Border fence speeds up flow of migrants, says Socialist leader

Budapest (MTI) – Hungary’s fence along the border with Serbia speeds up the flow of migrants into the country as opposed to halting it, Socialist leader Jozsef Tobias told a press conference on Friday.

He said that recent measures by the government such as the questionnaire on migration and terrorism, the “hateful” billboard campaign and the construction of a border fence have weakened the public’s sense of safety.

Tobias said it was because of the escalation of the migrant crisis that tragedies, such as the recent death of 71 migrants who likely suffocated in a truck, could occur. He said the government had addressed the crisis “only through political battles”.

The Socialist leader said it was unfortunate that Prime Minister Viktor Orban had not attended Thursday’s Western Balkans Summit in Vienna focusing on migration. He said the government had all the means needed to improve the public’s sense of safety and to put together a common EU migration policy with European leaders. Tobias noted that his party had submitted “numerous” proposals for dealing with the crisis on both a national and a European level.