Monday news summary

Anti-restriction protests

Hundreds of opponents of government anti-epidemic measures demonstrated in Prague at the weekend. Their protests on Wenceslas Square and then Old Town Square were soon disbanded. The subsequent attempt by several dozen demonstrators to penetrate Wenceslas Square was blocked by the police, who gradually released them from a section of about 50 meters after proving their identities. The police detained about 60 people for the offense, at least one on suspicion of a crime, among them also a member of the Parliament Lubomír Volný, police spokesman Jan Daněk said.

Weather in the Šumava Mountains returns to freezing temperatures

In the Šumava Mountains, the third day in the morning in a row, temperatures dropped to minus 20 degrees Celsius. It was coldest today in Březník, where the thermometer showed minus 20 degrees.

The Prime Minister wants to cancel shool-leaving exams this year

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) believes that replacing the traditional school-leaving examination ("maturita") with an official form will help high school students cope with the stress and tension in which they find themselves due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In his show "Čau Lidi", he questioned the need to pass a traditional high school diploma.

According to his own experience, employers do not put graduation first, he said. The Prime Minister came up with the idea of an official school-leaving examination, it means that this year's graduates on the school-leaving certificate could have grades according to the average for their entire high school studies, this week. Many experts disagree.

Fewer new cases, more serious cases

On Sunday, the number of patients with serious Covid-19 in the Czech Republic rose to 1,728, which is 155 more than a week ago. 7,979 were hospitalized, almost 500 more than the previous Sunday. However, the spread of Covid-19 slowed on Sunday. There were 660 less new cases than the previous Sunday. The share of new cases in the total number of tests performed also decreased slightly.