Residents And Workers Of Budapest’s “Party District” Stage Demonstrations

  • 4 Sep 2017 8:10 AM
Residents And Workers Of Budapest’s “Party District” Stage Demonstrations
Budapest District VII residents want peace in inner Erzsébetváros. Residents of the district staged a demonstration Wednesday in support of regulations to curb noise, trash, drug dealing and other problems associated with the proliferation of bars and pubs.

Around 100 people protested outside the local assembly building including children, young people, adults and pensioners, holding signs such as “That’s enough!” Other signs voiced protest over rodents, loud noise and excrement on the streets.

The protesters find the “party district” – bordered by Károly Boulevard and the Nagykörút on the west and east, and Dohány Street and Király Street on the south and north – to be nearly unlivable thanks to the amount of bars and so-called party tourists.

District VII mayor Zsolt Vattamány (Fidesz-KDNP) earlier promised to do something about problems of excessive noise and filth, and he plans to prepare a draft regulation by mid-September to present to the district council.

On Tuesday around 300 employees working in the district demonstrated against the proposed regulations. Security and catering personnel marched from Madách Square to the Erzsébetváros assembly building and held up signs that read “We want a referendum” or “Should we, too, go abroad to work???” The “party district” provides jobs for an estimated 10-12,000 people.

The latter protest was organized by the person behind the most popular Hungarian facebook page, Tibi atya. The Facebook page is connected to a pub on Erzsébet Boulevard, Humbák Művek.

The District VII delegation of the Hungarian Socialist Party initiated a special session to discuss a proposal by district assemblymen Gábor Devosa, Tibor Kispál and Gábor Németh.

This includes installing free mobile toilets on the streets, regulated indoor smoking areas, and more responsibility placed on the pubs to keep public areas clean.

Source: The Budapest Beacon

Republished with permission

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