Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Prague
In the Czech capital of Prague, tens of thousands of people took to the streets to protest against a plan to change the funding system for public television and radio. The government proposes to fund them from the state budget and cut the allocated funds by more than 15 percent. Protesters fear that this will increase the media's dependence on the authorities.
Tens of thousands of people took to the streets in protest in Prague. Participants carried posters with slogans such as "We do not want censorship to return!" and "Stop the government of arrogance and destruction!"
The right-wing populist government of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš plans to abolish the public broadcasting fee. Instead, Czech Television (ČT) and Czech Radio (ČRo) will be funded from the state budget.
The reform also entails reducing funding by more than 15 percent. According to the dpa agency, protesters expressed concern that such changes would undermine the independence of public media.
The bill passed its first reading in the lower house of parliament — the Chamber of Deputies — early in the morning on October 24. It will now be considered by parliamentary committees.
Czech President Petr Pavel criticized the government's attempt to rush the reform through parliament. In his opinion, discussing the draft at night and on weekends weakens trust in the good intentions of the initiators.
Babiš, for his part, rejected the criticism. "No one intends to interfere with programming or the news coverage process," the prime minister said.
In recent days, similar protest actions have also taken place in Prague, Brno, and other Czech cities, but with fewer participants.
Among the critics of the reform are the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the European Federation of Journalists, and the organization Reporters Without Borders. As the AFP agency notes, they accuse Babiš of following in the footsteps of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and Hungary's head of government Viktor Orbán in seeking to restrict the independence of public media.