HUNGARY: Hungarian President Pal Schmitt announces his resignation after a plagiarism scandal, a decision welcomed by Budapest residents

Record ID: 439805

  • Title: HUNGARY: Hungarian President Pal Schmitt announces his resignation after a plagiarism scandal, a decision welcomed by Budapest residents
  • Date: 3rd April 2012
  • Summary: BUDAPEST, HUNGARY (APRIL 2, 2012) (REUTERS) STATUE OUTSIDE PARLIAMENT PEOPLE WALKING NEAR PARLIAMENT PEOPLE WALKING (SOUNDBITE) (Hungarian) RESIDENT ADAM VER SAYING: "This decision should have been made much earlier. Keeping the whole issue uncertain over the weekend was completely unnecessary, what the public media did on this regard - I'm thinking of the interview w
  • Embargoed: 18th April 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Hungary, Hungary
  • Country: Hungary
  • Topics: Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA6HIWVZ01HZNTK4Z9IRZWH310P
  • Story Text: Pal Schmitt became on Monday (April 2) the first president in Hungary's post-communist history to resign, relinquishing the post after a plagiarism row ended with the statesman losing his doctorate.
    The controversy comes at a sensitive time for Hungary, central Europe's most indebted nation, as it tries to resolve a lengthy dispute with the European Union on contested new laws to unlock stalled talks on financial support.
    The 69-year-old Schmitt, an ally of conservative Prime Minister Viktor Orban, was stripped of his sports doctorate last week after a row that critics say damaged the prestige of his office and harmed Hungary's image.
    "Based on Hungary's constitution, which I have signed, the president expresses the unity of the nation. The provision means that in this situation when my personal issue divides my beloved nation rather than unites it, it is my duty to end my service and resign my mandate as president," Schmitt told parliament.
    Schmitt, a two-time Olympic gold medal-winning fencer, had an instrumental role in pushing the agenda of Orban's government, signing controversial reforms, such as retroactive taxes, into law.
    Schmitt was elected president by parliament for a five-year term in 2010, after Orban's Fidesz party won elections.
    Less than two years later, Schmitt, who pledged to be "a people of the people" when taking office, vacates his palace in Budapest's luxurious castle district as the least popular president since the collapse of communism.
    Schmitt presided over the passage of a new constitution and about 300 new laws, some of which sparked a bitter dispute with Hungary's international partners and the EU, hampering its bid for vital financial aid to avert a market crisis.
    Budapest's Semmelweis University revoked Schmitt's doctorate last week, after its inquiry found his 1992 thesis "An analysis of the programme of Modern Olympic Games", had not met scientific and ethical standards.
    The university's decision went further than suggested by the findings of its investigative committee, which said while Schmitt's 215-page thesis contained "unusually large amounts of verbatim translation", it met the formal standards of the time.
    Schmitt, a former Fidesz party vice president, said he would appeal the ruling on the grounds that the university had no jurisdiction in the matter and only a court could have decided to revoke his doctorate.
    The president has denied wrongdoing since business news portal hvg.hu broke allegations in January that he had copied large parts of his 1992 thesis from other authors without proper quotes or referencing.
    People in the streets welcomed the news of Schmitt's resignation.
    "This decision should have been made much earlier. Keeping the whole issue uncertain over the weekend was completely unnecessary, what the public media did on this regard, - I'm thinking of the interview with the president - was one of the saddest moments of the history of Hungarian media. But now it seems that this country is not after all the country of no consequences so I really welcome his decision," Adam Ver said.
    People agreed that Schmitt had no other morally right choice.
    "It has become undoubted that he had done something wrong. Even if he did write his thesis as his own work, he cannot prove it. In such a case, for a head of state who represents a nation the only honest way is to resign from his post," Istvan Soos said.
    "Morally it was a completely wrong thing. I think the whole country was of this opinion that he had to resign," Ibolya Toth said.
    Parliament has 15 days to vote on the president's resignation.
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