Budapest, March 2 (MTI) – The opposition Jobbik party submitted a referendum initiative on Wednesday with a view to preventing foreigners from buying Hungarian farmland.
Early last year, the National Election Committee rejected a Jobbik initiative on this subject on the basis that European Union rights belong under international law, Zoltán Magyar told a press conference. Since then, however, the government has claimed the opposite when submitting a referendum imitative on migrant quotas, he added.
Jobbik wants to ask people whether they agree that parliament should request the government to initiate an amendment to EU accession treaties in order to allow only Hungarian citizens who are residents to buy farmland.
In response to a question about an opposition Socialist initiative on land privatisation, he welcomed the fact that it was passed by the election committee and said Jobbik supported it. However, he said that a referendum under the Socialist initiative would only take place in the autumn and by that time all state-owned land would be sold.
Budapest (MTI) – The parliamentary group of ruling Fidesz has welcomed the National Election Office’s decision to green-light a government sponsored referendum seeking a popular rejection of European Union’s mandatory migrant quota.
Fidesz group spokesman János Halász said that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán would go to Brussels for the upcoming European Council session armed with news of the upcoming referendum, emboldening other EU members to follow suit.
Halasz said he trusted parliament would swiftly put the referendum on its agenda, after which President János Áder will set a date for the public vote.
Orbán announced last week that the government had decided to call a referendum on the European Union’s proposed mandatory migrant quota scheme.
At the referendum, voters will be asked “Do you want to allow the European Union to mandate the resettlement of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the National Assembly”.
Budapest (MTI) – The “presence and behaviour” of a group of thugs inside the National Election Office at the time Socialist deputies and private individuals were submitting referendum initiatives was against the law, the National Election Committee said on Monday.
The Committee responded to a complaint filed by Socialist politician István Nyakó, who insisted that the thugs had held him up and a private individual, who had arrived at the office later, succeeded in stamping her document shortly before the Socialists could make their way to the checking spot.
Both referendums were proposed in connection with Hungary’s Sunday shopping ban.
The Committee said, however, that they could not ascertain if the thugs had actually held the Socialists up, or if “the private individual and her companion took advantage of the situation”.
Of referendum initiatives on the same subject, the Office deals with the submission first received.
Meanwhile, the Committee gave the green light to the referendum initiative submitted ahead of the Socialist proposal.
According to the proposal approved, voters would be asked if they agree that retails shops should continue to stay closed on Sundays.
The initiative was submitted last Tuesday, after which the Socialists filed their complaint and said a group of “bald-shaved thugs” had held up their representatives at the entrance of the Election Office while the other proponent and her companion could make their way to the checkpoint and have their initiative stamped arriving just a few seconds ahead of the Socialists.
Budapest, February 29 (MTI) – The National Election Committee (NVB) on Monday gave the green light to a government-proposed referendum question aimed at thwarting the European Union’s mandatory migrant quota plans.
Citizens in the proposed referendum would be asked “Do you want to allow the European Union to mandate the resettlement of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the National Assembly”. The question must still go through approval by the supreme court, the Kúria.
Budapest, February 29 (MTI) – The opposition Socialists have called on President János Áder to condemn an incident which took place at the election office last Tuesday, when the party’s attempt to submit a question for a referendum on Sunday shopping restrictions was physically prevented by what the Socialists described as a “private army”.
István Nyakó attempted to submit a referendum initiative concerning Hungary’s Sunday shopping ban but could not get inside the National Election Office. Zoltán Lukács, another Socialist politician who was there with Nyako, said the entrance to the building was “blocked by 15-20 people, pumped up and bald”. The group claimed to be “applicants”, too, Lukacs said, and suggested that the “aggressive provocation” had been organised by the government to thwart the Socialist referendum proposal.
The Socialists ask Áder to make it clear that he stands on the side of democracy and that he will do everything in his power to restore the democratic operations of the election office, deputy group leader Zoltán Lukács told a press conference on Monday.
