President Miloš Zeman awarded high state distinctions to 42 Czech and
foreign personalities on the occasion of Czechoslovak Independence Day on
October 28th.
Among the personalities decorated for outstanding achievements,
professional excellence and exemplary personal qualities are former Czech
president Václav Klaus, the last surviving Czech RAF pilot Emil Boček,
ice hockey legend Jaromír Jágr, Škoda Favorit designer Petr Hrdlička,
the head of the Supreme Audit Office Miloslav Kala or, in memoriam,
Corporal Tomáš Procházka, who died last year while serving with the
Czech military contingent in Afghanistan.
Among the foreign laureates were former Slovak president Rudolf Schuster,
Srbian film director Emir Kusturica and former mayor of Vienna, the late
Helmut Cilk, awarded in memoriam.