Hungarian President Katalin Novak resigns over intercourse offender affair | EUROtoday

After huge criticism
Sex offender affair: Hungary's President Katalin Novak resigns

Hungarian President Katalin Novak, who got here beneath criticism for pardoning a intercourse offender, has resigned. She is resigning from her publish due to her “mistake,” stated the confidant of right-wing nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban in a speech on Saturday. Novak, who took workplace in 2022, was the primary girl to move Hungary.

Novak got here beneath huge stress after the investigative information portal “444” revealed that she had pardoned a person concerned in youngster abuse in April 2023 on the event of Pope Francis' go to to Budapest. The former deputy head of a kids's residence was sentenced to greater than three years in jail in 2022 for masking up legal actions by his superior. After the pardon turned identified, the opposition known as for Novak's resignation, and there have been demonstrations within the nation.

Former Justice Minister Varga can also be retiring

“I apologize to those I hurt and to any victims who may have felt that I did not stand with them,” Novak stated. She “stands up for the protection of children and families, has done so and will continue to do so,” added the 46-year-old. Before she was elected president, she had been household minister for a very long time. In the Hungarian political system, the president's major duties are protocol-related.

After Novak's resignation, former Justice Minister Judit Varga additionally introduced her resignation. Varga agreed to the pardon in April 2023. She had resigned from the highest of the ministry to guide the listing of Orban's Fidesz occasion within the upcoming European elections. She has now resigned from her mandate as a parliamentarian and can not stand within the European elections.

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DPA