Large crowds descended on central Budapest chanting “traitor” and “betrayal” in reaction to Prime Minister Péter Magyar’s expected signing of the EU’s Migration Pact. Furious demonstrators marched on the TISZA Party headquarters, then to Parliament.
Péter Magyar himself, true to his form, decided to taunt members of the march by coming out to the balcony of his party headquarters, waving and smiling at them and waving the Hungarian flag. Some of his fellow government members, like Minister of Culture Zoltán Tarr, or his right hand man, former actor, now MP, Márk Radnai, who stood behind him on the balcony, looked less cheerful than their boss.
In reaction to the Prime Minister’s appearance, people started chanting “traitor” in unison. Some have labelled Magyar with a choice of words that we cannot repeat here, but one could hear genuine anger and outrage from the voice of the participants of the march.
Organizers of the demonstration reminded participants on loudspeakers that Hungarians have already said no to the migration pact in a referendum in 2016, organized by the government of Viktor Orbán. They have rejected Brussels’ migrant quota system with 3,251,000 votes. This number is very close to the total number of votes, 3.3 million, that the TISZA party received during the April 12 elections.
Many of the participants shouted “shame on you” as they approached the balcony where Magyar was standing. Some even called on him to resign, others were heard chanting “Viktor, Viktor,” a reference to former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, known for his resolute anti-migration stance.
You have sold my country, you have sold my homeland, your have sold my future. You are a true dirty traitor,”
said someone over the loudspeakers.
The EU’s migration pact will take effect throughout the continent on June 12th. With Orbán gone, there is now no effective resistance against Brussels’ plan to ship thousands of illegal migrants to so far uninvaded parts of the EU, such as Central Europe. Although Magyar has promised not to allow any migrants into Hungary before the elections, he has stayed conspicuously silent throughout the past few weeks when the question of migration came up. It is also understood that one of the conditions for releasing the billions of euros in European funds was exactly a reversal of Orbán’s tough opposition to the pact.
Furthermore, the European People’s Party (EPP), where Magyar’s TISZA Party belongs in the European parliament, is one of the most passionate supporters of the redistribution of illegal migrants across the continent. It is feared that just like they did in Poland after the government of Donald Tusk took power, Germany will dump some of its unwanted asylum seekers on Hungary’s doorsteps.
The nationalists of the Mi Hazánk Party can be credited for the lion’s share of organizing the march, although the event was non-partisan, and some personalities from the former FIDESZ government are also known to have attended.
Featured Image: MTI/Szigetváry Zsolt
