Czech Presidential election

Members of parliament in the Czech Republic have been voting in a presidential election in which Vaclav Havel is seeking a second five-year term.

Mr Havel's being challenged by two candidates; a Communist, Stanislav Fischer, and the leader of the far-right republican party, Miroslav Sladek, who's in jail awaiting trial for inciting racial hatred.

The BBC Prague Correspondent says Mr Havel is almost certain to win, despite his recent ill-health.

However, our correspondent says Mr Havel's popularity has been damaged by his role in the forced resignation of Vaclav Klaus as prime minister, which has left the Republic under a caretaker government and facing early elections.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service