ProAlt slams referenda bill

The civic initiative pushing for public referenda has criticised the government’s legislation, saying it leaves the decision-making in the hands of the governing majority. The ProAlt movement told a meeting of the Senate’s constitutional law committee that the bill was a shameful assault on democracy. The committee’s deputy chair, Social Democrat Jiří Dienstbier, also called the bill a travesty and said that the government’s proposal was actually aimed at preventing any referendum from taking place. His criticism was not included in the committee’s recommendations, however. The ProAlt movement is a civic initiative aimed at contesting the government’s reform plans with alternative policies.