Socialist lawmaker István Nyakó, who submitted the party’s initiative for a referendum on Sunday shopping restrictions last week, has complained that no investigation has been ordered into the events of what the Socialists are calling “black Tuesday”. He has filed a report to the police and said that the fairness of all elections could come into question if the national election committee which oversees the office’s operations fails to investigate this case.
Budapest, February 28 (MTI) – Two referendum initiatives about Sunday shopping restrictions, one submitted by a private individual and another by the head of the opposition Socialists István Nyakó, will be submitted to the election committee, the head of Hungary’s election office said on Sunday.
The election initiatives were submitted to the office on Tuesday and Nyakó’s came only four seconds after the first submission, said Ilona Pálffy.
Since mid-September 2015, the election office has been accepting only time-stamped submissions and the time-stamp prescribes the order of assessment. In line with the election law, a second question on the same subject cannot be accepted unless the first question is refused.
Budapest (MTI) – The government is “terrified” by the possibility of holding a referendum on Hungary’s shopping ban on Sundays, as suggested by the Socialist Party, its leader József Tóbiás told a press conference on Friday.
Tóbiás said the government’s “ad-hoc, ill-considered and controversial” initiative to hold another referendum on mandatory migrant quotas was aimed at covering up the confusion in government circles.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán cannot reserve the right to decide what referendums should be held and which ones should be rejected, Tóbiás said, and insisted that apart from the Sunday ban, voters should be asked whether state-owned land should be sold to “Fidesz-associated cronies” or if the salaries of senior officials could be as high as 5 million forints (EUR 16,000).
Tóbiás also called on the government to evaluate a recent incident in the National Election Office, where a group of thugs prevented Socialist representatives to submit their referendum initiatives concerning the Sunday ban.
Budapest, February 26 (MTI) – The National Election Committee has turned down an appeal by Socialist MP Zoltán Lukács for an investigation into an incident on Tuesday, in which a group of thugs prevented Socialists from submitting a referendum initiative.
At a session on Friday, the committee turned down the appeal saying that Lukács had not accurately defined the violation he was complaining about and that Lukács had given an address different from the one in the official registry.
Lukács corrected the address and indicated the legal stipulations which had been violated in the incident, but committee head András Patyi said it was not possible to amend such appeals.
Patyi said his committee would evaluate circumstances under which the Socialists attempted to submit their initiative and would look at the footage recorded by the National Election Office’s cameras on Tuesday morning. He added that “equality between voters would be harmed if appeals with formal deficiencies were accepted” because it would mean that irregular appeals by other people should also be accepted.
Socialist member of the committee András Litresits insisted that the footage should be viewed, and said that the committee must not overlook Tuesday’s “brutal, ignoble, scandalous” developments.
Adrián Fábián, an elected member of the committee, voiced his conviction that the law had been violated and warned that the committee is responsible to ensure lawful circumstances. He also noted that the address Lukacs had indicated included a street name which was changed in the meantime.
Andrea Borbély, delegated by the Jobbik party, also urged that the incident should be investigated.
The body concluded that if Lukács’s appeal, complete with Friday’s amendments, meets the requirements, it will be dealt with as a new appeal within three days.
Budapest, February 26 (MTI) – The Hungarian government’s referendum call on the EU’s migrant quota system seems to be “an ideological decision”, Martin Schulz, head of the European Parliament, said.
According to the European Union’s decision on relocations, Hungary would have to accept the resettlement of 1,294 migrants, Schulz told daily Népszabadsag on Friday. Holding a referendum on whether to accept 1,294 “speaks volumes” and proves that this decision is rooted in ideology and not warranted by a lack of resources or capacity, the Socialist politician told the paper.
In another article published in Friday’s Népszabadság, MEP for Fidesz József Szájer said that under Hungary’s basic law and the EU Treaty Hungary had not transferred the authority of making decisions on the distribution of migrants by mandatory quotas to the EU. The area of internal and justice affairs is a mixed legal ground and Hungary is not obliged to accept migrants by the Geneva Convention either, Szájer said.
