2024-02-17 15:01:29
Tens of thousands of people protested this evening in Budapest, Hungary, against the authorities’ decision to pardon a person accused of pedophilia and against Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s rule, reported world agencies, quoted by BTA.
At the same time, the head of the Hungarian Protestant Church resigned because of the scandal.
The pardon concerned the deputy director of an orphanage. He was sentenced to over three years in prison in 2022 for covering up the pedophile actions of his boss.
Ahead of tonight’s rally, Calvinist Bishop Zoltan Balog, head of the Hungarian Protestant Church, resigned. He announced his decision after an extraordinary church synod. Balog is close to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. According to Hungarian media, he lobbied for the pardon of the deputy director of the children’s home, who was guilty of pedophilia.
This is the third close associate of Orbán to resign over the scandal within a week. First, the president Katalin Novak, who pardoned the culprit, resigned. Then the former justice minister, Judit Varga, who until recently was rumored to be at the top of Orbán’s party list for the European elections in June and whose name was involved in the scandal, also resigned.
The protest tonight in the Hungarian capital was organized at the call of cultural figures and influencers. Many of the protesters said they had come to criticize “Orbán’s system”.
The demonstration was on “Heroes’ Square”, which was full of people. It was an unprecedented mobilization against Orbán in the 10 years he has been in power. Protesters said they came to the square in defense of transparency, human dignity and the victims of Orbán’s system.
Orban himself has remained silent on the scandal, but tomorrow he will deliver a speech on the state of Hungary.