak Socialist Republic. A period of so-called normalisation ensued and lasted until the Velvet Revolution in 1989.

During the occupation, 137 Czechoslovaks who tried to put up resistance were killed. Political opponents were fired or arrested and around 250,000 people emigrated, including many researchers and cultural workers.

During that period, Croatian citizens and institutions provided their Czechoslovak guests with accommodation and the necessary assistance, once again confirming the solidarity between the Croats, Czechs and Slovaks in difficult times of their history, said Lipovac.

For more on relations between Croatia and the Czech Republic, click here.

Croatian employers are not the only ones who are desperately looking for Croatian workers. There are more and more foreign businesses coming to Croatia in search of possible employees. One of them is the well-known car factory Škoda from the Czech Republic, reports Radio Mrežnica on November 20, 2018.

Škoda is looking for workers, and this week the company decided to focus on Croatia. In four towns, Osijek, Sisak, Karlovac and Zagreb, representatives of the company will meet and talk with interested Croatian workers who are thinking about possibly moving to this Central European country, which is in economic terms far more developed in Croatia. While during the “dark days of socialism” then Yugoslavia seemed like a heaven to other Central and Eastern European countries, in the last 30 years everything changed. Now, Croats and citizens of other former Yugoslav republics are looking with envy at the living standards in countries such as Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.

The ad that the Czech company published over the local Radio Mrežnica draw a huge amount of interest from listeners and the Czech representatives in Croatia were happy to provide more details. “ManpowerGroup" Czech Republic is looking for potential employees for Škoda Auto, in the town of Mlada Boleslav. Potential employees can earn up to 1,000 euro, in addition to accommodation and travel costs, which will be covered separately. They will also have a coordinator during their stay in the Czech Republic. ManpowerGroup will take care of them,” said the company representatives.

The interviews about possible employment at Škoda will take place in Osijek on Tuesday, in Sisak on Wednesday, in Karlovac on Thursday, and in Zagreb on Friday.

Škoda Auto, better known only as Škoda, is a Czech car manufacturer which was founded in 1895 as Laurin&Klement. It is located in the town of Mlada Boleslav.

According to the latest numbers, Croatia's population is significantly decreasing, with a trend of fewer births and more deaths, and there has never been a greater wave of emigration. Compared to 2008 when the population amounted to 4.3 million, ten years later, at the end of 2017, that number had decreased by 204,300 people and Croatia's population then was 4.1 million.

Since Croatia joined the EU in 2013, the number of immigrants has varied between 10,400 in 2013 and 15,600 in 2017. However, the number of people emigrating has increased noticeably more. Even though there was a growing trend in the period between 2011 and 2013, that number has increased significantly since accession.

In 2014, the number of emigrants was 20,900 which was an increase of 36.7% compared to 2013. In mid-2015, most EU member states lifted restrictions on Croatian workers and the number of emigrants increased by almost 10,000 that year. In 2016, that number continued to grow and in 2017 was a record high of 47,400, most of them emigrating to Germany.

For more on the emigration situation in Croatia, click here.

ZAGREB, November 5, 2018 - The State Assets Ministry said on Monday that a tender for the state's stake in the Hoteli Maestral company was equal for all bidders, responding to media reports that Czech Ambassador Vladimir Zavazal has written to state institutions to warn that Croatian bidders are being favoured.

The ministry was asked by Hina if it had received Zavazal's letter in which he suspects that Czech investors will be short-changed in relation to Croatian companies and says that one Croatian bidder has submitted incomplete documentation.

Some media have reported that Zavazal has written to the ministry and the Restructuring and Sales Centre (CERP), expressing his fear that the Czech investors which have submitted binding offers for shares in the Dubrovnik-based hotel company are subordinate to the Croatian bidder.

Three binding offers have been submitted for a 68.94% stake in the company, two by Czech bidders, J&T IB Capital Markets and ECO Investments, and one by Croatia's PND Strategija, a company owned by Danko Ćorić.

According to the media, Zavazal says in the letter that when the offers were opened, one Czech bidder found that PND Strategija failed to submit financial statements for 2016 and 2017, yet the State Assets Ministry declared its offer complete and valid.

Zavazal recalls that only one offer, by J&T IB Capital Markets, was submitted for Hoteli Maestral in a previous privatisation tender which was eventually cancelled for formal reasons.

The new tender was advertised in August. The asking price for the 68.94% stake was 126.8 million kuna. On October 24, CERP said three offers had been submitted - 145.9 million kuna by J&T IB Capital Markets, 141.07 million kuna by ECO Investments, and 153.5 million kuna by PND Strategija.

Hoteli Maestral is the last major hotel company in which the state is the majority owner. Last year, it netted 4.1 million kuna in profits, up 7% from 2016. Over the past ten years, the state has not been able to find a buyer.

For more on Croatian tourism, click here.

ZAGREB, October 13, 2018 - A memorial plaque will be unveiled in Prague on October 17 to commemorate 180 years since the birth of Croatian novelist August Šenoa, the Croatian-Czech Society announced.

ZAGREB, May 26, 2018 - A street in Prague has been named after Croatian politician Stjepan Radić (1871-1928), the Zagreb-based Croatian-Czech Society said on Saturday, describing Radić as a Croatian patriot, politician and promoter of Croatian-Czech relations at the start of the 20th century.

ZAGREB, April 15, 2018 - The century-long tradition of Czech design will premiere in Croatia at an exhibition staged as part of Zagreb Design Week, taking place at Nikola Tesla Technical Museum on May 11-20.

ZAGREB, January 20 - Bjelovar-Bilogora County Prefect Damir Bajs visited the Czech Association in Daruvar on Saturday ahead of Czech Language Month beginning on 22 January.

Croatia had everything, but after Modrić’s injury, the team lost its rhythm and lost it all after the flares were thrown onto the pitch by Croatian fans.

Ahead of today’s EURO 2016 match between Croatia and Czech Republic, one of the main connections is a football one, relating to the establishment of the oldest Croatian football club Hajduk in Prague

We did not believe football pundits before round one, so this time, we are making the same mistake, hoping for the same result.