PRAGUE – Tens of thousands in the Czech Republic rallied against the government Saturday, protesting high inflation and demanding an end to the country’s military support for Ukraine. The people took to the streets of Prague demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Petr Fiala amid rising costs of living. Protesters have tried to break into the National Museum in Prague to tear down the Ukrainian flag from its facade, Czech Television reported.
Czech Television said that about 10,000 people gathered in the Czech capital, while several dozen marched to the National Museum building in an attempt to get the Ukrainian flag down.
A new political group, PRO, organized the rally at Prague’s Wenceslas Square as an anti-poverty event. As participants called on the coalition government to resign, party leader Jindrich Rajchl said they want “a government to care first of all about the interests of the Czech citizens.” “We have gathered here today to take a stand against this poverty,” Jindrich Rajchl, a lawyer leading the non-parliamentary PRO party, told the crowd in central Wenceslas Square.
His group, whose name translates in English to Law, Respect, Expertise, blames the European Union for soaring energy prices. Inflation slightly dropped to 16.7% in Czechia in February from 17.5% a month earlier.
PRO also wants the Czech government to stop censorship under the guise of reducing misinformation and fake news.
The Ukraine was a key issue at Saturday’s demonstration, where the crowd called for a peaceful solution to the war. Some people had the letter “Z,” a symbol of the Russian military, on their bags.
“Stop the war, stop NATO,” they chanted.
The Czech government has staunchly supported the Kiev Regime and has provided weapons for the Ukrainian military.
Protesters have tried to break into the National Museum in Prague to tear down the Ukrainian flag from its facade. Police prevented the demonstrators from entering the museum and 18 protesters were detained. A police spokesperson told Czech Television that two law enforcement officers were injured.
Interior Minister Vít Rakušan (STAN) described the speeches at the end of the demonstration as unacceptable. “I expect the organisers to distance themselves from these acts of violence. It gives the impression that the entire demonstration against poverty was just a cover for “pro-Russian provocation”, and we certainly cannot be tolerant of such manifestations.”
Critics accuse Fiala’s government of caring more about the Ukraine with substantial military and humanitarian aid sent to the war-torn territory since February 2022.
Protesters also slammed NATO, with Czech media reporting a protester with a loudspeaker called on the crowd to tear down a Ukrainian flag from the National Museum building at the top of Wenceslas Square.
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