Czechia braces for massive protest against cuts to public media

A fast-tracked bill to cut public media funding has sparked strikes, rallies and fears for the independence of public broadcasting in Czechia. A massive protest is planned for Prague on Sunday. Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to rally in Prague this weekend to protest the Czech government's bid to ram a bill to reform public media funding through parliament in a surprise overnight session in October.

The right-populist coalition headed by Prime Minister Andrej Babis fast-tracked the first of three readings of the legislation, which culminated in a vote of approval at 4:36 a.m. on October 24. The bill has already provoked numerous demonstrations and strikes across the country, but Sunday's gathering in the capital's Letna park is likely to be by far the largest to date.

Under the government's proposal, the license fee model that currently funds Czech Television (CT) and Czech Radio (CRo) would be scrapped, and the broadcasters would be funded directly from the state budget.