VZCZCXRO3724
RR RUEHIK
DE RUEHPG #0012/01 0081601
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 081601Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY PRAGUE
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2041
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRAGUE 000012 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EUR/PGI JIM KUYKENDALL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EZ
SUBJECT: ENGAGEMENT ON WOMEN'S ISSUES - CZECH REPUBLIC 
 
REF: STATE 124579 
 
PRAGUE 00000012  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
 ¶1. Summary: Key women's issues in the Czech Republic include 
domestic violence, trafficking in persons, and limited 
representation in political life. Through regular reporting 
and programming, Post works closely with ministries and 
organizations that focus on these issues, striving to 
integrate women's issues into its broader agenda.  Recent 
programs with a women's issues emphasis include a series of 
lectures by a female Google software engineer, arts programs, 
lectures on the history of feminism, and a new informal group 
that convenes extraordinary Czech and American women for 
speakers' events and networking.  Embassy sections regularly 
nominate Czechs who focus on women's issues for the 
International Visitor Leadership Program, and the Public 
Affairs grant program recently awarded funds to an 
organization that works to increase the number of women in 
political life.  Post would welcome additional resources to 
focus on programming, particularly given expected budget cuts 
that may impact the Czechs' ability to fund law enforcement 
and social programs. 
 
 
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Key Issues 
---------- 
 
¶2. Embassy staff regularly meet with government officials and 
nongovernmental organizations to better understand women's 
issues.  Although the situation of women in the Czech 
Republic is improving, challenges remain.  Domestic violence 
is an ongoing problem in the Czech Republic.  In 2009, police 
used their authority to remove 778 persons, both male and 
female, from their homes for an 10-day "cooling off" period 
due to domestic violence.  During the first ten months of 
2009, authorities completed 330 investigations into domestic 
violence.  Although the country received good marks for its 
efforts to prosecute and prevent trafficking and protect 
victims, the Czech Republic remains a source, transit, and 
destination country for trafficked women.  Women in the Czech 
Republic enjoy equal rights under the law, but relatively few 
hold political office.  Women hold 17 percent of the seats in 
Parliament, for instance.  Despite this, one positive sign is 
the role women play as active participants and leaders of 
nongovernmental organizations. 
 
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Programs with a Women's Issues Theme 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶3. Post has been active in organizing events that empower 
women or allow advocates for women's issues to exchange views 
and share best practices.  The Public Affairs Section (PAS) 
has worked with the NGO Gender Studies for many years.  In 
October 2009, PAS, with support from Gender Studies, 
organized an APEX Leadership for Women (TM) workshop for 
Czech managers, entrepreneurs, and gender studies 
representatives.  The leadership program, funded by PAS's 
small grants program, was led by Yvonne Davis, President and 
CEO of DAVISCommunications. 
 
¶4. Slovak Petra Popluharova is the first female from the 
former Czechoslovakia to serve as a software engineer for 
Google.  Post organized three lectures, two at universities 
in Brno and Ostrava and one at the American Center, where 
Popluharova encouraged women to work in the information 
technology (IT) industry.  Few Czech women work in this 
industry (an estimated 13 percent of the industry is female, 
versus 20 percent in the United States).  Popluharova's first 
exposure to the United States was through the Summer Work and 
Travel exchange program administered by the Department of 
State.  Accompanying Popluharova at two of the lectures was 
Czech software developer Lara Aharkava, who recently interned 
in Google's Zurich office. 
 
¶5. A visit to the Czech Republic by former Ambassador Swanee 
Hunt provided the impetus for two events: a lunch hosted by 
the Charge d'Affaires with female parliamentarians, and a 
roundtable on trafficking attended by government and NGO 
representatives.  Ambassador Hunt's emphasis on the demand 
side of trafficking triggered a lively roundtable debate on 
how to best address trafficking problems in the country. 
 
¶6. In Fall 2009, the American Center formed a small group of 
Czech and American female business professionals.  Recent 
speakers at the group's events include Veronika Bednarova, a 
reporter who wrote a book, My American Beauty, about her 
experience as a Fulbright scholar in New York, and attorney 
Vladimira Papirnik, described by a Czech newspaper as one of 
the country's most respected businesswomen.  The American 
Center plans to develop its external contacts through the 
 
PRAGUE 00000012  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
approximately 50-member group, and also is pleased to provide 
space for influential women to interact and exchange ideas. 
 
 
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Grants and Exchange Programs 
---------------------------- 
 
¶7. Working with Gender Studies, PAS funded a series of four 
lectures on the history of American feminism through the 
small grants program.  The small grants program also 
supported the Padesat Procent (Fifty Percent) organization, 
an NGO focused on equal representation of women and men in 
decision making and in public life.  Padesat Procent is 
working to identify young female leaders by focusing on the 
regional level, but is also interested in promoting specific 
women to run for higher offices. 
 
¶8. Targeting future leaders through exchange programs is an 
Embassy priority.  International Visitor Leadership Program 
(IVLP) nominations each year include women who focus on 
issues important to women's rights.  Post also supports 
events that draw upon the expertise of IVLP and Voluntary 
Visitor program veterans.  For example, an Interior Ministry 
conference on reducing prostitution and sexual exploitation 
in Plzen in June 2009 featured several speakers who had 
participated in the IVLP program.  Ivana Sabatova, board 
member of the South Bohemian Association for Women Managers 
and Entrepreneurs, regularly shares her IVLP experiences with 
female managers and entrepreneurs at conferences, seminars, 
panel discussions, and in news articles.  Kristina Prunerova, 
who participated in the Voluntary Visitor program in 2006, 
won the State Alumni Member of the month in June 2008 for her 
active and influential role in advocating human rights and 
supporting democracy. This week, Post will nominate five 
women who work on domestic violence issues for the March 2010 
Global Partnership to End Violence Against Women conference, 
sponsored by the Vital Voices Global Partnership and the Avon 
Foundation for Women.  Participants must commit to follow-up 
networking activities upon their return to the Czech 
Republic. 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- 
Best Practices and Plans for the Road Forward 
--------------------------------------------- 
 
¶9. Best practices identified by Post include: 
 
-- Ongoing reporting on issues of importance to women; 
-- Using the Embassy grants program to find innovative ways 
to fund projects that advance women's issues; 
-- Creative programming for visitors to the country, which 
broadens the base of potential topics and conserves funds; 
and 
-- Encouraging honorary awards and exchange program 
participation as a means of cultivating future leaders. 
 
¶10. Post will continue to integrate women's issues into its 
reporting and programming.  With additional resources, Post 
would give greater emphasis to women's political 
participation and events that empower and attract the next 
generation of female leaders.  Along these lines, one step 
Post is taking within existing resources is revamping its 
annual human rights award.  One goal of the revised award 
process is broadening the base of support for the award to 
attract younger activists, both female and male, who will 
play a greater role in Czech public life in the coming years. 
Lucas