noÁR: Hungarian education a common national issue, does not belong to the right or left

Participants of a demonstration organised by the Teachers' Trade Union (PSZ) in Budapest on Széchenyi Square on 26 November 2022. Source: MTI/Máthé Zoltán

Organisations representing teachers’ interests and civilians held a demonstration in central Budapest on Saturday afternoon.

The protesters gathered at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences headquarters and a group marched to the nearby Interior Ministry building to submit a nine-point list of demands in the form of a petition, originally compiled by the Civil Public Education Platform organisation in October.

The demonstrators then moved to Kossuth Square near Parliament where students and teachers gave speeches and representatives of the United Students’ Front also addressed the crowd. Flags of teachers’ trade union PSZ, other professional interest representation organisations and Amnesty International were on display, as well as signs showing slogans of the series of demonstrations which started in September.

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Greeting the participants in a video message, Graphisoft CEO Gábor Bojár, founder of the noÁR movement, said that education was a common national issue, which does not belong to the political Right or Left. He proposed that politicians should offer their 2022 salary increase to teachers.

The demonstrators expressed their support for a public dialogue to be launched by the government, the right to strike to be restored in public education, a dedicated ministry of public education to be set up and competitive wages to be introduced in the sector.