Prime Minister Orbán presented a 2016 state award to convicted orphanage director
Prime Minister Orbán Viktor unveiled a 2016 document showing he nominated orphanage director János Vásárhelyi for a state honor, despite Vásárhelyi’s later conviction for sexual abuse of boys.
In a presentation of a comprehensive child-protection system review, Prime Minister Orbán Viktor revealed a 2016 submission that sought to grant the Hungarian Bronze Cross, civil division, to János Vásárhelyi, director of the Bicske Kossuth Zsuzsa Children’s Home and Primary School. The proposal, signed by Orbán as prime minister, cited Vásárhelyi’s work with disadvantaged children as exemplary. However, Vásárhelyi was later convicted in 2019 of eight years’ imprisonment and a ban from public duties after being found guilty of nine cases of sexual misconduct with boys under his supervision.
The scandal intensified when his deputy, Endre Kónya, was also convicted for attempting to coerce a victim to retract a statement, and was pardoned in 2023, leading to the resignation of the then-president of the republic. Following the conviction, the town of Bicske revoked a civic honor previously awarded to Vásárhelyi, and calls were made to withdraw an earlier capital-city award. The recent child-protection report highlighted systemic failures and a lack of decisive action over decades.
Why it matters
It exposes how a convicted child-abuser once received a state honor, raising concerns about oversight in Hungary’s child-protection system.
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