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Václav Klaus

Václav Klaus (born 19 June 1941) is the second President of the Czech Republic (since 2003, reelected 2008) and a former Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (1992–1997). Economist by trade, he is co-founder of the Civic Democratic Party, the major Czech right-wing party. Together with Václav Havel and his Social Democrat counterpart Miloš Zeman, he is recognised as one of the three most important Czech politicians of the 1990s and the last of them to remain active.

Biography

Klaus grew up in the upper-middle class residential Vinohrady neighborhood of Prague and graduated from the University of Economics, Prague in 1963; he also spent some time at universities in Italy (1966) and Cornell University in the United States (1969).

During the Prague Spring he published articles on economics in the pro-reform, non-communist magazine Tvář (The Face) and the leading weekly Literární noviny. He then pursued a postgraduate academic career at the (state) Institute of Economics of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, which he left (by his account, being forced out for political reasons) in 1970. From 1971 to 1986, he held various positions at the Czechoslovak State Bank. In 1987 Klaus joined the reform-minded Prognostics Institute of the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences.

In 1995, as Prime Minister, he applied for and was awarded a degree of Professor of Finance from his alma mater, so he is sometimes addressed "Mr. Professor" by his sympathisers. As the president, Klaus occasionally taught a seminar course in economics at the University of Economics.

Since 1990, Václav Klaus has received nearly 50 honorary degrees and published over 20 books on various social, political, and economics subjects which are overwhelmingly collections of articles and speeches; the most recent of these are five yearbooks of his presidential activities. He was a member of the Czech PEN Club. Klaus is a member of the Mont Pelerin Society. He has published articles in the libertarian free-market Cato Journal. On May 28, 2008, Klaus gave the keynote address at an annual dinner hosted by the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free market advocacy group in Washington, D.C., and received its Julian L. Simon Memorial Award.

Václav Klaus is married to Livia Klausová, a Slovak economist. During his Premiership she was appointed to the board of the state-controlled bank Česká spořitelna. They have two sons, Václav (a private secondary school headmaster) and Jan (economist), and five grandchildren.

Klaus is known to have had several extramarital affairs, each with a flight attendant. The first, in 1991, was with Eva Svobodová. In summer 2002 Klaus was photographed by a tabloid as having a "special relationship" with 24 year old economy student Klára Lohniská; this was treated by both the press and the public with remarkable sympathy. He spent the night after his second presidential inauguration (7 March 2008) with 25 year old Petra Bednářová.

In youth, Klaus used to play basketball and minor-league volleyball; he still is an avid tennis player and skier.

Klaus the economist

His vocal enthusiasm for the free market economy and as exemplified by Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman and practised by Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan, together with his stated belief in Adam Smith's "Invisible Hand", soon became well-known and Klaus was the principal shaper of the Czechoslovak economic transformation. His critics later on pointed out that during his premiership he had neglected the importance of law (in particular battling corruption), largely ignored the enforcement of property rights on the stock market, and that his pet project, the voucher privatization, was poorly executed and didn't bring the economy responsible owners it needed. They claim that his record in government does not justify the picture of Klaus as a major free-market figure. His avowed aim of creating a nation which participated in the capitalist system as shareholders signally failed, with most of the privatisations of his tenure ending up in relatively few, and often opaque, hands.

Rise to Premiership

Václav Klaus entered politics during the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Coming to the Civic Forum (OF) with an expertise lacking among the dissidents, he became Czechoslovakia's Minister of Finance in the "government of national unity" on 10th December 1989. Václav Havel wrote in his 2006 memoirs that after the June 1990 free elections, OF was dissatisfied with Klaus's growing popularity and power and tried to shunt him off to the national bank; however he prevailed and kept the ministry. In October 1990, Klaus was elected the OF's chairman by regional deputies despite the wish of the Prague intellectuals, prefiguring its split and founding of standard political parties. In April 1991 Klaus became the chairman of the Civic Democratic Party (Občanská demokratická strana, ODS), the strongest and most right-wing of them.

