[Applause] free media is the chant and thousands of demonstrators in dozens of polish towns and cities have taken up the call they're convinced that the right-wing government of prime minister mattis modaviewski is trying to silence the channel tvn24 whose flagship news program is watched daily by millions if that happened we would have party propaganda from the boss of all bosses there would be no democracy no freedom of speech nothing the new law would stop non-european owners from having a controlling stake in polish broadcasters tvn is owned by the american group discovery the prime minister says
it will protect poland from foreign interference and disinformation but many see it as blatant censorship of a critical media outlet a move reminiscent of poland's communist past it can't be that the authorities impose on us what we have to watch there has to be in principle a diverse agenda for everyone i'm scared that there will be censorship that it will be followed by a lack of democracy basically a totalitarian state democracy itself seems in crisis there was outrage on wednesday after the opposition won a vote to postpone the matter until next week only for the
speaker to set aside that result and order the vote to be rerun amid intense political armed twisting and horse trading the government won the rerun and then pushed the media ownership vote through by 12 votes but the cost of victory is that the prime minister's justice and law party has been left without a stable parliamentary majority the former pm donald tusk is seen by some as the potential leader of a rival coalition [Applause] [Music] we will not be indifferent we are not resigned we will shout we will fight and we will win the justice and
law party has been accused of repeatedly defying democratic principles during its six years in power there are ongoing disputes with brussels and the european court on issues including judicial independence and lgbt rights and the white house says president biden is taking a keen interest in the fate of tvn for now the prime minister is pressing on but a snap election looks increasingly likely paul brennan al jazeera