This is a matter of sovereignty, Szájer told the paper, adding that the government’s initiative cannot be stopped.
Budapest, February 25 (MTI) – The head of parliament’s national security committee reported “a national security risk” to the interior minister over events that took place during the submission of a referendum question at the National Election Office (NVI) earlier this week.
A Socialist politician was prevented on Tuesday from submitting his referendum initiative in time for approval because the entrance of the National Election Office was “blocked by 15-20 heavily-built, bald-shaved men”, according to reports.
National security committee head Zsolt Molnar said this incident constituted a national security risk and he urged the interior minister, Sandor Pinter, to investigate whether a crime had been committed. Molnar said the “thugs did more than just to prevent a citizen from exercising his political right, they waged an attack on Hungarian democracy”.
Molnar said some envisioned that the “era of private armies” was approaching, when political conflicts are settled in illegal ways, by physical force. This would mean the fall of democratic, constitutional order, he said.
Hungary’s referendum rules state that while a question is being examined by a court, it is not possible to submit another question on the same subject, which is what made the timing of the submission significant. The referendum question was concerning a ban on Sunday shopping, which the Socialists would like to have removed through the binding force of a popular vote.
Budapest, February 25 (MTI) – The Jobbik party backs a referendum on the EU’s quota system and encourages its supporters to turn up and vote “no” to the quotas, party leader Gábor Vona said on Thursday.
Vona said issues to be cleared up at Friday’s five-party talks include whether the government’s proposed referendum question would encompass all forms of migrant quotas, such as also “relocations and expulsions”. It must also be decided whether the referendum would require a modification of Hungary’s basic law as many would say.
He said Hungary must send a message to “Brussels, Berlin and everyone who wants to force the quota system on it”, that it “wants no part of it”.
Leftist parties should put aside party politics and “think in a nation for once”, he added.
Asked what result a referendum could bring on this matter, Vona said “legally not much, but it could set off a domino effect, triggering a vote in other countries, too”.
In a press conference on another issue, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said the planned referendum should cover all decisions, plans and ideas that “would impose any kind of quota in any form on Hungary.”
Budapest, February 25 (MTI) – The green opposition LMP party said it will submit to parliament a proposed amendment to Hungary’s referendum law to make it easier for citizens to file referendum initiatives, András Schiffer, the party’s co-leader, announced on Thursday.
“If the prime minister is not afraid of the people” then he will support making it easier for citizens to initiate referendums, Schiffer told a press conference in Zalaegerszeg, in south-western Hungary.
Schiffer said LMP will also propose ways to close “loopholes” in the law that “Fidesz takes advantage of … in order to disable the institution of the referendum”.
He said the government “preventing the submission of a referendum initiative with the help of bouncers” and then announcing their own referendum on migrant quotas just one day later was “nothing short of political perversion”.
On Tuesday, a Socialist lawmaker was prevented from submitting a referendum initiative on the Sunday shop closure law on time because the entrance to the National Election office was blocked by 15-20 bulked up men with shaved heads. While the MP was held up, a private individual was able to submit a question on the same subject.
The referendum rules currently in place state that while a question is being examined by a court, it is not possible to submit another question on the same subject.
Budapest, February 24 (MTI) – Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s foreign minister, defended his government’s recent idea of holding a referendum on European migrant quotas, in his reaction to critical remarks by his Italian counterpart.
Paolo Gentiloni said earlier on Wednesday that “I don’t believe that Europe today can manage the migrant crisis with single countries delegating decisions to their citizens that disrupt common ones taken at a European level.” He also suggested that the Hungarian referendum could turn out to be a precedent with “negative or even dangerous” ramifications.
In his response, Szijjártó said it was “natural” in a democracy that voters should express their opinion or pass decisions in connection with crucial national issues. He also noted that Europe has not come up with an effective solution for the migration crisis.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced on Wednesday that Hungary would hold a referendum on the European Union’s proposed mandatory migrant quota scheme.
