Vaclav Havel Visits Krakow School Year Starts with New Fashion with the New Academic Year Comes a New Rule
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The Krakow Post NO. 18 WWW.KRAKOWPOST.COM SEPTEMBER 6-SEPTEMBER 12, 2007 WEEKLY From writer to president to writer: Vaclav Havel visits Krakow School year starts with new fashion With the new academic year comes a new rule. Primary and lower secondary school students must wear school uniforms 2 Volunteers wanted for Afghan mission Polish leaders in Afghanistan have launched a friendly of- fensive expanding their mission from fighting the drug cartel to concerns of medical care 4 IS-2 tank renovated Repairs of the tank that has been standing in Nowa Huta for over 40 years are finished at last 7 Former President of the Czech Republic Vaclav Havel at the “Havel at Wawel” press conference promoting his new book, “Briefly, please” (“Tylko krotko, prosze”). Havel likes to speak of himself as living in a fairy-tale, and indeed, it is hard to resist the romance of his biography. PHOTO/LUK Agency Soren A. Gauger unnerved and uncomfortable in his suit – a distaste for the phrase “national interests,” nization for human rights, which continued STAFF JOURNALIST far cry from the grinning, cigarette-smok- in that it implied differences of interests be- to be a major concern for Havel during his ing face on the posters. As he sits down tween nations, which should all be thinking time as president. In 1989, he was impris- In his speech “A Farewell to Politics” on with Jerzy Illg from Znak and his Polish in the same direction. He had his passport oned, released, and then elected president of October 19, 2002, during his last official translator Andrzej Jagodzinski, the cameras revoked in 1969, the same year the literary the then-Czechoslovakia. visit to the U.S. as president of the Czech keep clicking and flashing, despite repeated magazine he worked for “Tvar” was shut During his subsequent 15-year reign, he Republic, dissident, poet, playwright and requests for the photographers to return to down. Havel began participating in more remained a remarkably popular politician, Flea market as an politician Vaclav Havel remarked: their seats. Every time Havel switches posi- and more dissident activities and in his book both at home and abroad. “I’ve discovered an astonishing thing: tions, the cameras go off again. He fiddles even describes himself as a homo politicus. The mood at the press conference, for the after-church ritual although it might be expected that this nervously with his glasses-case for much of Havel largely spent the late 70s and early most part, was decidedly kept light. [presidential] wealth of experience would the interview. 80s in and out of prison – a total of over five See HAVEL on Page 10 For many Poles, checking out the have given me more and more self-assur- Havel likes to speak of himself as living years. He co-founded the Charter 77 orga- flea market after attending church ance, confidence and polish, the exact op- in a fairy-tale, and indeed, it is hard to resist has grown into a tradition that posite is true. In that time, I have become a the romance of his biography. they look forward to all week 10 good deal less sure of myself, a good deal Born into a wealthy family, young Va- more humble. You might not believe this, clav became interested in poetry by about but every day I suffer more and more from the age of 15. He befriended film director stagefright; every day I am more afraid that Milos Forman, visited the poet Jaroslav I won’t be up to the job, or that I’ll make Seifert, and fell quickly under the spell of Night Club 37 a hash of it. It’s harder and harder for me the work of Franz Kafka, whose writing 37 Mogilska St. to write my speeches, and when I do write was heavily suppressed by the authorities. Tel.: (0) 12 411-4711 them, I am more and more fearful than Havel began working in the theater in the Cell: (0) 506-698-745 ever that I will repeat myself over and over 1960s, writing plays that had much in com- again.” mon with the Theater of the Absurd (e.g. house of entertainment Krakow’s top It’s a telling quote, as it reflects Havel’s Beckett, Ionesco, Pinter). The breakdown night club offers the most the best entertainment in Krakow beautiful escorts in town. trademark self-effacing irony, and also be- or artificial construction of language was a In-house and outcall. cause it was eminently visible at the Sep- major preoccupation. And it continues to be piano bar Professionalism and tember 3rd “Havel at Wawel” press confer- so for Havel, as he made evident at the press live-music sessions safety guaranteed. ence at 13:00. Journalists are a vicious