Thousands of people gathered in front of cultural institutions in Bratislava, Slovakia, to denounce the recent dismissals by the Ministry of Culture.
More than 9,000 people gathered in Bratislava, Slovakia, on Monday to protest recent changes to the Slovak National Theatre (Slovenské národné divadlo) and the Slovak National Gallery (Slovenská národná galéria).
Long in the sights of the Minister of Culture, Martina Šimkovičová, from the far-right SNS party, the directors of these two institutions, Matej Drlička and Alexandra Kusá, were dismissed last week. Both denounce the government’s muzzling of culture.
Earlier this year, the Slovak Ministry of Culture also announced the dissolution of the national broadcaster RTVS, accusing it of lacking objectivity. It was replaced by a new institution with greater government control.
Many opponents and journalists fear that Slovakia will follow in Hungary’s footsteps, and say the government wants to transform cultural and media institutions. “into disinformation outlets that will spread pro-government propaganda.”
Another demonstration is planned in the coming days.