Hungarian opposition: This week’s parliamentary sessions ‘unlawful’

According to the opposition parties, this week’s parliamentary sessions were not conducted lawfully.

Jobbik

An opposition Jobbik party official said the “illegitimate slave law” would bring Hungarian workers to their knees.

János Stummer, the party’s deputy leader, told a separate news conference that Orbán’s government had acted “against the Hungarian nation” by adopting the law amendment which, he insisted, was rejected by the majority of employees in the country.

He slammed the government for allowing MPs in Wednesday’s session to vote without their parliamentary identity cards. He also said unauthorised people had been allowed in the chamber, including armed bodyguards.

“What is this if not trampling all over Hungarian democracy and Hungarian democratic traditions?”

Stummer also criticised left-wing MPs who “behaved in a manner unworthy of their position”.

He also condemned public protesters outside Parliament who damaged the country’s Christmas tree in Kossuth Square and who threw eggs at Parliament during a demonstration in the evening.

Left opposition parties

At a news conference held after Thursday’s House Rules Committee meeting, Tamás Harangozó, the Socialist Party’s deputy group leader, said Monday’s parliamentary agenda had been adopted unlawfully, since the opposition parties’ proposed amendments should have been voted on separately and not all in one go. From that time on, the entire week’s sessions and fines meted out to opposition lawmakers were illegal, he insisted.

In lieu of the disruptive action the opposition took on Monday, Speaker of Parliament László Kövér today proposed fines of 400,000-600,000 forints (EUR 1,235-1,850) to be paid by Socialist lawmakers Bertelan Tóth, Ildikó Borbély Bangó, Tamás Harangozó, Ágnes Kunhalmi, Sándor Szabó and Bence Tordai (Párbeszéd), and László Varju (Democratic Coalition). The speaker’s proposal must be approved by the Parliament.