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last mo.

Mass Protests Back Czech President as Probe Targets Foreign Minister’s Texts

A clash over appointing a controversial environment minister has widened into a test of democratic guardrails.

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In Prag sind zehntausende Menschen zur Unterstützung ihres pro-westlichen Präsidenten Petr Pavel auf die Straße gegangen, der sich derzeit Druck seitens der Regierung des rechtspopulistischen Regierungschefs Andrej Babis ausgesetzt sieht.

Overview

  • Organizers reported 80,000–90,000 people in central Prague, with additional rallies nationwide, rallying behind President Petr Pavel.
  • State security and police opened investigations into SMS messages from Foreign Minister Petr Macinka that Pavel publicly called an extortion attempt.
  • Macinka said he will ignore the president and questioned Pavel’s role in representing the country at NATO meetings.
  • The opposition has filed a no-confidence motion expected to be debated this week, and Pavel is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Andrej Babiš on Wednesday to try to de-escalate.
  • An online petition supporting Pavel has gathered roughly 600,000–700,000 signatures as critics warn proposed changes to public media funding, civil-service rules and NGO oversight could weaken institutional checks.