Hungary's Orban government moves to stem fallout from juvenile center abuse case

Hungary’s government has placed state-run juvenile detention centres under direct police supervision in an effort to contain the political fallout from a recent abuse scandal, Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s chief of staff said Wednesday.

Opposition leader Peter Magyar, whose Tisza party is leading opinion polls ahead of a likely April election, called on Orban to resign and demanded early elections after an opposition activist and former lawmaker released a video showing physical abuse at a juvenile detention centre in Budapest.

“The government decided at its meeting yesterday that the current management within the social care system is not sufficient, as it failed to prevent these crimes,” Gergely Gulyas said during a briefing. “Therefore, the government decided that these five juvenile detention centres will be placed under direct police supervision.”

Gulyas added that the interior minister had informed the government that prosecutors are investigating the case. In a separate statement Tuesday night, the prosecutor’s office said three people had been detained at the Budapest facility and promised to release further information on Wednesday.

Video Sparks Resignation

The video released by the former lawmaker prompted the resignation of the centre’s acting director. Prosecutors have also been investigating the former director of the same Budapest centre for months over allegations including running a prostitution ring, money laundering, and human trafficking.

On Wednesday, opposition leader Magyar called for a protest march to Orban’s office in the Budapest castle district on Saturday.

Magyar founded the Tisza party last year following a scandal that led to the resignation of President Katalin Novak, an Orban ally, after it was revealed she had granted a pardon in a child sex abuse case. The episode represented a rare and significant political setback for Orban, who has been in power since 2010. -Krisztina Than and Anita Komuves/Reuters