Citizens will be asked “Do you want to allow the European Union to mandate the resettlement of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the National Assembly”.
Budapest, February 24 (MTI) – The government has decided to call a referendum on the European Union’s proposed mandatory migrant quota scheme, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced on Wednesday.
Citizens will be asked “Do you want to allow the European Union to mandate the resettlement of non-Hungarian citizens to Hungary without the approval of the National Assembly”, the prime minister said.
Orbán said his cabinet chief, Antal Rogán, has already submitted the question to the National Election Committee for approval.
The prime minister said the referendum question means that no one other than Hungary’s elected lawmakers can make decisions on migrant quotas.
Orbán said it is no secret that Hungary’s parliament opposes migrant quotas, meaning that citizens who vote “No” will stand up for Hungary’s independence and reject the migrant redistribution scheme.
He said holding a referendum is a “European practice” which Hungary “recommends to other countries as well”.
Orbán said democracy is one of the main pillars of the EU, meaning that no decision that affects or changes people’s lives can be made without their approval.
He said the quota scheme would redraw Hungary and Europe’s ethnic, cultural and religious identity, which no EU body has the right to do. Orbán said the European people have yet to be asked about the quota system.
He said the government decided to call the referendum because it feels that implementing the scheme would be “an abuse of power”. The people need to be asked about the scheme just as they were about joining the EU, he said.
Socialist leader József Tóbiás said that once a referendum is held, voters should at the same time be asked about the privatisation of state-owned land as well as on the Sunday shopping ban. “The prime minister must bear in mind that issues of national importance are not exclusively the ones he sees as such,” Tóbiás said. He went on to say that the prime minister “should have the courage” to include in the referendum a question on the shopping ban.
Jobbik welcomed the referendum and voiced support for a negative answer to the referendum question. Jobbik deputy chair Dániel Z Kárpát urged voters to support the position that “foreign nationals should not be settled without Hungary’s invitation”.
The leftist Democratic Coalition (DK) said voters should be asked about the shopping ban, scrapping the national school manager, as well as health financing. The referendum on migrant quotas should include those questions, too, or else the vote should be boycotted, DK spokesman Zsolt Gréczy said.
The small Dialogue for Hungary (PM) party said a referendum could not be held on stipulations included in international agreements. PM spokesman Bence Tordai said that the referendum initiative was but a “pathetic” attempt by the prime minister to divert attention from an incident on Tuesday, when “bouncers close to Fidesz” prevented voters from expressing their opinion.
Green LMP spokesman István Ferenczi said the initiative was aimed at thwarting similar referendum proposals concerning the Sunday ban or the “looting” of state-owned land.
The Liberal Party (MLP) said the quota referendum was “not fair”. MLP’s István Szent-Iványi said that the quota did not involve “mandatory settlement”. He argued that relevant rules of the European Union would only require that the immigration proceedings should be administered in a given country, and under laws of that country.
Budapest, February 23 (MTI) – The Socialist Party on Tuesday evening staged a demonstration in front of the National Election Office over an incident earlier in the day which led to a Socialist politician being prevented from submitting a referendum initiative on time.
Earlier on Tuesday István Nyakó attempted to submit a referendum initiative concerning Hungary’s Sunday shopping ban but could not get inside the National Election Office. Zoltán Lukács, another Socialist politician who was there with Nyakó, said the entrance to the building was “blocked by 15-20 people, pumped up and bald”. The group claimed to be “applicants”, too, Lukács said, and suggested that the “aggressive provocation” had been organised by the government to thwart the Socialist referendum proposal.
At the demonstration, attended by hundreds of protesters, including members of other opposition parties, Socialist leader József Tóbiás said the incident should not have been allowed to occur in a country under the rule of law. He said the government “is afraid” but the prime minister has to respect “the will of the voters”.
Zoltán Gőgős, the party’s deputy leader, said Nyakó was blocked from submitting his referendum question by “a private army” of trained individuals.
