Students To Protest PM Babis’s Disregard For Constitution Thursday

Prague, March 11 (CTK) – Czech university and secondary school students will stage a half-an-hour protest against the way in which politicians treat the constitution at noon on Thursday, Vaclav Strycek, from the Theatre Faculty of Prague’s Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU) that organises the protest, told CTK.

 

Strycek said the organisers have addressed first of all university students and secondary school students who have come of age.

 

He said they received a positive response from Charles University in Prague, Masaryk University in Brno, the Prague University of Chemistry and Technology (VSCHT), the Janacek Academy of Performing Arts in Brno (JAMU) and the Salda Grammar School in Liberec.

 

The students demand that the president appoint a prime minister who wins enough support from parliament and is not prosecuted, unlike present Prime Minister Andrej Babis (ANO) who is suspected of a subsidy fraud. Moreover, a government that does not win parliament’s support should neither take major steps nor make personnel changes nor violate constitutional habits. They call on the Senate to resolutely oppose any violation of constitutional habits.

 

On Friday, democratic opposition parties criticised the personnel changes made by Babis’ cabinet, but the ANO movement, the Communist (KSCM) and the far-right Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) prevented a special lower house session on the issue from being held.

 

Strycek said the document has not ambition to be a petition. It wants to motivate students as well as other people to get involved in politics.

 

He said a student forum might be formed which could not only stage protests but also open topics that need to be discussed.

 

Strycek said the DAMU dean and the student chamber of DAMU’ academic senate support the planned protest.