Tens of thousands of demonstrators in the Czech Republic took to the streets to support liberal President Petr Pavel against the background of escalating tensions between him and the new right-wing government, headed by billionaire Andrej Babis, reported DPA.
Pavel's supporters filled two large squares in the center of Prague. The initiators of the rally under the slogan "A Million Moments for Democracy" said that between 80,000 and 90,000 people gathered in the Czech capital.
Pavel and Babis got into a heated dispute related to ministers in the new government. The president refused to appoint the honorary chairman of the "Motorists for Their Own" party; Filip Turek as environment minister. Pavel motivated his refusal by saying that Turek had made some controversial statements that, according to the president, were incompatible with the post of minister in a democratic country. Forty-year-old Turek had posted racist and sexist comments on social media, DPA explains.
In addition, Pavel publicly accused Foreign Minister and Turek's party colleague, Petr Macinka, of attempting to blackmail him in connection with the case.
Pavel thanked the participants in today's rally for the support they had shown him. He stressed that it was important to defend values such as dignity, truth and respect.
Former NATO general Pavel has been president since March 2023.
Opposition parties in parliament plan to submit a vote of no confidence in the government on Tuesday over accusations of putting pressure on the president. However, the chances of success are slim. The ruling coalition, which includes Babis's party - "Action of Dissatisfied Citizens" (known by its acronym in Czech), "Motorists for Their Own" and the far-right "Freedom and Direct Democracy" party, has a majority of 108 out of 200 seats in the lower house of the legislature.