Nyakó and Lukács were waiting for a decision by the supreme court, the Kúria, on an earlier referendum initiative concerning the contested Sunday ban. The Kúria threw out the initiative. With that move, a new referendum could be proposed, the first submission coming before the Election Office.
Once the Kúria decision arrived, however, the Socialist deputies found that their submission had been preceded by two proposals presented by private individuals.
The first referendum initiative submitted to the Election Office on Tuesday asks whether citizens agree that retail shops should remain closed on Sundays in line with the Sunday shop closure law.
Nyako’s referendum question, asking voters whether they agree that parliament should scrap the shop closure law altogether, was submitted just a few seconds later.
The order in which the questions submitted is significant because Hungary’s referendum rules state that while a question is being examined by a court, it is not possible to submit another question on the same subject. In line with the law, the Election Office will now assess the initiative that was submitted first, while Nyako’s initiative will most likely be rejected.
Meanwhile, the leftist opposition Democratic Coalition has called on the “democratic opposition parties” to boycott plenary sessions of parliament — with the exception of votes on bills that require a two-thirds majority to pass — until the legislative body amends the rules on holding referendums and until members of the National Election Committee “who are accomplices of [ruling] Fidesz” resign from their positions.
Budapest, February 23 (MTI) – Socialist deputy group leader Zoltán Lukács attempted to submit a referendum initiative concerning Hungary’s Sunday shopping ban but could not get inside the National Election Office early on Tuesday morning.
Lukács told MTI that he had arrived at the building at 6am, but the entrance was “blocked by 15-20 people, pumped up and bald”. The group claimed to be “applicants”, too, Lukács said, and suggested that the “aggressive provocation” had been organised by the government to thwart the Socialist referendum proposal.
Lukács and Istvan Nyakó, another Socialist deputy, were waiting for a supreme court Kúria decision to throw out an earlier referendum initiative concerning the contested Sunday ban. With that move, a new referendum could be proposed, the first submission coming before the Election Office.
Once the Kúria decision arrived, however, the Socialist deputies found that their submission had been preceded by proposals by two private individuals.
Nyakó filed a complaint against the procedure.
The opposition Dialogue for Hungary (PM) party demanded that the authorities ensure the operation of democratic institutions. In a statement, PM called it “scandalous” that “one should fight with pumped up bouncers” before they could exercise their democratic rights. “The government appears to be terrified of facing voters and will not be deterred from any means to thwart free expression,” PM said.
Video in Hungarian
UPDATE
The main question: who are these “pumped up and bald” guys? The answer is simple, they are FTC’s security men. The FTC football team’s chairman name is Gábor Kubatov who also has been party director of Fidesz since July 1, 2006.
You can see one of this guy in the video (right side). He is also FTC’s security man.
UPDATE
The Jobbik party said it demands answers from the government and Fidesz about what happened in front of the Election Office. Lawmaker György Szilágyi said the incident was not just about the Socialists not being able to submit a referendum question, but also about Fidesz “feeling like it can do anything”. Szilágyi said Jobbik wants to know how much the people involved in the incident were paid and from what sources, as well as who ordered them to be there and what their official assignment was. Szilágyi told MTI that his party would initiate setting up a parliamentary investigative committee led by Jobbik to look into the details of the incident and to prevent similar ones from occurring in the future.
The leftist opposition Democratic Coalition (DK) said it was “sickening” that the government used “bulked up skinheads” to prevent the Socialists from submitting their referendum initiative. Zsolt Gréczy, the party’s spokesman, said that when DK wanted to submit its own referendum initiative in connection with the shopping ban, it was faced with the tightening of the referendum law along with various other legal obstacles.
The green LMP party said it would file a criminal complaint. Spokesman István Ferenczi said it was “not realistic” that “17 skinheads should wake up one morning and all think that they would submit a referendum initiative”. He also suggested that there was a close resemblance between these people and ones that forcefully removed protesting students from ruling Fidesz headquarters in 2013. Ferenczi insisted that Hungary’s referendum rules were not adequate but the ruling parties were not interested in changing them.
