Anti-lockdown demonstrations in Budapest

A pro-government commentator accuses the opposition of trying to slow down the fight against the coronavirus in the hope that they can boost their support if another wave of the pandemic hit Hungary.

On Sunday and Monday, several hundred people, including some restaurant owners and staff, organised by a hitherto unknown party, protested against the coronavirus lockdown. They demanded that the government allow bars and restaurants to open, whilst respecting sensible distancing requirements. The demonstrators accused the government of failing to pay the compensation (50 per cent of wages) they promised in November, and threatened to re-open their bars and restaurants, regardless. A day before the demonstration, the government issued a new degree that threatens catering business owners with heavy fines, and the closure of offending bars and restaurants for half a year if they violate the lockdown rules. The opposition parties – with the exception of the extreme right Our Homeland  – did not join the demonstrations, but expressed their sympathy for the plight of restaurateurs, and called on the government to improve compensation to the catering sector.

In Magyar Nemzet, Dávid Megyeri accuses the Left of funnelling the anger and discontent of business owners desperate to reopen their restaurants and bars. The pro-government commentator goes so far as to accuse opposition parties of hoping that the premature lifting of the coronavirus lockdown would provoke another wave of infections, which they could then use to criticize the government. Megyeri claims that most Hungarians, even those in the tourism and catering sectors, understand that we need to wait patiently until mass vaccination ends the coronavirus lockdowns.

Tags: coronavirus, opposition