Berlin, February 3, 2025—Hungarian authorities should immediately drop misdemeanor charges against two journalists who were arrested in a parking lot as they waited to question Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and detained for three hours, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Monday.
On January 30, police removed the independent online outlet Telex’s reporter Dániel Simor and camera operator Noémi Gombos from a car park outside a film studio in Fót, a city 15 miles north of the capital Budapest, before Orbán arrived to officially open it.
“Hungarian authorities should conduct a swift and transparent investigation into the detention of Telex journalists Dániel Simor and Noémi Gombos at an event attended by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán”, said Attila Mong, CPJ’s Europe representative. “It is unacceptable to use police force to obstruct reporters from asking questions of public officials. This marks a clear escalation of intimidatory tactics, previously unheard of in Hungary.”
Simor told CPJ that Telex was not allowed to ask Orbán questions during his annual end of year press conference in December, so they registered to cover the film studio opening and were waiting in the parking lot to ask Orbán some questions about healthcare.
Simor said that Counter Terrorism Centre agents told the journalists to move to a cordoned-off press area but they refused, saying they wanted to directly question the prime minister. He said Orbán’s press officer, Bertalan Havasi, then said that their press accreditation for the event had been revoked and they were taken to a police station where they were questioned for three hours.
Simor said the police then opened misdemeanor proceedings against them for resisting police orders, which carry a maximum penalty of a US$500 fine.
In a statement, Havasi described the journalists’ “clowning” as “pathetic and illegal.” CPJ’s email requesting comment from him received no reply.
Since Orbán returned to power in 2010, his right-wing government has systematically eroded protections for independent media. His landslide 2022 election victory has led to an even harsher media climate, with the introduction of a Russian-style law to clamp down on media outlets that receive foreign funding.