In June 1992, ODS won the elections in the Czech Republic with a reform program; but the winner in Slovakia was Vladimír Mečiar's nationalistic Movement for a Democratic Slovakia. It soon became apparent that Slovak demands for increased sovereignty were incompatible with the limited "viable federation" supported by the Czechs; both leaders assumed the premiership in their respective polities and quickly agreed, without a referendum, on a smooth division of Czechoslovakia and its assets under a caretaker federal government, later dubbed Velvet Divorce.

Scandals

Klaus continued as Prime Minister after the 1996 election, but the ODS's win was much narrower and his government was plagued by instability, serious economic problems, and accusations of corruption. He was forced to resign in November 1997 after a government crisis caused by an ODS funding scandal, an event quickly dubbed "Sarajevo Assassination" (sarajevský atentát, in analogy with the one that started the First World War) by his sympathisers, because the calls for him to resign occurred during his visit of Sarajevo. He has consistently refused to accept responsibility for or discuss any of the corruption scandals which arose within his party and under his government.

Czech President Václav Havel publicly referred to Klaus' economic policies as "gangster capitalism" and blamed the prime minister for perceived corruption surrounding his policy of voucher privatization and his cadre of close allies such as the dentist, politician, and entrepreneur Miroslav Macek or StB honcho Václav Junek. In his 5 years as President, Klaus has only occasionally referred to corruption.

Defeats

Klaus, stunned for a moment by his downfall, was encouraged by his nearest and quickly rallied forces to fight. At the mid-December IX. congress, he was confirmed as chairman by 227 votes of 312 delegates; the defeated faction left ODS and in early 1998 established a new party named Freedom Union (Unie svobody, US) with president Václav Havel's unconcealed sympathies.

ODS lost the June premature election to Czech Social Democratic Party (ČSSD). Still, the results (unlike any following) would have allowed both of them to achieve a safe majority with smaller center parties. However US chairman Jan Ruml refused to support ČSSD on principle, and there was too much distrust of "traitors" in ODS. To general surprise, Klaus struck an "opposition agreement" (opoziční smlouva) with ČSSD chairman Miloš Zeman, his traditional foe though both also had much mutual respect: ODS tolerated Zeman's minority government in exchange for various concessions and posts, including the Speaker of Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Republic for Klaus, with hints of possible prolongation after turnaround in future election.

ODS went to the elections of June 2002 relying on Klaus's image: pre-recorded mass phone calls (used for the first time in Czech campaigns and rather criticised) about "mobilisation" against left-wing danger or his huge billboard at the former site of Stalin's Monument. But in a TV debate as well as at the polls he was again defeated by ČSSD's new leader Vladimír Špidla, who had explicitly refused the opposition agreement, which had become to be perceived as embodiment of stagnation, corruption and attempts to duopolise power despite the constitutional proportional representation. Špidla created a left-center coalition (which indeed led to political death of the hapless US). After long hesitation, and having suffered a further substantial loss in the October Senate elections, Klaus bowed to mounting pressure and didn't run for re-election at the December congress (which unanimously declared him honorary chairman). Against his wishes he was succeeded by Mirek Topolánek, with whom his relation remain strained.

Presidency

Having lost two general elections in a row, Klaus' hold on the ODS appeared to become weaker, and he announced his intention to step down from the leadership and run for President succeeding Václav Havel, who had been one of his greatest political opponents since the division of Czechoslovakia. This was taken by many to be a graceful way of retiring. However the governing coalition, buffeted especially by feuds within ČSSD, was unable to agree on a common candidate to oppose him.

Klaus was elected President of the Czech Republic by secret ballot of the parliament on February 28, 2003 after two failed elections earlier in the month, in the third round of the election (both chambers vote on two top candidates jointly). He won with a narrow majority of 142 votes out of 281, with, notably, support of the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia whose parliament club he visited before the election. The Communists said that on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and Czech accession to the European Union, a President skeptical to both was a good balance to the government's — and his last counter-candidate's — "euro-fanaticism".

