{"id":10640,"date":"2018-12-18T12:20:07","date_gmt":"2018-12-18T20:20:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=10640"},"modified":"2018-12-18T12:23:03","modified_gmt":"2018-12-18T20:23:03","slug":"4-lawmakers-assaulted-in-hungary-as-protests-against-orban-continue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2018\/12\/18\/4-lawmakers-assaulted-in-hungary-as-protests-against-orban-continue\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Lawmakers Assaulted in Hungary, as Protests Against Orban Continue"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"css-1572rug\">\n<div class=\"css-u5vfum StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-4w7y5l\">\n<div class=\"css-u5vfum StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-4w7y5l\">\n<header class=\"css-a44kk9 e345g291\">\n<p id=\"link-7167fd6a\" class=\"css-1x5ulj9 ejekc6u0\"><em>People holding up phones at a protest against a new labor law known as the \u201cslave law,\u201d outside the headquarters of Hungary\u2019s state television network in Budapest on Monday.<span class=\"css-vuqh7u e18m0s9i0\" style=\"font-size: 16px;\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1afaoz0\">Credit<\/span>Bernadett Szabo\/Reuters<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk ehw59r11\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-1as292b ehw59r18\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<div class=\"css-1c1icqh ehw59r19\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-overlay\">\n<div class=\"css-1s9hypd ehw59r110\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1j5kxti e1t57l6r0\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary\/18hungary-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary\/18hungary-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary\/18hungary-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary\/18hungary-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-30n6iy e345g290\">\n<div class=\"css-acwcvw\">\n<div class=\"css-17xsp6v e1hs04dy0\">\n<div class=\"css-1baulvz\">\n<p class=\"css-16vrk19 e1x1pwtg1\">By\u00a0<a class=\"css-1riqqik e1x1pwtg0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/by\/patrick-kingsley\"><span class=\"css-1baulvz\">Patrick Kingsley<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<span class=\"css-1baulvz\">Benjamin Novak (NYTimes.com)<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<ul class=\"css-zh8slb e1hs04dy1\">\n<li><time class=\"css-qddhf4 eqgapgq0\" datetime=\"2018-12-17\">Dec. 17, 2018<\/time><\/li>\n<li class=\"css-6n7j50\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"css-hn080\" role=\"toolbar\" aria-label=\"Social Media Share buttons, Save button, and Comments Panel with current comment count\" data-testid=\"share-tools\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"css-1572rug\">\n<div class=\"css-u5vfum StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-4w7y5l\">\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">BUDAPEST \u2014 At least four opposition lawmakers were assaulted on Monday in Hungary, one of whom was hospitalized, after they visited the state media headquarters to request that the broadcasters end their wall-to-wall support for Hungary\u2019s far-right prime minister, Viktor Orban.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">After a 10-hour standoff in which editors refused to give the legislators airtime, security guards forcibly ejected two of the lawmakers. A third, Laszlo Varju, managed to stay inside with several colleagues, but was injured during a scuffle with security guards later in the day. He was eventually taken to a hospital in an ambulance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">A fourth lawmaker was subsequently injured when she tried to burst through police lines to assist Mr. Varju.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">The episode, which followed nearly\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/12\/16\/world\/europe\/hungary-protests-viktor-orban.html?module=inline\">a week of growing protests<\/a>\u00a0against the government\u2019s increasingly authoritarian behavior, was a turning point for Hungary under Mr. Orban.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">Since entering office in 2010, Mr. Orban has gradually chipped away at the country\u2019s democratic framework, reducing\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/12\/12\/world\/europe\/hungary-courts.html?module=inline\">judicial independence<\/a>, taking control of most state and\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/11\/24\/world\/europe\/hungary-viktor-orban-media.html?module=inline\">private media<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/03\/25\/world\/europe\/hungary-election-viktor-orban.html?module=inline\">reshaping the electoral system<\/a>\u00a0to favor his party, Fidesz.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">But under Mr. Orban\u2019s watch, the government has largely avoided egregious displays of violence against his political opponents \u2014 until this week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">Opposition lawmakers said the assaults had revealed the true nature of the Orban regime.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">\u201cThis doesn\u2019t happen in a democracy \u2014 but there is no democracy in Hungary,\u201d Mr. Varju said in a telephone interview, after an X-ray revealed no serious damage to his bruised ribs and knees. \u201cThat\u2019s why we are where we are.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">The current wave of protests broke out in Budapest last Wednesday after the Hungarian Parliament, controlled by Fidesz, passed\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/12\/12\/world\/europe\/hungary-courts.html?module=inline\">a pair of laws<\/a>\u00a0that respectively created a parallel justice system and forced workers to perform hundreds of additional hours of overtime a year.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-79elbk ehw59r11\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"css-z3e15g\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-wrapper-hidden\"><em><span class=\"css-8i9d0s e1olku6u0\">Bertalan Toth, the president of the opposition Hungarian Socialist Party, climbing the fence outside the public broadcaster MTVA in Budapest, Hungary.