BUDAPEST (Sputnik), Mary Lopatto — Last month, Hungary completed the construction of a 108-mile fence on the country’s southern border with Serbia. The Hungarian authorities said that the erected fence would be accompanied by a more permanent 13-foot wall, which is currently under construction.
"Hungary should continue to build a physical border, a tight fence, because this fence of barbed wire, which is currently placed [on the border] does not protect the border at all. It is necessary to hermetically seal the border," Laszlo Toroczkai said.
Shortly before the Hungarian border fence was finished, the European Commission opened 32 investigations against 18 of the 28 EU member states, including Hungary, for alleged violations of European laws on asylum.
Hungarian soldiers are not deployed at the country’s border with Serbia to protect it from the massive influx of migrants, the mayor added.
"There are soldiers on the border, but they are primarily engaged in the construction of the fence. They do not guard the border," Laszlo Toroczkai said.
Toroczkai stressed that the forces protecting the border with Serbia have not been given the authority to use any forms of lethal or non-lethal weapons, such as teargas or guns, except in cases of self-defense.
"I personally see that Hungarian police treat the country's citizens much more brutally than they do migrants," the mayor said.
"Official figures cannot reflect reality: a huge number of refugees remain uncaught, which means that not 3,000 migrants come every day, but many more," Laszlo Toroczkai said.
He added that the number of illegal migrants was constantly growing. "The police can no longer cope with the situation," the mayor pointed out.
