President-elect to arrive for inauguration in motorcade

Prague, March 7 (CTK) - Czech president-elect Milos Zeman will arrive in motorcade accompanied by police motorcyclists for his inauguration at Prague Castle on Friday morning, Vratislav Mynar, leader of the Party of Citizens' Rights (SPOZ) of which Zeman is honorary chairman, told CTK Thursday.

Ministers will arrive together in a minibus from the government seat, several of them have confirmed for CTK.

The inauguration will start in Vladislav Hall of Prague Castle at 10:00.

Zeman, his wife Ivana and daughter Katerina will arrive at Prague Castle at around 9:00.

The presidential flag will be lowered to the sound of St Vitus' Cathedral bells and the national anthem, and the "empty" Castle will be closed.

Prime Minister Petr Necas (Civic Democrats, ODS) will not travel with the ministers, according to CTK's information.

He will arrive separately and he will also take part in a ceremonial lunch in which the new president and top constitutional officials will take part.

Zeman's arrival at Prague Castle will be tied to the symbolic opening of the compound that was closed at mi midnight on Thursday, when outgoing President Václav Klaus's second and last five-year term expired.

Some traffic restrictions have been in force around Prague Castle since Thursday already and planes will not be allowed to fly over the compound during the inauguration.

A 21-gun salute will be fired from Petrin Hill overlooking Prague to the tunes of the national anthem after Zeman takes his oath on Friday, probably at 10:20.

After the ceremony in the Vladislav Hall, Zeman will pay tribute to the memory of the Czechs' patron, St Wenceslas, in the St Vitus's Cathedral at Prague Castle.

Several novelties will be connected with the event compared with similar occasions in the past.

A prayer before the relic of St Wenceslas will be a part of the 20-minute service that will be led by Archbishop Jan Graubner of Olomouc and to which representatives of other churches have been invited, the Prague Archbishopric's master of ceremonies, Voljtech Matl, told CTK Thursday.

Participation has been confirmed by Joel Ruml, chairman of the Ecumenical Council of Churches (ERC), Orthodox Church Metropolitan Krystof, Federation of Jewish Communities head Petr Papousek and others.

Graubner will represent Cardinal Dominik Duka who is preparing for the conclave in Rome.

Some 30 clergymen are expected to take part in the event. Supreme constitutional officials are not to take part.

"This time, at the request of the Cardinal, reading from the Script and a relatively extensive prayer for the homeland referring to our national patron saints, the Lord's Prayer and a prayer for the new president that representatives of the Catholic Church and the Ecumenical Council of Churches will jointly say have been added to the service," Matl said.