Hungarian minority politician detained in Slovakia during protest for disagreeing with anti-Hungarian laws

A protest against the post-war Beneš decrees in Slovakia’s capital, Bratislava on Friday evening sparked political controversy after Slovak police briefly detained Orosz Örs, a politician representing the Hungarian minority party Magyar Szövetség (Hungarian Alliance).

Hungarian minority politician detained for disagreeing with Slovakia’s Beneš decrees

The demonstration, attended by more than a thousand people, was organised to oppose the continued legal relevance of the Beneš decrees, a series of presidential edicts issued in Czechoslovakia after the Second World War. These decrees laid the groundwork for the collective punishment, displacement and property confiscation of ethnic Germans and Hungarians, a legacy that remains highly sensitive in Slovak–Hungarian relations.

According to Slovak-Hungarian media outlets Új Szó and Paraméter.sk, Orosz was escorted away by police after he refused to remove a high-visibility vest bearing the slogan “We question the Beneš decrees.” Both the organisers of the protest and police officers had reportedly asked him to take it off, citing recent legal changes.

Criticising the decrees can be punished with half a year in prison

Under an amendment to the Slovak Criminal Code adopted in December, publicly questioning the Beneš decrees may now be considered a criminal offence, punishable by up to six months in prison. Critics argue that the amendment effectively criminalises historical debate and political dissent.

Orosz later posted on Facebook that he was waiting to be questioned by the authorities. He is one of the initiators of a petition calling for the repeal of the controversial legal provision. The petition has reportedly been signed by around 8,000 people so far, many of whom are aware that their support could potentially expose them to legal consequences. Orosz and two other initiators, including constitutional lawyer János Fiala-Butora, have also filed self-reports with the police as an act of protest.