Support for President Pavel: Thousands at Rally in Prague

In Prague, as well as in other cities across the country, people demonstrated on Sunday in support of President Petr Pavel. Due to the large turnout, the organisers installed two large screens on Wenceslas Square, broadcasting the rally from the Old Town Square, the central location of the event.

Thousands of people gathered on Sunday afternoon at Prague’s Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square for a rally in support of President Petr Pavel. The demonstration was prompted by a dispute between the head of state and the leader of the party Motoristé sobě, Petr Macinka, in connection with the President’s decision not to appoint MP Filip Turek as Minister of the Environment.

Because of the large crowds, the organisers installed two large screens on Wenceslas Square to broadcast the rally from the Old Town Square, the central site of the event. The police temporarily closed access to the Old Town Square from Železná and Celetná streets due to the high number of participants. Otherwise, the assembly proceeded without incident.

Foto: Eugen Kukla

Rallies also held in other cities

According to the initiative Milion chvilek, similar gatherings took place in other cities, including Hradec Králové, Pardubice, Zlín, Vrchlabí, Jeseník, Uherské Hradiště and Třeboň.

President Pavel praised Czech society, which he believes is capable of clearly and decisively standing up for what it considers right at crucial moments. At the same time, he thanked the participants of the rally.

Foto: Eugen Kukla

Petr Macinka told the public broadcaster ČT that he respected the right of opposition voters to express their opinions publicly. At the same time, he stressed that these people must also respect that elections were held four months ago, in which the political forces represented by President Pavel today did not achieve victory. “I believe the situation should calm down. Therefore, I have no choice but to, for the time being, simply ignore the President – not only personally, but also at the level of the Foreign Ministry,” said Macinka.

Prime Minister Andrej Babiš (ANO) told ČT that he was glad people could gather and freely express their views. A meeting between President Pavel and Prime Minister Babiš is scheduled for Wednesday to ease tensions between the head of state and the government.

Foto: Eugen Kukla

Large rally on Prague’s Letná planned

According to the organisers, if one million signatures can be collected for the ‘We Stand Behind the President’ campaign, a large rally on Prague’s Letná is planned.

The online campaign “Stojíme za prezidentem,” which calls for support of President Pavel in his dispute with Macinka, focuses on values such as freedom, democracy, the rule of law, and the Czech Republic’s integration in the EU and NATO. As of 5:30 a.m. today, according to the website, around 660,000 people have already signed the petition.


Milion chvilek pro demokracii
Website | Facebook | Instagram