11 March 2020
All Members of Parliament of the Czech Republic
Today, you as Members of Parliament are going to elect six new Council members of Czech TV (Česká televize) out of a total of 15 members. Your decision will have a direct impact on the maintenance of independence of public service TV in the Czech Republic, which is already under pressure. Therefore we, the undersigned organisations, call on the Members of Parliament to take today’s elections very seriously. Independent and impartial media are an important pillar of democracy and an important source for
trustworthy information. Your decision is fundamental in preserving the freedom andindependence of public broadcasting.
We ask you to choose from the 18 candidates independently from any political interference or attempts to exert influence. The Council’s composition needs to be balanced and impartial. Revealed attempts by the head of the election committee for or against specific candidates must not affect this important decision. We consider such efforts as dangerous for maintaining international standards and the independence of public service broadcasting as well as freedom of speech in the Czech Republic.