Budapest
Protesting a ‘slave law’: Thousands of Hungarians protested in cities across the country last week against the increasingly authoritarian rule of nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Protesters waved Hungarian and European Union flags as they marched against a new law, dubbed the “slave law” by opponents, that lets businesses demand that employees work up to 400 hours a year of overtime—and allows companies to delay compensation for those hours for up to three years. Another new law sets up a parallel, politicized court system that gives the government control over “public administration” cases such as electoral laws, corruption, and the right to protest. Trade unions are calling for a general strike to oppose the laws.