PHOTOS: Hungarian national flag raised marking 15 March celebrations – UPDATED

Accompanied by military honours and the national anthem, Hungary’s national flag was raised in front of Parliament on Friday morning, kicking off commemorations of the March 15 national holiday marking the 176th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1848-49 revolution and war of independence.

The flag was hoisted in the presence of President Tamás Sulyok and House Speaker László Kövér, as well as members of the government, diplomats and as representatives of the state and military.

Families and tourists were also present in the square, many wearing cockades and holding Hungarian flags.

Festive events are being held throughout the country and beyond.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will give a speech at the National Museum as part of the the commemorations starting at 10:30am.

Here are some photos of the Kossuth Square celebrations:

DK: Homeland means ‘shared laws, burdens, responsibility’

“In a shared homeland the laws apply to everybody, while burdens and responsibilities are also shared; it is that common homeland that the incumbent regime has stripped us of,” Klára Dobrev, MEP of the opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) said in her speech marking the March 15 national holiday and broadcast online on Friday.

“The leaflets that upturned Hungary 176 years ago said ‘equality, freedom, brotherhood’ and showed to the world what the Hungarian nation wanted … and we cannot be a nation with a homeland unless the same rules apply to everybody and nobody is above the law,” Dobrev said.

Hungary’s current regime is “based on the denial of those values … those in power could do everything, they can even commit heinous crimes without consequences,” she said.

She added, however, that “often there does not appear hope for change, and it was like that 176 years ago; but as poets, politicians, journalists, cafe owners and printers found association in 1848, it could just as well happen today.”

UPDATE 1 – Socialists: fights against an authoritarian regime dividing the country from inside

Ágnes Kunhalmi, co-leader of the Socialist Party, spoke at a commemoration held at the monument of the revolutionary poet Sandor Petofi in central Budapest. In her speech, she said “rebuilding the faith in democracy and the rule of law” was of paramount importance. “Today’s fight must be fought against an authoritarian regime dividing the country from inside,” she said.

“Living in a civil democracy is not enough; freedom, legal equality, as well as welfare and employee rights and a radical reduction of the gaps in society are also needed,” she said.

“Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is working to push Hungarian society back into the past and delegate the European Union back to an earlier state,” she insisted. The upcoming European parliamentary elections could decide if “Orbán, seeking association with far right circles, could dismantle a Europe of welfare . if he can prevent further European integration and reforms,” she added.