Relationship with communists

Unlike Havel, Klaus modified his previously strident rhetoric following his election with the support of communist votes to say that he considers himself to be a "non-communist" but not an anti-communist, a label he claims to reject as a cheap and superficial posturing although he has warned against the traditional 'red scare' during two election campaigns against ČSSD. By some this is viewed as delivering part of his secret deal to secure the presidency. As a president "representing the whole nation," he invited representatives of all parties including the Communists, who were not allowed to enter the Prague Castle throughout the 13 years of Havel's presidency. Nevertheless, in 2005 and 2006 Klaus repeatedly stated that he would refuse to appoint a cabinet which depended on communist support either directly or indirectly.

A contested issue is also his relation to communism in the country's past: since 2003, Klaus has published articles praising "the grey zone" of the majority of ordinary people who passively endured the regime, while downplaying the importance of the small minority of dissidents like Havel because of their "haughtiness." This is held by some to part of his wish to denigrate parts of Czech history which he cannot claim a part of. A similar approach can be seen in his changing views of Masaryk.

Although Klaus used to criticize Havel for having used his power to veto the laws and promised restrain, he does so rather more frequently than him, usually to avoid introduction of new regulations he considers unnecessary or illiberal. Among the vetoed bills was also the registered partnership act; Klaus believed that special laws for married couples were designed with a narrow goal that might not apply to gays, making the law unjustified. In his public statement vetoing the bill he described it as being "dangerous" and representing militant "homosexualism." His veto of was overturned by the Parliament in March 2006, the Czech Republic becoming the first post-communist country to grant legal recognition to same-sex partnerships. He also vetoed the Anti-Discrimination Law passed by parliament in 2008, saying it's a dangerous threat to personal freedoms, and the bill implementing EU's Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals policy due to its demands on private enterprises.

Foreign policy

Klaus' euroscepticism - perhaps being joined by his skepticism of the existence of anthropogenic climate change - is a defining policy position of his presidency, and he includes criticisms of the "democratic deficit" and "centralization" of EU in many public statements. Some European hosts viewed his statements as insulting and beyond proper diplomatic behavior - Latvia and Finland being two examples of this. He claimed that accession to the Union represented a significant reduction of Czech sovereignty and he chose not to give any recommendation before the 2003 accession referendum (77% voted yes).

Klaus' Eurosceptic activism has involved writing many articles and giving many speeches against any sharing of sovereignty with the EU. He assisted in the Czech publication of a work by the Irish Eurosceptic Anthony Coughlan of left alignments and a record of campaigning against EU treaties. In 2005 Klaus called for the EU to be "scrapped" and replaced by a free-trade area to be called the "Organisation of European States." Klaus is occasionally chastised by journalists who want him to change his positions toward the EU, arguing that it should be more than a free trade zone. Although he sometimes concedes to this, his skepticism about the internal mechanisms of the EU is often very outspoken. For example, in 2005 he remarked to a group of visiting U.S. politicians that the EU was a "failed and bankrupt entity."

Klaus has reversed Havel's policy of avoiding many countries like China. His first major visit was to Russia and in 2006 he hosted Vladimir Putin in a style which was described by some pundits as "borderline-sycophancy" including using the Russian language to converse with him. Klaus received the 2007 Pushkin Medal for the promotion of Russian culture from Putin due to his use of Russian with Putin and with Russian diplomats.

Klaus has tried to avoid conflicts with Russia and cultivate friendly relationships with it. He disagrees with the sharp criticisms of the recent developments in Russia, claiming that the situation is better than expected from a country with minimal democratic traditions and the necessity of a strong leader in Russia to organize political parties. After the August 2008 South Ossetia war broke out, he criticised Georgia for causing it and distanced himself from general condemnation of Russia.

Václav Klaus has many times voiced his disagreement with Kosovo declaration of independence. During his visit to Slovakia in March 2008, Václav Klaus categorically rejected the argument that Kosovo was a special case and said that it set a precedent as the countries recognizing Kosovo opened a Pandora's box in Europe that could have disastrous consequences, comparing it to the 1938 Munich treaty. When Serbia recalled its ambassador in protest of Czech government's recognition of Kosovo, he was invited to the Prague Castle for a friendly farewell.

