> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://bullquill.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Prague protest: thousands rally against Czech public media bill - URL: https://bullquill.com/czech-public-media-protest-prague-licence-fees/ - Published: 2026-10-26T00:04:34.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-26T00:27:46.000Z - Description: Staff at Czech Television and Czech Radio have called a strike for Tuesday, November 3, and a larger rally is planned at Letná park on November 15. The bill still needs Senate approval. - Author: Rowan Ashby - Tags: Politics, Breaking, Trending, Czech Republic, Andrej Babiš, Czech Television, Czech Radio, Million Moments for Democracy, #lang-en, #tr-czech-public-media-protest-prague-licence-fees ## Key takeaways - A crowd of several thousand filled Old Town Square on Sunday, October 25, opposing the Babiš government's plan to scrap licence fees for Czech Television and Czech Radio. - The lower house fast-tracked the bill in a rare overnight session, with the first-reading vote held at 4:36 a.m. on Saturday, October 24. - The plan would fund public broadcasters from the state budget and, according to broadcasters cited by Al Jazeera, cut their money by about 15%. - Staff at both broadcasters have called a strike for Tuesday, November 3, and a larger rally is planned at Letná park on November 15. - The bill still needs Senate approval, and the opposition says it will challenge the process at the Constitutional Court. A Prague protest over public media drew several thousand people to Old Town Square on Sunday, October 25, against the Babiš government's bill to scrap licence fees for Czech Television and Czech Radio and fund them from the state budget. ## What happened at the Prague public media protest The Prague protest over public media funding filled Old Town Square on the afternoon of Sunday, October 25, and spilled into nearby streets, according to the Associated Press. Al Jazeera put the crowd at "several thousand", and Reuters and Bloomberg both reported "thousands". No official police count had been published at the time of writing. The rally was organised by Million Moments for Democracy, the civic group behind several of the largest demonstrations in Czech history. One of its leaders, Mikuláš Minář, told the crowd, "You've gone too far; we won't allow this country to be compromised," AP reported. Protesters chanted "We've had enough" and "This must not be allowed to pass", and many held up signs reading "4:36", the time of the overnight vote, according to Al Jazeera. ## The overnight vote in the lower house The trigger for the protest was a session of the Chamber of Deputies that ran through the night of Friday, October 23\. Speaker Tomio Okamura limited debate and set the vote for 4:36 a.m. local time on Saturday, October 24 (02:36 UTC), Radio Prague International reported. The bill passed the first of three readings. Opposition parties said the timing left them almost no room to debate. They plan to take the way the coalition handled the first reading to the Constitutional Court and to raise it with the European Commission, according to Radio Prague International. ### Timeline of the latest developments | Date (2026) | Event | Reported by | | ------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | -------------------------------------- | | Oct 24, 02:36 UTC (4:36 a.m. Prague) | Lower house approves the bill in its first reading after an overnight session | Al Jazeera, Radio Prague International | | Oct 25, afternoon | Thousands rally in Old Town Square, organised by Million Moments for Democracy | AP, Reuters, Al Jazeera | | Nov 3 | Full-day strike planned by Czech Television and Czech Radio staff | Al Jazeera, Radio Prague International | | Nov 15 | Further rally planned at Letná park, Prague | Al Jazeera | | To be set | Second and third readings, then Senate vote | Al Jazeera | ## What the public media bill would change Czech households and businesses now pay monthly licence fees that go straight to Czech Television (ČT) and Czech Radio (ČRo), so the money never passes through the state budget. The government of Prime Minister Andrej Babiš wants to scrap those fees and fund both broadcasters from the national budget instead. The coalition of Babiš's ANO party, the SPD and the Motorists has said it wants the change in force by January 1, 2027. The broadcasters warn that the plan would cut their funding by about 15%, possibly as soon as next year, Al Jazeera reported. Babiš has said the reform is about making funding more transparent and is not an attack on media independence. ## What we know and what we don't know yet **What we know:** the bill passed its first reading on October 24; thousands protested on October 25; a strike is called for November 3; and the bill still needs to pass the Senate before it becomes law. **What we don't know yet:** there is no independent crowd count. It is not yet clear when the second and third readings will be held, whether the Senate will pass the bill, or whether President Petr Pavel would sign it. The final budget amounts for each broadcaster in the version that reaches the Senate are also still open. ## Reactions from Pavel and Babiš President Petr Pavel said the rushed handling of the bill undermined confidence in the government's good intentions, according to Radio Prague International. Babiš accused the opposition of using the issue to raise tensions. Labour unions, university rectors, churches and international media organisations have backed the broadcasters' strike, Al Jazeera and AP reported. ## Background Babiš returned to power after ANO won the October 2025 general election. His coalition includes two parties that Al Jazeera describes as far-right. Critics of the media plan compare it to steps taken against public broadcasters by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico. Public media funding has been a flashpoint all year. Earlier rallies, including one outside Czech Television's headquarters in June, drew thousands of people, according to Czech and regional media. ## What it means For the Czech Republic, the fight is about who controls public broadcasters' money. Moving funding into the annual budget would let each government decide the amount every year, which critics say could be used to pressure newsrooms. The government says it would make the system simpler and more transparent. The next tests are the November 3 strike, the remaining readings in the lower house, and the Senate vote. Any Constitutional Court challenge could delay the planned January 2027 start. The protests also put the Czech Republic alongside Hungary and Slovakia in European debates about media freedom. For more on the people and institutions involved, see Bullquill's pages on [Andrej Babiš](https://bullquill.com/tag/andrej-babis/) and the [Czech Republic](https://bullquill.com/tag/czech-republic/). ## Frequently asked questions ### Why are people protesting in Prague? Protesters oppose a government bill that would abolish licence fees for Czech Television and Czech Radio and fund them from the state budget. Critics say this would give the government more control over public media; Prime Minister Andrej Babiš says it is about transparency. ### What happened in the 4:36 a.m. vote? The Czech lower house approved the public media bill in its first reading at 4:36 a.m. on Saturday, October 24, 2026, after an overnight session in which debate was limited. ### Is the Czech public media funding bill law yet? No. It still needs further readings in the lower house and approval by the Senate, and the opposition plans to challenge the process at the Constitutional Court. ### When is the Czech Television and Czech Radio strike? Staff at both public broadcasters have called a full-day strike for Tuesday, November 3, 2026.