Anti-govt protests enter third day in Hungary
401 views · Published 19 December 2018 · 1:48 · Indexed 8 October 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(14 Dec 2018) Hundreds of people gathered on Friday outside Hungary's Parliament building for a third night of protests against the government's approval of amendments to labour laws - changes that trade unions and opponents have criticised as a "slave law" benefiting employers. The government-backed proposal, which was approved by 130-52 on Wednesday, raises workers' allowable overtime from 250 to 400 hours a year and relaxes other labour rules in a bid to offset Hungary's growing labour shortage. Various opposition leaders addressed crowds on Friday evening to show their disapproval of Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Fidesz party passing the law. Among speakers were Anna Donath, Vice President of the left-wing Momentum Movement off-assembly party, who was detained by police on Thursday after holding a smoke flare. Donath urged the crowd to turn up and protest against what she called "unlawful" detentions by police. Socialist opposition politician Agnes Kunhalmi encouraged protesters to come together, stressing "we have such a historic moment and political situation now in Hungary that this (uniting) is a precondition to achieve any political success." Since the passing of the law, Budapest has witnessed scuffles between protesters and police in front of the parliament building, and police using pepper spray and tear gas to disperse demonstrators. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/93337047847af8cac0edb0c9134194b8
