Miklós Duray, a former deputy chairman of the Hungarian Coalition Party (SMK), faces a fine of €300 for using the Hungarian language in an apology to the Slovak National Party (SNS) that he was ordered to make by a court, the TASR newswire reported.
“No appeal is possible against this notice,” states the fine instruction sent by executor Milan Somík to Duray.
However, the former SMK MP has refused to apologise in Slovak.
“I have received the notice, but I do not know yet what for,” he told TASR. “I have complied with the court decision. I have not had time yet to consult on the next legal steps with my lawyer.”
The SNS sued Duray for a statement he made in 2006 in which he called the SNS a fascist party. The party won its case and the court ordered Duray to apologise. He did so, but sent the apology in Hungarian. When the SNS sought an apology in Slovak, and a court order to seize Duray’s property, the SMK member defended himself by pointing to a change in circumstances, claiming that he was supposed to apologise in his capacity as SMK deputy chairman but that as he no longer held the post any apology would be meaningless. The Bratislava Regional Court dismissed his argument and confirmed the verdict of the Bratislava III District Court, which obliged Duray to apologise and pay a fine.
Source: TASR
Compiled by Radka Minarechová from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
