The organizers of the demonstration calling for the resignation of the Czech prime minister say they hope a new political movement might emerge from the protests.
The Million Moments for Democracy group is calling for Andrej Babis to quit over allegations that he fraudulently uses his power as Prime Minister to boost his own business interests.
But while the group itself is to stay clear of political organizing, protest organizer Benjamin Roll said it was the lack of choice on the political horizon which enabled Babis to hold on to power.
“Lots of people don’t see another alternative,” he told Good Morning Europe. “They think ‘Yes, he’s not so good, but we can’t see anyone better’. I hope this demonstration and our protests can create an environment out of which something new can grow. Some new political leaders, a new political movement. But we will stay a movement that is strictly civil society.”
“The biggest problem is that he owns the biggest media house in the Czech Republic so he has a big influence on the public. He claims we are paid for by who knows who and that we want advantages for ourselves, and money. This works for most people in the Czech Republic who say ‘they are from Prague, they are paid by someone from abroad’, which is not true because the protesters are paying to organize this event.”
“We can talk about a generational change, but I think it is important to say that the protest wasn’t just about young people. It was people from all generations, there were a lot of old people, there were a lot of families. But I think it is important there is a new generation leading the protests and most of the people are from a new generation. Something is changing in the thinking of people and that’s really important for our society.”