<\/span><span class=\"css-vuqh7u e18m0s9i0\"><span class=\"css-1ly73wi e1afaoz0\">Credit<\/span>Zsolt Szigetvary\/EPA, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/em><\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1e92j26 ehw59r18\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\">\n<div class=\"css-1c1icqh ehw59r19\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-overlay\">\n<div class=\"css-1ivs6ic ehw59r110\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"css-8h527k\">\n<div data-testid=\"lazyimage-container\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"css-1j5kxti e1t57l6r0\" src=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary2\/merlin_148251945_40b8b7bd-ea9d-461c-ba01-41bd33f96f3b-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&amp;auto=webp&amp;disable=upscale\" sizes=\"((min-width: 600px) and (max-width: 1004px)) 84vw, (min-width: 1005px) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary2\/merlin_148251945_40b8b7bd-ea9d-461c-ba01-41bd33f96f3b-articleLarge.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 600w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary2\/merlin_148251945_40b8b7bd-ea9d-461c-ba01-41bd33f96f3b-jumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 1024w,https:\/\/static01.nyt.com\/images\/2018\/12\/18\/world\/europe\/18hungary2\/merlin_148251945_40b8b7bd-ea9d-461c-ba01-41bd33f96f3b-superJumbo.jpg?quality=90&amp;auto=webp 2048w\" alt=\"\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1a48zt4 ehw59r111\" data-testid=\"photoviewer-children\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-u5vfum StoryBodyCompanionColumn\">\n<div class=\"css-4w7y5l\">\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">The near daily demonstrations have since morphed into a catchall expression of dissent against Mr. Orban\u2019s government, not least its control over most forms of public discourse, including state broadcasters, which have declined to report on the protests.<\/p>\n<p>The protesters, whose numbers peaked on Sunday at about 15,000, remain small in comparison to Mr. Orban\u2019s base: His party was\u00a0<a class=\"css-1g7m0tk\" title=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/04\/08\/world\/europe\/hungary-election-viktor-orban.html?module=inline\">re-elected in April<\/a>\u00a0with nearly 50 percent of the vote, after an election that observers said was free but not fair.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">Zoltan Kovacs, a government spokesman, said that the current protests have \u201cclearly no popular support\u201d and were being led by \u201cdesperate\u201d opposition lawmakers and celebrity activists, rather than ordinary people.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">But analysts said the shocking nature of the assaults on the opposition lawmakers, and the unusually strong displays of solidarity among opposition parties during the protests, could signal a new dawn for the opposition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">It might help galvanize demoralized lawmakers and activists, win over undecided voters and help encourage greater international criticism of Mr. Orban, said Csaba Toth, executive director of the Republikon Institute, a Budapest-based political research group.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">\u201cI think this is definitely a new level,\u201d said Mr. Toth. \u201cPhysically assaulting M.P.s is something that has never happened before and can have consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">\u201cIt will not touch people who only watch Fidesz media, which is a sizable part of the population,\u201d Mr. Toth added. \u201cSo I do not anticipate a big, quick drop in Fidesz support. But I see a solidifying of support for the opposition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">Gabor Ivanyi, a pastor who joined a protest outside the state media building on Monday night, said that much would depend on whether the protests continue until Christmas or peter out.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">\u201cThe time has come for fair laws,\u201d said Mr. Ivanyi, who performed Mr. Orban\u2019s marriage ceremony before falling out with the prime minister.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1ygdjhk e2kc3sl0\">\u201cWe need to end this situation in which we belong to the European Union but we constantly revile it, in which we are NATO allies but we are palling around with Putin,\u201d he added, referring to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia. \u201cThis simply can\u2019t continue any longer. I think people have come to realize this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>A version of this article appears in print on\u00a0<time class=\"css-10rvbm3\" datetime=\"2018-12-18T05:00:00.000Z\">Dec. 17, 2018<\/time>, on Page\u00a0A8\u00a0of the New York edition\u00a0with the headline:\u00a0In Hungary, 4 Lawmakers Are Assaulted Amid Protests.\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytreprints.com\/\">Order Reprints<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/pages\/todayspaper\/index.html\">Today\u2019s Paper<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/subscriptions\/Multiproduct\/lp8HYKU.html?campaignId=48JQY\">Subscribe<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People holding up phones at a protest against a new labor law known as the \u201cslave law,\u201d outside the headquarters of Hungary\u2019s state television network in Budapest on Monday.CreditBernadett Szabo\/Reuters By\u00a0Patrick Kingsley\u00a0and\u00a0Benjamin Novak (NYTimes.com) Dec. 17, 2018 BUDAPEST \u2014 At least four opposition lawmakers were assaulted on Monday in Hungary,&#8230; <a class=\"continue-reading-link\" href=\"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2018\/12\/18\/4-lawmakers-assaulted-in-hungary-as-protests-against-orban-continue\/\"> Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr; <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10640"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10643,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10640\/revisions\/10643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}