Katalin Novak becomes the first woman to hold the ceremonial office of president.
Budapest:
Hungarian President Katalin Novak, a close ally of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, announced her resignation on Saturday amid anger over the pardon of a man involved in a child sex abuse case.
Soon after, another Orban supporter, former Justice Minister Judit Varga, announced that she would retire from public life over the incident.
The announcements came after growing pressure from opposition politicians and protests outside the presidential palace on Friday night.
“I’m resigning,” said Nowak, 46, who admitted she had made a mistake.
The former family policy minister added: “I apologize to those I have harmed and to any victims who may have felt I did not support them.”
“I am, have been and will always support protecting children and families.”
In March 2022, Novak became the first woman to hold the ceremonial position of president.
The controversy was sparked by the pardon of the former deputy director of a children’s home. He helped cover up his bosses’ sexual abuse of children in their charge.
The decision was taken during Pope Francis’ visit to Budapest last April.
The country’s opposition has been calling for Novak’s resignation since independent news website 444 revealed the decision last week.
On Friday night, demonstrators gathered outside the presidential palace and three presidential advisers resigned.
Orban must “take responsibility” –
Novak was in Qatar on Friday to watch Hungary’s World Water Polo Championship match against Kazakhstan before quickly returning to Budapest.
As soon as the plane landed, she showed up and announced her resignation.
“The approval of the pardon and lack of explanation may have raised suspicions about zero tolerance for pedophilia,” she said.
“But there’s no doubt about it,” she added before apologizing.
Minutes after her announcement, another Orban ally, Judit Varga, also announced she was “retiring from public life.”
She resigned as justice minister to lead European Parliament elections and approved the pardon.
“I relinquish my position as a member of Parliament and as head of the European Parliament’s list,” she said on Facebook.
“It was fast: first Novak, then Varga,” Hungarian MEP Anna Donath said, reacting to the news.
“But we know that Hungary cannot take any important decisions without Viktor Orban’s approval,” Donáth, a member of the small liberal Momentum party, added on Facebook.
“He has to take responsibility and explain what happened… it’s his system”.
In an effort to quell national anger, Orban announced on Thursday that he wanted to change Hungary’s constitution to exclude the possibility of amnesty for pedophile offenders.
Novak is temporarily replaced by Parliament Speaker László Kovir, named last year by Forbes magazine as the most powerful woman in Hungarian public life.
Her departure leaves Hungary’s political landscape even more male-dominated. Since mid-2023, there have been no women in Viktor Orban’s 16-member cabinet.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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