Jobbik proposes national referendum to restore freedom of the press

In his Friday press conference, Jobbik’s vice president János Volner announced that his party initiated a national referendum to restore the freedom of the press in Hungary.

The politician said that the recent election campaign clearly showed how the government micro-managed several media outlets which were spreading fake news and lies without any consequence or even bothering to keep up the pretence of a balanced news service.

Noting that the pro-government media did not even publish corrections, Mr Volner noted that such acts constituted a failure to comply with final court verdicts.

While certain pro-government television channels refused to invite opposition politicians to their programmes defying the resolution of the National Election Committee, they nonetheless provided ample airtime for the government’s lies and brainwashing.

To address the matter, Jobbik initiates a national referendum to change this kind of practice.

The party’s goal is to prevent any unilateral reporting and ensure that both pro-government and opposition politicians are given equal conditions. The other goals are to adopt strict punishment brackets for media outlets which refuse to publish corrections in spite of the relevant final court verdicts, and to have the courts urgently process lawsuits in connection with the rights relating to personality.