HUNGARY: Hungarians protest again as prime minister resists pressure to quit

Thousands of protesters flooded the centre of Budapest on Tuesday (September 19) again after Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany's blunt admission he lied to win an election sparked outrage and riots a day earlier. Monday's riots, in which over 150 people were hurt, followed the leak of a tape on Sunday in which Gyurcsany said he and his Socialist party had lied for four years about Hungary's budget in order to win a general election in April. Over 10,000 again crammed a square in front of parliament, waving flags and calling for Gyurcsany to step down in Hungary's worst political crisis since communism collapsed in 1989. "My opinion is if they would let the people speak their word on national television or a camera would record our demands to broadcast to the nation all of this would never have happened," said Lazlo Nagyivanyi at the protest. "What is happening here is just that people lost their patience. Even the Prime Minister has said that for four years they haven't done anything. They stole money, destroyed the budget. Even if they raised the taxes don't want to pay any more money for this," added Janos Erdelyi. Monday's violence took police -- and the nation as a whole -- by surprise. Hungary, which joined the European Union in 2004, has often been shown off as a model of democratic reform since the communists were ousted. Police kept a close watch over the crowd and Reuters correspondents at the scene said that as of 2100 GMT there were no signs of violence. Earlier on Tuesday (September 19) Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany rejected opposition calls to quit and vowed to press on with tough economic reforms. The riots, in which over 150 people were hurt, followed the leak of a tape on Sunday in which Gyurcsany said he and his Socialist party had lied for four years about Hungary's budget in order to win a general election in April. Thousands of people took to the streets of Budapest late on Monday, occupying and setting fire to the state television building and fighting with riot police in the first such violence since communism collapsed at the end of the 1980s. Higher taxes and fees for healthcare and university tuition had prompted protests before the release of the tape sparked a violent backlash that weakened the Hungarian forint and other currencies across central Europe. "This is no revolution. This is no 1956. This is simply a betrayal of our great national history. 1956 is not a toy," Gyurscany said at a news conference referring to the Hungarian uprising against Soviet occupation 50 years ago. The protests came two weeks ahead of local elections on Oct. 1 and follow a slump in the ruling Socialist Party's popularity to 25 percent in polls from 40 percent at the election. The main Fidesz opposition urged the prime minister to go amid what it called a "moral crisis", but also condemned the violence. "The October 1 election will be more than a local election, it will be a referendum. One can choose between lies and sincerity, between austerity and a new alternative, between swindle and responsibility," said Fidesz leader Viktor Orban. Gyurcsany, a 45-year-old millionaire facing his biggest crisis in two years as prime minister, has rejected calls to quit and instead vowed to press on with tough economic reforms. Higher taxes and fees for healthcare and university tuition had prompted protests before the release of the tape sparked a violent backlash that weakened the Hungarian forint and other currencies across central Europe. The soaring budget deficit has forced Hungary to abandon plans to join the euro single currency in 2010, with analysts now saying 2014 is more realistic. The protests come two weeks ahead of local elections on Oct. 1 and follow a slump in the ruling Socialist Party's popularity to 25 percent in polls from 40 percent at the election. Gyurcsany said his remarks, made to party faithful in May but leaked on Sunday, were meant as a call for reform and a pledge not to lie again, but the unprecedented bluntness of his admission -- peppered with foul language -- shocked the nation. ged the prime minister to go amid what it called a "moral crisis". Gyurcsany won April's election partly on a promise of tax cuts but has since imposed tax hikes and benefit cuts worth $4.6 billion in 2007 alone to curb Hungary's budget deficit which will surge to 10.1 percent of gross domestic product this year. The protests are likely to continue with students set to hold a major demonstration on Thursday. Analysts said they expect Gyurcsany will be able to hang on for now, but added the uproar could ultimately cost him his job.

ITN Source | September 21, 2006

Tags:. .condemned. .communists. .millionaire. .curb. .soviet