Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová is compared to a character from the Harry Potter book series during a protest on August 12, 2024 in Bratislava. (source: Sme - Marko Erd)
On Tuesday evening, one of Bratislava’s squares, named after the national uprising whose 80th anniversary Slovakia will commemorate in a few weeks, was once again filled with thousands of people demanding the resignation of Culture Minister Martina Šimkovičová, who was nominated for the job by the hard-right nationalist Slovak National Party.
Following Monday’s protest organised by the civic platform Open Culture and other groups, which police estimated drew 10,000 protesters, approximately 18,000 people took to the streets on Tuesday.
The protests were a direct response to the unwarranted dismissal of two prominent cultural institution directors—Alexandra Kusá (National Gallery) and Matej Drlička (National Theatre). However, the protesters also voiced their discontent with other actions taken by the minister, particularly regarding the independence of cultural funds and the public broadcaster.
“Shame” and “Resign” were the most frequent chants from the crowd over the two days.
Tuesday’s protest next to the Culture Ministry building was the first anti-government demonstration organised by the opposition liberal parties Progressive Slovakia and Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) since March of this year, and since the May shooting attack on Prime Minister and Smer party leader Robert Fico. However, no politicians spoke on stage; instead, speakers included cultural figures, a judge as well as a former diplomat.
“Minister Šimkovičová has decided to destroy our national cultural institutions,” said Progressive Slovakia leader Michal Šimečka before the protest, adding that Prime Minister Fico should immediately remove Šimkovičová from office.
The opposition parties also organised the Tuesday protest against Justice Minister Boris Susko of the Smer party, who temporarily released convicted anti-corruption prosecutor Dušan Kováčik from prison last week. Kováčik was sentenced to eight years for corruption in 2022.
“The rule of law is falling apart here,” said SaS leader Branislav Grohling. “Culture is in ruins.”
