Jaroslav Kubera, speaker of Czech Senate, dies at 72

Jaroslav Kubera, speaker of upper house of Czech Parliament, has died. He was 72. Senate said in a brief statement Kubera died on Monday due to unspecified health problems.

Kubera was a member of opposition, conservative Civic Democratic Party. He was kwn for his views critical of European Union, feminism and environmentalists.

His death was t expected. Over weekend, he participated at his party's congress.

“I'm shocked by news,” said Petr Fiala, chairman of Kubera's party. “It's hard to believe it, I'm terribly sorry about it. I have to think about his family.”

Kubera was a popular mayor of rthwestern city of Teplice when he was elected to Senate for first time in 2000. In 2018, he became house's speaker after serving as deputy speaker from 2016.

“I didn't want to believe it," Prime Minister Andrej Babis about anuncement. “It's a huge shock. I really liked him, we h good relations. We understood each or.”

Recently, Kubera me local news by planning to visit Taiwan, angering pro-Chinese President Milos Zeman.

Zeman said he considered Kubera his friend “although our views sometimes differed.”

Kubera is survived by his wife and two daughters. Funeral arrangements were t immediately kwn. Babis, prime minister, said he will respect wishes of family.