Protests in Hungary at closure of main left-wing opposition newspaper

About 2,000 Hungarians have protested outside parliament in Budapest, saying press freedom is under threat following the closure of the country’s leading leftist newspaper.

The decision to suspend publication of Népszabadság by its owners, Mediaworks, who cited the need to seek a viable business model, sparked accusations of a “coup” from the paper’s journalists, many of whom learned of the closure only when they were denied entry to its newsroom in Budapest on Saturday.

Hungary’s right-wing Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, who has voiced a desire to establish an “illiberal democracy”, has been repeatedly accused of interfering in the media.

Mediaworks, which gained total control of Népszabadság last year after buying out the Socialist party’s 27.7% stake, said the decision had been driven by plummeting sales and losses amounting to 5 billion Hungarian florints (€16,412,600) over the past decade.

“Népszabadság has lost 74% of its sold circulation in the past 10 years, corresponding to more than 100,000 copies,” the company said in a press release. The suspension would enable it to “focus on finding the best business model for the paper, in line with the current trends in the industry, and will start consultations in order to best secure future development,” the statement added.

The company, which is owned by Austrian firm Vienna Capital Partners, said all operations have been suspended until a revamped business model can be implemented.