sort conference. Open: of people at the best of times, but on this Havel spoke of the dangers of catch bring card – get prize Mon-Sat: 11:00-06:00 occasion they were positively bestial. phrases in politics. Once people stop put- HOTEL NOVOTEL, ul. Armii Krajowej 11 Sun: 20:00-06:00 When Havel stands on the Wawel bal- ting together sentences for themselves, they Tel.: +48 (0) 12 636-0807 Discounts on drinks with this ad. ustrade and 30 flashing cameras lunge in stop thinking as well, he claimed. Later, at Credit cards accepted. his face, the 71-year-old man looks visibly the 17:00 meeting, Havel mentioned his 2 The Krakow Post POLAND SEPTEMBER 6-SEPTEMBER 12, 2007 R E G I O N A L N E W S Power groups CEZ, MOL to form partnership Czech electricity giant CEZ and the Hun- School starts with new fashion garian oil and gas group MOL are to form a major energy partnership aimed at boosting their businesses in Central and Eastern Eu- With the start of the school year on September 3, students in primary rope, Czech media reported late last week. The companies are poised to sign a coop- eration deal, the first fruits of which would and lower secondary public schools will be required to wear uniforms be the construction of two gas-fired power plants, one in Hungary and the other Slo- Anna Biernat This procedure has caused many prob- vakia, with a total capacity of 800 MW, ac- STAFF JOURNALIST lems. The best-looking uniforms are cording to the online version of the Czech costly. That’s why most schools selected business magazine, “euro.” A new school rule was recently intro- blazers or T-shirts with a school’s logo Agency LUK CEZ has refused to comment on the re- duced by former Education Minister Ro- printed or embroidered on them instead of ports but spokeswoman Eva Novakova told man Giertych. Education officials said a classical uniforms consisting of a blazer AFP that a statement could be expected from key reason for mandating uniforms is to and a skirt or trousers. the company shortly. prevent students from being distracted by Poor families – those whose income CEZ, the biggest company in Central fashion to the detri- doesn’t exceed 351 zloty Europe by market capitalization, has been ment of their studies. per person – could ap- seeking ways of producing more power af- The fear is that expen- Education officials said ply for a special uniform ter it was blocked from building new nuclear sive clothes that chil- one reason for the subsidy of up to 50 zl. plants in the Czech Republic by the govern- dren from wealthier That’s enough to buy ment’s junior coalition partner, the Greens. families wear make uniforms is safety. only one blazer. The CEZ’s domestic ambitions to build coal- children from poorer Drug dealers would be ministry didn’t say what fired plants have also run into opposition. families feel inferior, unlikely to wear uniforms poor families can do to More than two-thirds of CEZ shares are robbing them of self- cope with such limits. state-owned. (AFP) confidence. and thus would be easily However, despite the One killed, eight injured in Education officials spotted at a school, new rule, students of said another reason only a few schools will Slovak bus crash is safety. Drug deal- officials said. start the school year One person was killed and eight were ers would be unlikely wearing new uniforms. injured when a bus crashed near the central to wear uniforms and And it’s not just because Slovak town of Ruzomberok, police said thus would be easily spotted at a school, many students are against wearing the late last week. officials said. same outfits as their classmates. The bus, which was carrying 25 passen- Still another need for a uniform policy, The most common reason for the de- gers between Slovakia and the Czech Re- education officials said, is that it promotes lay in introducing uniforms is that tailors public, apparently skidded down a slope and students’ sense of identification with their didn’t get them sewn on time. overturned. school. Despite earlier statements, Education On Sunday night, four people were killed The Education Ministry, however, Minister Ryszard Legutko announced and around 30 injured when their bus skid- didn’t impose a policy for one consistent that he was not going to punish those ded into a deep ravine near Hrinova in design for the new uniforms. Every school principals who didn’t introduce uniforms mountainous central Slovakia. principal was responsible to choose the on time. He said he would give students The bus was carrying around 40 members school’s own uniform design after discus- some more time to accustom themselves of a local folk music group home after at- sions with the pupils’ parents.