President of Hungary Katalin Novák Resigns from her Role due a Pardon she Granted a Convicted Individual

Katalin Éva Veresné Novák (age 46) has resigned as President of Hungary. She was the President of Hungary from May 10, 2022 to February 10, 2024, when her resignation is accepted by the Hungarian parliament.  Elected at the age of 44, she was the first woman and youngest person ever to hold the position. In April 2023 she granted a presidential pardon of Endre Kónya, a former deputy director of an orphanage in Bicske who had been imprisoned due to his involvement in a pedophilia case implicating the orphanage's director. Katalin Novák is married and has three children. Her husband is economist István Veres, director of the Financial Market and Foreign Exchange Market Directorate at the Hungarian National Bank. She is a devout Reformed Christian and welcomed Pope Francis to Hungary during his official visit in late April 2023. Just before Pope Francis’ apostolic journey to Hungary in 2023, President Novak issued pardons of more than two dozen convicted criminals.


The head of state announced her resignation on M1's special broadcast on Saturday afternoon after Prime Minister Viktor Orbán initiated a constitutional amendment in response to the scandal surrounding the presidential pardon, according to which no one who commits a crime against a minor can receive a presidential pardon.

Katalin Novák said she made a mistake and apologized to those who feel she offended them.

Last Friday, it became public that, referring to last year's papal visit, Novák pardoned Endre K. , the former deputy director of the children's home in Bicske, who, according to the court, helped cover up the director's pedophile case. 

In the pardon case, the responsibility of the former Minister of Justice Judit Varga also arose, because although Novák decided on the pardon, the request was submitted by Varga while still a minister, and her countersignature was also required for its validity. It is hard to imagine that the ex-minister Viktor Orbán would have decided on such an issue without his knowledge and approval.

For days, the opposition parties have been demanding the resignation of Katalin Novák . 

Sources; https://web.archive.org/web/20240210163413/https://telex.hu/belfold/2024/02/10/novak-katalin-koztarsasagi-elnok-lemondas-elnoki-kegyelem-bicskei-gyermekotthon-pedofilia - Vatican News - Wikipedia

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