The Liberal Party said the incident made it clear that Fidesz had “reduced” the institution of the referendum “to a comedy”.
Gergely Gulyás, Fidesz’s deputy group leader, denied any involvement in Tuesday’s developments. Speaking at a press conference on a different subject, Gulyás admitted that the referendum law was “not ideal” but said it was “better than the earlier act” under which even conflicting referendums could be held. The current law may result in a “chaotic situation” when initiatives are submitted, but the previous legislation could turn the whole referendum process into chaos, he insisted.
The first referendum initiative submitted to the Election Office on Tuesday asks whether citizens agree that retail shops should remain closed on Sundays in line with the Sunday shop closure law.
Nyakó’s referendum question, asking voters whether they agree that parliament should scrap the shop closure law altogether, was submitted just a few seconds later.
The order in which the questions submitted is significant because Hungary’s referendum rules state that while a question is being examined by a court, it is not possible to submit another question on the same subject. In line with the law, the Election Office will now assess the initiative that was submitted first, while Nyakó’s initiative will most likely be rejected.
A third question, unrelated to the Sunday shopping ban, was also submitted on Tuesday by another private individual asking citizens whether they agree that parliament should restore the referendum law that was in effect under Hungary’s previous constitution.
Ilona Pálffy, the head of the National Election Office, now has five days to assess whether the question meets the formal requirements of the law, and if it does, submit it to the National Election Committee. The committee will have 30 days to decide whether it will approve or reject the question.
According to vg.hu, the British government could refuse social care in cases of workers coming from other EU states with immediate effect.
The European Commission made a new proposal in connection with the reform needs of the United Kingdom. It would enable the British government to refuse social benefits with immediate effect in cases where workers coming from other EU member states are involved – the Brussel organization told.
Spokesperson Margaritis Schinas confirmed that the EC had made such a proposal, but the member states had not been informed yet.
He emphasized the progress reached at the negotiations between the UK and the EU institutions, but there is no final agreement yet.
Schinas added that the progress has to be approved by all 28 EU member states, vg.hu wrote.
British Prime Minister David Cameron discussed the reforms with Donald Tusk, President of the European Council.
The process of the negotiations about the British needs for reform has begun in November after Cameron sent the reform claims to Brussels and the member states. A few of the main points: Eurozone members should not make discriminating decisions to the detriment of non-Eurozone members, the contractual obligation to the closer integration of the EU should not apply to Great Britain, and the elimination of the abuse of the free movement within the European Union should take place.
The latter point is the most criticized one, for example by Viktor Orbán. The Hungarian Prime Minister said he did not agree with Cameron in this particular question.
The member states could agree on the other parts of the British reform needs and the final solution is expected at the Union leaders’ meeting on February 18-19.
Vg.hu reported that a referendum will be held on the EU membership of the UK until the end of 2017, and the British government wants to re-negotiate its relationship with the Union, so the voters can decide, based on the result of this process, whether they leave or remain in the EU.
Budapest, July 14 (MTI) – Radical nationalist Jobbik supports a trade union referendum initiative to allow men to retire after 40 years of employment and will ask its members to collect signatures, Tamas Sneider, the party’s deputy leader said on Tuesday.
The referendum was initiated by Jozsef Bodnar, of the Railway Workers’ Union, to which the Kuria, Hungary’s supreme court, gave a go-ahead in a recent ruling.
Hungarian union federations MaSzSz and Liga announced on Monday that they would join the initiative.
Allowing men to retire after 40 years of service, which option is currently ensured only to women, was one of the issues Jobbik campaigned for back in the spring to put pressure on the government, Sneider told a press conference.
The unions will most certainly be able to collect 200,000 valid signatures required by law for calling a referendum, Sneider said, adding that the party would however keep tabs on developments.
He said they expect a referendum could be held in December.
