Despite the storms, MP Hadházy protests in Budapest downtown, says we are closer to regime change – PHOTOS

The police’s decision not to fine those who took part in last month’s Budapest Pride march is at least as important “when it comes to a regime change, what’s left of democracy, and the country as the day of the Pride march itself”, independent lawmaker Ákos Hadházy said in downtown Budapest on Tuesday.

Hadházy: masses of people must realise their strength

Speaking at a demonstration demanding the withdrawal of an amendment to the assembly law and protesting the bill on the transparency of public life, Hadházy said this “huge success” belonged to those “who refused to believe that it’s impossible to achieve any result against this government and that it’s pointless … to defend so-called symbolic things like freedom and what’s left of democracy”.

“Yesterday we got closer to a regime change, and the crowd got the powers that be to back down, to look ridiculous and become uncertain,” he said.

• Budapest police’s important decision about the proceedings Budapest Pride participants may face

Hadházy said real change required “masses of people to realise their strength and that if they all move in the same direction then there’s no risk … and every government can be made to back down”.

Threat of election-rigging

But he said the opposition “can’t enjoy the moments of success for too long” because they had “work to do”, since the bill on the transparency of public life has not been withdrawn. “If this bill had been withdrawn, we still wouldn’t be talking about a real democracy that has fair elections,” he said. If the bill were to be withdrawn, he added, “we’d still only be going back to the state democracy was in back in February”.