János Vásárhelyi: Convicted Bicske director proposed for state honor

Documents released by the Prime Minister's Office reveal the highly laudatory justification used to propose a state honor for János Vásárhelyi, the former director of the Bicske children's home. Vásárhelyi was sentenced to eight years in prison for sexual offenses involving at least ten minors.

The proposal, which was sent to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán by Zoltán Balog (then Minister of Human Capacities) following a recommendation from Zsolt Bátori (then Director General of the Social and Child Protection Directorate), described Vásárhelyi's work ethic as ‘extraordinary’. The text praised his ‘high professional standards, commitment, conscientiousness, and honesty,’ claiming he often spent his weekends with children and provided ‘security and strength’ even in hopeless situations.

When questioned about the nomination, Prime Minister Orbán stated only that ‘someone proposed it to me.’ The controversy follows previous political scandals involving pardons related to the Bicske case, specifically regarding deputy director Endre Kónya.