Hungary’s President Katalin Novak resigns after row over pardoning of paedophile

Hungary's President Katalin Novak announced her resignation on Saturday (Feb 10) following intense public backlash over her decision to pardon a man convicted as an accomplice in covering up a sex abuse case at a children's home.

Addressing the nation in a televised speech, Novak said, "I made a mistake... Today is the last day that I address you as president."

She admitted to granting a pardon in April, believing the convicted individual did not exploit the vulnerability of the children under his care. She, however, recognised the lack of reasoning behind the decision, and acknowledged doubts raised about the country's zero-tolerance stance on paedophilia.

Earlier, protests had erupted in the capital Budapest, with scores of people demanding Novak's resignation.

Opposition parties had also called for her departure from office.

The controversy arose when Novak pardoned several individuals, including the deputy director of a children's home, just before a visit by Pope Francis in April 2023.

One of the pardoned individuals, Endre K, had been sentenced in 2022 to three years and four months in prison. Novak's pardon allowed him to be set free.

Who is Katalin Novak?

Novak, an ally and former family minister of Prime Minister Viktor Orban, was Hungary's first female president and the youngest person to hold the office. Her resignation marked a rare moment of political turmoil for Orban's nationalist governing party, Fidesz, which has maintained a constitutional majority since 2010.

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Judit Varga, another key Fidesz figure implicated in the pardon as Hungary's former minister of justice, announced her resignation from public life in a Facebook post.

Varga, expected to lead Fidesz's list of European Parliament candidates, took political responsibility for endorsing the controversial pardon.

Prime Minister Orban, while not directly addressing the Novak controversy, announced a constitutional amendment to prevent convicted child abusers from receiving clemency. In a Facebook video, he said that there will be "no mercy for paedophile offenders".

(With inputs from agencies)