{"id":7311,"date":"2019-06-22T20:00:55","date_gmt":"2019-06-22T19:00:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praguebusinessjournal.com\/?p=7311"},"modified":"2019-06-24T20:35:48","modified_gmt":"2019-06-24T19:35:48","slug":"prague-braces-for-largest-protests-since-velvet-revolution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praguebusinessjournal.com\/prague-braces-for-largest-protests-since-velvet-revolution\/","title":{"rendered":"Prague Braces For Largest Protests Since Velvet Revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Prague hasn’t seen anything like this since the protests of 1989 which brought down the communist regime in what was then Czechoslovakia.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Some 400,000 have signed a petition calling on Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis to step down over fraud allegations and subsidies paid to his former companies. And hundreds of thousands are expected at a rally in Prague on Sunday to urge the populist billionaire to stand down.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The businessman turned populist politician is standing firm, though and points to record low unemployment rate.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe Czech Republic is doing well,\u201d Babis recently said. \u201cWe are the best in the region and the entire Europe. If you want to invest, it\u2019s the best place (to do it), it\u2019s a place for the future.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The protest at Letna Park is set to be the biggest demonstration against the government since 1989\u2019s Velvet Revolution and concludes a wave of rallies across the country.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s interesting but also it\u2019s a shame that our political situation is in such a state that something like this has to happen,\u201d Benjamin Roll, a member of the student group behind the protest \u2014 Million Moments for Democracy \u2014 told The Associated Press.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cOn the other hand, I\u2019m glad that we are succeeding in mobilizing the civil society and that I see is the most important task of our group,\u201d the 24-year student of protestant theology said.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Opposition to Babis has been fueled recently by the appointment of a new justice minister at a time when prosecutors have to decide whether to indict Babis over alleged fraud involving European Union funds.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The protesters fear the minister might undermine the independence of the country\u2019s legal system, in the way it has been in some other countries in Central and Eastern Europe, such is Poland. The minister, Marie Benesova, is a close ally of Babis and has voted against a police request to strip Babis of parliamentary immunity to face investigation.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe opponents of Babis are certain that he\u2019s a threat for democracy,\u201d Josef Mlejnek, an analyst from Prague\u2019s Charles University told The Associated Press.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

A preliminary European Union report leaked in May concluded that Babis might face a conflict of interest over EU subsidies involving his former business empire.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Babis denies any wrongdoing and has attacked the EU for trying to destabilize the Czech Republic.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Babis is also facing allegations he collaborated with the secret police during the pre-1989 days and criticism of his power-sharing deal with the Communist Party.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It\u2019s not the first time that Babis has been on the defensive. After all, he was fired as finance minister in 2017 over unexplained business dealings. At the time, the lower house of parliament approved a resolution alleging that Babis had \u201crepeatedly lied\u201d to the public and \u201cmisused his media\u201d empire to damage his opponents.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Again, the Slovak born Babis denies wrongdoing.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Like other populist leaders around the world, the scandals do not appear to have damaged Babis electorally. His centrist ANO (YES) movement won a landslide in the 2017 parliamentary elections \u2014 part of the anti-establishment wave that swept through Western democracies at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

His popularity has shown few signs of being dented since. Babis\u2019 group won the European Parliament elections in the Czech Republic in May.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have experienced that their economic situation is getting better, and those belong to the supporters of the ANO movement, mostly the pensioners from small towns,\u201d Mlejnek said.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mlejnek said the protests are a sign of long-term divisions in Czech society.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cThose who protest are mostly supporters of the democratic opposition parties,\u201d Mlejnek said. \u201cAnd the other part of the society ignores (the protests) or is critical of them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What happens next is unclear.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u201cIf Andrej Babis retains his popular support, he will be in a position not to give in,\u201d Mlejnek said.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Via The Washington Post<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Prague hasn’t seen anything like this since the protests of 1989 which brought down the communist regime in what was then Czechoslovakia.   Some 400,000 have signed a petition calling on Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis to step down over fraud allegations and subsidies paid to his former companies. And hundreds of thousands are expected … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":7313,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Prague Braces For Largest Protests Since Velvet Revolution","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[3],"tags":[15,147],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nPrague Braces For Largest Protests Since Velvet Revolution - Prague Business Journal<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/praguebusinessjournal.com\/prague-braces-for-largest-protests-since-velvet-revolution\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Prague Braces For Largest Protests Since Velvet Revolution - Prague Business Journal\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Prague hasn’t seen anything like this since the protests of 1989 which brought down the communist regime in what was then Czechoslovakia.   Some 400,000 have signed a petition calling on Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis to step down over fraud allegations and subsidies paid to his former companies. 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