Hungarian prank party adorns Budapest gypsy musicians’ memorial with toilet brushes after minister’s scandalous remarks – photos

Hungarian prank party’s ‘toilet-brush protest’ in Budapest, aimed at memorials to world-famous Hungary-born gypsy musicians, has sparked fury following the transport minister’s scandalous remarks about the Roma community.

Hungary’s Transport and Construction Minister János Lázár, acting on Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s instructions, has been holding nationwide sessions dubbed ‘Lázárinfos’, where members of the public can question him on any topic.

A few days ago, in one reply, he described Hungary’s Roma community as a labour reserve, ready to take on – in place of migrants – the jobs that Hungarians shun. Such as cleaning train lavatories, for instance. The comment sparked nationwide outrage, with even Fidesz supporter Roma influencers condemning it, and prompting the Hungarian Two-tailed Dog Party (MKKP) to voice its criticism in the most provocatively controversial manner.

Hungarian prank party stages toilet-brush protest

The stunt by the party’s Szeged activists also caused a stir, infuriating Józsefváros’s liberal mayor, András Pikó, who insisted it was not legitimate political protest against Lázár’s words, but rather a desecration of the Hungarian culture-enriching art of gypsy musicians, which has earned international acclaim.

The Szeged MKKP activists apologised for their actions, but remarked that ‘we pondered long and hard whether a message about the state of our public life justified involving the statues of past artists’. In the end, they concluded it did.

The party’s Józsefváros branch struck a different tone in a Facebook post, branding Mr Lázár a “loser” while also arguing that his remarks exposed the failure of Roma integration efforts during the past 16 years of Fidesz rule, during which Mr Orbán has governed with a two-thirds parliamentary majority, according to the local newspaper Józsefváros Újság.

If you happen to have missed it:

• Click and read our piece on the Roma minority of Hungary.

Fidesz risks losing voters over Lázár’s words

The toilet brushes were removed later the same day. Mr Lázár subsequently issued an apology, with political analysts suggesting that the retraction was motivated by concerns that his remarks could cost Fidesz a significant number of votes in the 12 April elections. This is something the party can ill afford, given that surveys show Péter Magyar’s Tisza Party currently commands at least 400,000 more supporters.

• Péter Magyar: János Lázár to be Fidesz prime ministerial candidate in place of PM Orbán

The memorial was restored to its original form shortly after the MKKP action:

The Park of Musician Gypsies, located in Budapest’s VIII district, was unveiled in 2013. It features bas-reliefs commemorating some of Hungary’s most renowned gypsy musicians: Sándor Járóka (1922–1984), young Sándor Járóka (1954–2007), Ernő Gáspár Bobe (1924–1993), László Berki (1941–1997), Jenő Pertis (1903–1971), Sándor Lakatos (1924–1994), Gábor József Kozák (1910–1978), György Cziffra (1921–1994), senior Lajos Kathy-Horváth (1924–1980), Béla Berki (1948–2013), Lajos Boros (1925–2014), and Sándor Buffó Rigó (1949–2014).

• Hungary, the cradle of Roma music