Re-election

The Czech Presidential election of 2008 differed from past ones in that the voting was on the record, rather than by secret ballot. This was a precondition demanded by most of the Czech political parties after the last experience, but long opposed by Klaus' Civic Democratic Party which had strengthened since 2003, already had the safe majority in the Senate even by itself and needed only to secure a few votes in the House for the third round.

Klaus' opponent was the former émigré, naturalized United States citizen and University of Michigan economics professor Jan Švejnar. He was nominated by Green Party as the pro-European liberal candidate of change, gaining the support of the leading opposition Czech Social Democratic Party, a smaller part of KDU-ČSL and most independent Senators. The first ballot on February 8–9, 2008 resulted in no winner. Švejnar won the Chamber of Deputies, but Klaus led in the assembly as a whole and barely failed to achieve the requisite majority.

The second ballot on Friday 15 February 2008 brought a new candidate — populist MEP Jana Bobošíková, nominated by the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia. However not drawing any wider support, she withdrew her candidacy before the election itself. The first and second rounds ended similarly to the previous weekend. However, Klaus consistently had 141 votes. Thus in the third round, where the only goal is to achieve a majority of all legislators present from both houses, Klaus barely won. Švejnar received 111 votes, the 29 Communists voting for neither.

Although the Presidency is not directly elected by the Czech citizenry, several public opinion polls suggested a level of ambiguity. Opinion seemed to sway from narrowly supporting Švejnar in January to a dead heat, and finally to narrowly supporting the incumbent a day before the first ballot.

Klaus' re-election was partially the result of three Social Democrats breaking with their party, tipping the election towards Klaus. Both sides accused the other of using threats and significant financial inducements to influence the outcome. These allegations remain unproven. The election caused general disgust and rekindled old plans to switch to direct popular vote of the President which most parties have been promising without real effort; it has been discussed whether the Constitution change could allow Klaus to bypass the two-term limit.

Klaus' first term as President concluded on Friday 7 March 2008; he took oath for the second term on the same day so as not to create a president-less interregnum since the Parliament could not otherwise come to a joint session before the following Tuesday. Thus he lost the day of overlap and his second term will end on 6 March 2013.

Dispute of global warming

Klaus is a vocal critic of the notion that any global warming is man-made (anthropogenic): "Global warming is a false myth and every serious person and scientist says so." He has also criticized the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change as a group of politicized scientists with one-sided opinions and one-sided assignments. He has said that other top-level politicians do not expose their doubts about global warming because "a whip of political correctness strangles their voices.

In addition he says "Environmentalism should belong in the social sciences" along with other "isms" such as communism, feminism, and liberalism. Klaus said that "environmentalism is a religion" and, in an answer to the questions of the U.S. Congressmen, a "modern counterpart of communism" that seeks to change peoples' habits and economic systems.

In a June 2007 Financial Times article, Klaus called ambitious environmentalism "the biggest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity", hinted that parts of the present political and scientific debate on the environment are suppressing freedom and democracy, and asked for readers opposing the term "scientific consensus", saying that "it is always achieved only by a loud minority, never by a silent majority". In an online Q&A session following the article he wrote "Environmentalism, not preservation of nature (and of environment), is a leftist ideology... Environmentalism is indeed a vehicle for bringing us socialist government at the global level. Again, my life in communism makes me oversensitive in this respect. He reiterated these statements at a showing of Martin Durkin's The Great Global Warming Swindle organised by his think tank CEP in June 2007, becoming the only head of state to endorse the film. In November 2007 BBC World's Hardtalk Klaus called the interviewer "absolutely arrogant" for claiming that a scientific consensus embracing the bulk of the world had been reached on climate change and said that he was "absolutely certain" that people would look back in 30 years and thank him.

At a September 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference, Klaus spoke of his disbelief in global warming, calling for a second IPCC to be set up to produce competing reports, and for countries to be left alone to set their priorities and prepare their own plans for the problem.