Opposition calls for end to restrictions, state of special legal order

Politicians of Jobbik, the Socialists, DK, LMP and Parbeszed, and an allied opposition candidate of Budapest’s 13th district held a joint press conference on Thursday.

Parbeszed spokesman Richard Barabas said the coronavirus pandemic had entered a new phase where emphasis should be placed on individual responsibility rather than state control. He called for an end to all state restrictions that curb people’s freedoms.

LMP co-leader Erzsebet Schmuck said people wanted to return to a normal life, and discriminating against the unvaccinated was “unacceptable”. She said adults could decide when and where they should be wearing masks, and she called coronavirus testing to be made free of charge.

Budapest 13th district candidate Zoltan Vajda highlighted contradictions in restrictions, noting that participants of sporting events were not expected to wear a mask but theatregoers must wear them during a performance.

DK deputy group leader Gergely Arato said Prime Minister Viktor Orban had been “holding back information” about what justified certain restrictions ever since the start of the epidemic.

Jobbik lawmaker Gyorgy Laszlo Lukacs called for an end to limits on health care which, he added, meant that many people were not getting proper care.