President Klaus grants eight pardons
Czech News Agency (CTK)
June 2, 2005
PRAGUE, June 2 (CTK) — President Vaclav Klaus has granted pardons
to another eight people, mostly for humanitarian reasons such as the
health state or family situation of the convicts, or their need to care
for disabled relatives, Klaus’s spokesman Petr Hajek told CTK today.
Those pardoned include Maria Matousova, who took out a loan in 1992
but failed to repay it completely. Klaus took Matousova’s high age
and bad health condition into account.
Klaus forgave the rest of the sentence to Gilbert Tum M’Pong, who
repeatedly sold marijuana in 1999. According to the UNHCR, M’Pong’s
serving a part of his sentence had the desired correctional effect.
Klaus also took into account that M’Pong has been living in the Czech
Republic as an asylum seeker since 1995 and that his children have
had good school results.
According to the asylum centre concerned, M’Pong’s family is decent
and largely integrated in Czech society, and its forced return to
Angola would be rather difficult.
Klaus also softened the unconditional prison sentence to conditional
for Ingrid Kudrikova, who was sentenced for the theft of a few shampoos
and a purse for 14 months. Kudrikova has two small children.
Another convict Klaus has pardoned is Michal Krabicka, sentenced to
five months. Krabicka’s disabled wife is confined to a wheelchair
and dependent exclusively on her husband’s care.
Klaus has forgiven the remaining five months in prison to Svatoslav
Hanzel, who did not support his underage children in 1999-2002.
Klaus has forgiven the sentence of expulsion to Zaven Oganyan, who
is serving a two-year sentence for failing to prevent blackmail and
robbery. Oganyan’s family has acquired a Czech residence permit. They
have no more relatives in Armenia or Russia.
Klaus has granted several tens of pardons since he was inaugurated
as president in March 2003.