Posted on 10/04/2006 11:38:00 AM PDT by lizol
Hungary PM says democracy at stake
Oct 4, 2006 — BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany said on Wednesday Hungary's democracy was at stake and underlined he would not resign in the face of mounting pressure.
Hungary has been in crisis since the leak of a tape two weeks ago in which Gyurcsany admitted lying about the state of the economy to win April's election. He has defied opposition calls to quit and is firmly backed by his Socialist Party.
"The main opposition (Fidesz) and its leader (Viktor Orban) are filled with a thirst for revenge. He cannot accept they are not in government and seeks ways to return to power without a democratic mandate," Gyurcsany told national daily Nepszava in an interview on Wednesday.
"At stake now is not who is prime minister or the survival of the government but the fate of the constitutional, parliamentary framework," Gyurcsany said a day after a senior figure in Fidesz warned of an uprising unless he quit.
Gyurcsany's Socialists suffered major losses to Fidesz at local elections on Sunday. Orban, prime minister from 1998 to 2002, gave the ruling coalition a 72-hour ultimatum to oust the prime minister.
Orban also called for a protest outside parliament on Friday to coincide with a confidence vote in Gyurcsany which the latter looks set to win due to a comfortable coalition majority.
"If a parliamentary party questions the right of the parliamentary majority to govern and tells it to accept its dictate otherwise it calls its supporters to the streets … then democracy is at stake," Gyurcsany said.
"A legitimate parliament cannot be blackmailed from outside parliament. That would be the end of the third (Hungarian) republic." Fidesz has said it will abstain from Friday's parliamentary session.
Gyurcsany repeated there was no alternative to economic reforms, and at a faction meeting late on Tuesday called on the party to support him.
"We must stand firm and proceed with the policy of creating (fiscal) balance, implementing reforms and developments. Not just because there does not seem to be an alternative but because it is in the interests of the country," he said.
"This is not a decision for the moment. This is decision is for the upcoming years."
Hungarian's a weird language (related to Finnish believe it or not), so here's a guide on how to pronounce those names mentioned in the article...
Ferenc Gyurcsany- fer-ents durts-suh-nyih
Nepszava- nep-sah-va
Orban- awr-bun
Fidesz- fih-des
Yeah I'm a nerd : D
Almost correct. ;-)
Ferenc Gyurcsany - fer-ents dyoor-chahny
Nepszava - nayp-suh-vuh
Orban - awr-bahn
Oh thanks :D
I just started learning Hungarian
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