Peaceful Protests in Budapest Grow; Crowds Call for Premier To Resign
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BERLIN — Between 40,000 and 50,000 protesters demonstrated outside the parliament building in Budapest during the weekend, but Hungary’s embattled prime minister said he refused to resign.
The crowds were about four times larger than those that held nightly vigils last week calling for him to stand down.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in other towns and cities across the country.
The weekend’s protests were more peaceful than previous gatherings, which had degenerated into riots led by several hundred hooligans.
It was claimed that the hooligans consisted mainly of far-right soccer thugs drafted in by far-right parties keen to make trouble for the government.
The anger has been sparked by leaked comments made by Prime Minister Gyurcsany in May to his Socialist Party colleagues, in which he confessed that the government had consistently lied about the state of the economy, “morning, noon, and night.”
In an interview published yesterday, he said he still planned to seek re-election as head of his party next year. The results of municipal elections next Sunday would not affect his plans, he said.
