HUNGARY: Beleaguered Hungarian prime minister Ferenc Gyurcsany insisted yesterday he had not lied to his people, and that most of them supported him for telling the truth about the state of the nation in a leaked speech that sparked violent protests.
"The speech was a dramatic monologue, with a lot of passion, unilateralism and exaggeration," he told French newspaper Le Monde about an admission to Socialist party colleagues he misled the country about the economy to win re-election in April.
"When I speak of lies, I am talking about a general attitude and not about specific matters," said Mr Gyurcsany, who has refused to resign in defiance of 10,000-strong nightly protests outside parliament and riots that have injured almost 300 people.
"I believe the population is behind me and thinks that, for the first time in 10 years, someone has dared say such things. So I will not resign."
After three nights of clashes between a few hundred rioters and police, Thursday night passed off peacefully in Budapest.
Yesterday, Mr Gyurcsany flew to Germany to meet chancellor Angela Merkel. He said she was familiar with the expletive-riddled speech to party colleagues, in which he admitted "lying day and night" to the public about the economy.
"I asked Merkel whether she agreed that this is facing up bravely to something that has been long due in Hungary," he said after their meeting. "The chancellor said 'Yes, I agree'."
Police said they were ready for any disturbances last night, after a nationalist group called an anti-government protest in central Budapest, but the main opposition Fidesz party cancelled a march planned for today amid fears of more violence.
Polls suggest support for Mr Gyurcsany has grown this week, with many Hungarians partly blaming Fidesz for inciting the protests that sparked sporadic rioting. Fidesz says Mr Gyurcsany should resign if the Socialists lose the October 1st local elections.
But the premier insisted yesterday that his diatribe was like a row with a long-term girlfriend, in which the words used should not be taken literally. "It doesn't mean your four years [ together] were nothing. It doesn't mean that you don't like her," he told the Washington Post. "It means that you would like to change and improve your relations."