Around 15,000 protesters against the regime of Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban have filled the square in the Hungarian capital Budapest.
According to the organisers, this is the beginning of the resistance movement against Orban's government.
Hundreds of public figures, including writers, actors, musicians and journalists, joined the demonstration in Budapest. Most of the speakers criticised what they considered to be the government's increasingly anti-democratic behaviour. Some argued that there was corruption which benefited individuals linked to Orban's Fidesz party.
'This country does not belong to those who lie, who rob people, who have sold their humanity for power', said one of the speakers, Csaba Bogos.
"This country belongs to those who dare to think, who can read between the lines, who believe in themselves and in each other and believe that there is a common, peaceful future that we must build together."
It was the latest anti-government protest since Orban's party pushed through a law in March and a constitutional amendment the following month that effectively banned public LGBTQ+ events.
That law also allowed authorities to use facial recognition technology to identify and fine participants at banned gatherings. This has led to accusations that Orban is leading the country towards a full-blown autocracy, similar to Russia under President Vladimir Putin. | BGNES