Protesters occupy Budapest Liberty Bridge, demanding withdrawal of controversial assembly law amendment – videos, photos
Opposition demonstrators at a protest in central Budapest organised by independent lawmaker Ákos Hadházy demanded the withdrawal of a recent amendment to the law on the right of assembly on Tuesday.
Last week, Parliament passed a law that allows the banning of events that the authorities consider to be in breach of child protection. Critics say the biggest problem with the law is that it infringes on the fundamental right of assembly, which should not be shaped and restricted by the government of the day. This could be a dangerous procedure for the future, when, for example, Fidesz may be in a minority. You can read about what happened here:
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Hadházy told the event that the demonstration had fulfilled its goal because police had allowed the participants to occupy “only” a part of Ferenciek Square, yet a group of protesters blocked the road leading up to Elisabeth Bridge and held up traffic for two hours.
He called for resistance against the government, and said that in addition to the withdrawal of the amendment passed last week, they also wanted to prevent future measures that could restrict the activities of the opposition.
He said a series of protests would continue next week. Hadházy said the amendment to the assembly law was not just about the Pride march, but about the government “using every means it can to prevent demonstrations it doesn’t like, because it feels its support slipping”. He said a series of protests would continue next week.
Krisztina Baranyi, the mayor of the 9th district, said that though the most important goal was to replace the government, this did not mean that they should seek a compromise.
German MEP Daniel Freund accused the government of having appropriated 14 billion euros in European Union funds.
Momentum deputy leader Lajos Lőcsei talked about protecting minorities, saying it was “a disadvantage” to be a Roma in Hungary today. He called for “ending segregation”.
Though the demonstration had been advertised as a non-partisan event, several protesters carried the flags of opposition Momentum and the Democratic Coalition (DK). Several opposition politicians were present in the crowd, including DK’s László Varju and independent MP Antal Csárdi.
The demonstration at Ferenciek Square was still ongoing when a group of protesters marched over to the Pest bridgehead of Liberty Bridge, blocking traffic there. Police lined up to block the crowd near the Buda bridgehead. The protesters then split into two groups, with one group going back to Elisabeth Bridge and the other moving farther south to Petőfi Bridge. Police lined up to block both groups at the Buda bridgeheads.