The pedophilia scandal currently causing outrage in Hungary has run its course, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said during a traditional annual address to the nation. While the case was "a nightmare" that affected all of Hungary, the resignation on February 10 of Katalin Novak as president and the withdrawal from public life of former Justice Minister Judit Varga had restored the country's unity, Orban said. On February 16, tens of thousands gathered in Budapest to protest the government's handling of the scandal, caused when both women signed a pardon for an orphanage director who had covered up child sex abuse at his institution.
Hungary's Orban Sees Pedophilia Scandal As Over, Despite Protests
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban delivers his annual speech in Budapest on February 17.