|
 "Vaccines should not be mandatory! We don't tolerate blackmail,"
said the slogan of the rally where people held up banners saying: "I
am unvaccinated, not a criminal" and "Enough of COVID dictatorship."
Hungary's nationalist government has made COVID-19 vaccines
mandatory only for teachers and healthcare workers.
With 10 million people and 40,237 people deaths from COVID-19 so
far, Hungary has a vaccination rate of just over 60%, which lags
western European levels.
Just over six million Hungarians have received at least two shots,
and 3.3 million have also received a third booster.
New infections have spiked this week due to the Omicron variant but
there are hardly any restrictions in place. The government now
offers a fourth jab after a consultation with a doctor and a
six-month gap.
[to top of second column] |
 Our Homeland, an offshoot of
the former far-right party Jobbik, has allied
itself with ultra-radical fringe groups in past
years.
According to a December poll by Zavecz Research,
Our Homeland had 3% support, which would be
below the 5% threshold for making it into
parliament at the April elections.
The ruling Fidesz had 38% support, while the
six-party opposition alliance scored 39% in the
poll, indicating that Prime Minister Viktor
Orban faces a tough race for re-election after
12 years in power.
(Reporting by Krisztina Than and Marton Monus;
Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
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