Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has promised a new set of laws in response to the child sex abuse scandal that has shocked the country.
It was revealed that a former employee of a state children’s home convicted of covering up a sex crime had been granted a pardon, sparking massive protests.
Mr Orbán said there was no room for mercy in child abuse cases.The controversial pardon resulted in several resignations.
President Katalin Novak, who granted the pardon, and two senior members of Orbán’s ruling Fidesz party resigned last week.
The scandal poses the biggest threat to Mr Orban’s conservative government since he returned to power in 2010, with support for his Fidesz party declining in regional and European elections four months later.
There is a risk thatEven before Saturday’s speech, Mr. Orbán proposed the 13th Amendment to the Hungarian Constitution, which would prohibit future heads of state from granting amnesty to those involved in child sexual abuse cases.
One of the cabinet ministers, Gergely Gulyas, announced on Friday that the new law includes a review of the staffing of state orphanages, which house 7,000 children.
In this speech, Viktor Orbán sought to put an end to the scandals that have put his government on the defensive and reassure his supporters that he is back in power.
Only pro-government media were allowed access to the Castle Garden building where he gave his speech, amid tight security.
The Agence International and Hungarian independent media were told there was no space for this article.”Even good people sometimes make bad decisions,” Orbán told party officials, businessmen and close allies in public life.
He thanked Mr. Novak and former Justice Minister Judith Varga for their efforts, but agreed with their decision to resign.