Referendum – Orbán: Constitutional amendments to include ban on group resettlements

Budapest, October 4 (MTI) – A constitutional amendment supported by the ruling Fidesz party will seek to introduce changes in view of Sunday’s referendum results, in which 98 percent voted against the EU’s mandatory quota regime, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Tuesday.

The results of the referendum have created a new cross-party bloc in Hungary which regards the protection of sovereignty a national issue, Orbán told a press conference in the parliament. The 3.3 million people who voted “no” included one million who probably support other parties, which shows that this was a national issue, Orbán said. He added that these people did not vote against migrants or the European Union, but for the appropriate handling of a modern-age wave of migration.

“The decision of the people must be enforced in parliament,” Orbán insisted.

The constitutional amendments proposed include a clear statement on preventing Brussels from ordering the resettlement of migrants to Hungary under a resolution without the consent of the Hungarian parliament; it includes banning mandatory group resettlements, and stating that the resettlement of people without the right to free movement and stay in Hungary can only take place on the basis of individual requests assessed by the Hungarian authorities in procedures outlined in Hungarian laws enacted by parliament.

The proposed changes will be reviewed in a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Orbán said.

Asked how he perceived the vote on the changes requiring a two-thirds majority, Orbán said he believes that lawmakers will “move along the right scenario”. He added that a 50 percent turnout in the referendum would have validated “voters’ voices in themselves,” but at 43 percent turnout parliament needs “to give an extra push”. A referendum and a constitutional amendment together offer a stronger position than a referendum alone, he said, adding that he “cannot imagine that Brussels would decide against a majority of 98 percent of people”.

Lajos Kósa, the head of Fidesz’s parliamentary group, told the press conference that the government must submit the proposed amendments to parliament by October 10, a debate would be scheduled for October 17 and a vote for November 8. The amendments may take force by mid-November. Five-party talks will also be held on the issue, he added.