Fifty-three days after the students of the University of Theater and Cinematographic Arts occupied and blocked the institution’s building, on the national holiday, the university students called on everyone to support them. The crowd marched from the Technical University to Plaza 15 de Marzo and then to Urano. The Health Law and the Basic Curriculum were also discussed.

There is growing resistance from students and professors to the erosion of the autonomy of the University of Theater and Film Arts (SZFE) due to the government’s decision to continue the university as a foundation under Attila Vidnyánszky. More and more world-famous artists are joining the solidarity movement around SZFE, but the Vidnyánszky family is not expanding. You can follow the latest developments in the SZFE scandal in our article series.

Click here to read our minute-by-minute coverage of the demo.

“The citizens of the University of Theater and Film Arts and the students who show solidarity with them from different universities in the country are organizing a demonstration parade in the spirit of intellectual freedom. We look forward to everyone who wants to express concern about the universal values ​​that have recently been threatened in Hungary; only one of them is autonomous higher education. Stay with us, for the freedom of all! “

With this exclamation, the citizens of the SZFE organized a demonstration on October 23, after several similar but minor demonstrations. The “Freedom for All – Commemoration of 56″ demonstration began in front of the Technical University on Friday afternoon, as in 1956. Here, Andrea Fullajtár, the artist from the Katona József Theater, recited the National Song and then the crowd left for the March 15 Square. More than ten thousand protesters gathered (no exact data, but the protesters filled the wide Rákóczi road from the Erzsébet bridge to Urania for more than a kilometer. Several of them also protested against the health situation, Lőrinc Mészáros or the “state gangster”). , but it also turned out that students from ELTE, the University of Pécs, Metropolitan, BME, MOME and the University of Debrecen, among others, also appeared.

Gergely Karácsony also participated in the demonstration, which was declared politically free, and Dorottya Udvaros, the National Theater artist led by Attila Vidnyánszky, also returned. Despite this, MTI, a public media news provider operating on a budget of 118 billion HUF for the coming year, did not publish lines or images of the demonstration that started at four in the afternoon.

The crowd that sang and applauded marched for the first time to the Plaza 15 de Marzo, where 1956 was commemorated with torches; From here, the march continued in silence, to which the organizers regularly reminded the protesters to start chanting “Free Country, Free University” over and over again.

The beginning of the procession reached the stage installed in front of Urania at six in the afternoon.

At the beginning of program 56, the independent music scholars played Beethoven’s Egmont overture, then Vilmos Noémi, a student at SZFE, began the speeches. The student sent a message to Viktor Orbán: “It is possible to make a revolution.” He added: “If you want to lead a country with good performance, it would be important not to take your eyes off the country in the meantime.” Finally, he surveyed the crowd and declared:

It seems that the National Cooperation System has been established.

Later, they spoke Barnabás Fülöp, ELTE BTK and Mira Simonyi Lengyel, students of the University of Fine Arts, representatives of the Secret University who support the citizens of SZFE. They said that, first year, it would not be their job to organize demonstrations, but to sit down to give lectures, but they are still here because “we want a quality higher education, but that is only possible in an autonomous educational institution. However, this is not guaranteed by the current power ”, but rather“ wants to put higher education under even more strict control ”. According to Philip, he is independent of the government on paper, but is in fact still a new pro-government maintainer.

The government is going to stay

and preventing this is “collective responsibility”.

In fact, it was not only the autonomy of the SZFE that was discussed at the rally, but also the professions whose representatives also felt that their profession was in danger. Erzsébet Nagy, member of the National Board of the Democratic Union of Teachers (PDSZ) and teacher from Pécs, also spoke and said that from the beginning the PDSZ supported the initiative of the students and teachers of the SZFE to “keep unauthorized hands delegated by the state ”as they were“ in the same boat. against the wind “.

Isabel la Grande spoke of the new national basic curriculum “putting on their necks”, which transmits “following ideological norms, distorted and sometimes false vision of history” and encourages not thinking, but norm-following behaviors, but also changes in the Civil Service Law. He concluded by saying: “The cooperation of SZFE university citizens is exemplary. We are very proud of them, but it would be good to have not only their pushers but also followers in other areas of the world of work, and in SZFE we should not have colonels, but rights of workers and students, restoring institutional autonomy and leaders elected by university citizens. . to resolve the relationship. Please note that there is no free country without free education. “

Tamás Székely, vice president of the Hungarian Trade Union Confederation, also spoke and said that the citizens of SZFE were “intimidated by blackmail and words of power”, but that they “set an example for all of us.” He also said: “Now the students are protecting our future, now we have to protect them, but not with words, with deeds: shouting from the couch is little now.”

The health profession was also represented at the demonstration. Dr. Andrea Szkaliczki spoke out against the new health care law because, while she sees the salary increases and the abolition of gratitude money as a “milestone”, she believes the new law is “good not only for doctors but also for also for patients “,” not suitable for the family “, and in general,” it is not a wise and thoughtful reform, but a change that slows down development “. Ágnes Kós, a surgical assistant, spoke of feeling like she was falling since the law was passed.

Where is the help, where is a handrail, who holds us? And then here are the theater students and educators who gave us an example of unity and solidarity.

Aladár Horváth, representative of the Romani Parliament, spoke about the Hungarian Roma heroes of 56 and said: “Today, you acting students are leading the fight for freedom.” During the long speeches, some had already leaked from the stage when Horváth and the FreeRoma Group sang the Secret University, the hymn of the demonstration.

Finally, Noémi Vilmos, a student from SZFE, closed the demonstration. “This event is coming to an end now, but what happened here today may even be the beginning of something. A path in which this society, which has fallen into its atoms, meets again. Insist on freedom of education, science, freedom of thought! “He said, then declared:” We, the SZFE community, continue to defend the independence of our university and defend others because we believe that we can only be truly free if the other person who is by our side is. “

To finish, the crowd sang the Anthem and then after a few chants, at the request of the organizers, everyone actually went home. And on Saturday the 54th day of the university blockade begins.



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Students at the University of Theater and Film have been protesting for months against the way the institution has changed its model; After several previous demonstrations, a demonstration entitled Freedom of us all – Commemoration of 56 was also organized for the national holiday. The crowd marched from the Technical University to Urania, where the show began.