Anti-fascist Maja T. from Jena has been in Hungarian prison under torture-like conditions for over two years. Maja was previously illegally extradited to Budapest by German authorities, where she was sentenced to eight years in prison in February. Maja's defense was appealed - the new trial begins on Friday, and solidarity support was also announced.

In February of this year, the anti-fascist figure Maja T. was sentenced to eight years in prison in Hungary. Maja is said to have been involved in an attack on fascists in Budapest in 2023 as part of the “Day of Honor”. After the defense appealed, the hearing will now take place again on September 18th and September 30thnegotiated, where the final judgment should be. Solidarity support during the process and travel are planned.

Maja T. sentenced to eight years in prison in Budapest – protest announced

The Day of Honor is an annual fascist day of remembrance that is celebrated on February 12th by right-wing extremists and Nazis in Budapest and is intended to commemorate the attempted escape by the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS soldiers and their Hungarian allies in 1945. At the same time, however, anti-fascist counter-protests also take place every year. In 2023, Maja T., along with several other anti-fascists, is said to have attacked participants in the neo-Nazi Remembrance Day during a counter-protest.

Illegal extradition and torture-like detention conditions in Hungary

In the morning hours of June 28, 2024, Maja was illegally extradited from Germany to Hungary. An urgent appeal to the Federal Constitutional Court decided against extradition just a few hours later at 8:30 a.m. However, the Attorney General's Office was informed too late. The extradition could no longer be stopped and the court ordered the authorities to obtain a return to Germany.

A long high-security trial followed, during which Maja, as a non-binary person, was placed in solitary confinement in a men's prison and has since been subjected to extremely poor prison conditions. Daily naked full-body searches, vermin in the cell, hardly any contact with the outside world, video surveillance and moldy food are everyday life. Maja started a 40-day hunger strike against these prison conditions and for repatriation, which was the first international hunger strike with the support of solidarity forcesForced the Foreign Office to act.

During the course of the process, Maja's non-binary nature repeatedly played an important role. The Hungarian state does not recognize Maja's gender. Most recently, Maja was violently attacked by five officers because she was wearing a dress. Hungary is considered one of the EU countries with a special onerepressive course towards LGBTI+ people.

Maja T. attacked by five officers in Hungarian custody for wearing a dress

Solidarity support in the revision process

Since then, both the defense, which is demanding a lower sentence, and the prosecution, which is demanding a higher sentence, have filed appeals. The public prosecutor's office continues to insist on a maximum sentence of 24 years in prison. The corresponding process starts on Friday. However, with the decision on September 30th, one could alsoReturn transferin Germany can be applied for at the Gera Regional Court.

Hartmut Brückner from the federal board of Rote Hilfe e.V. says about the process. V.: "The show trial was obviously intended to set an example in order to intimidate the anti-fascist movement. There is also a fear that constitutional standards will be trampled on in the revision." At the same time, the revision processes of the German Anna M. and the Italian Gabriele M. are continuing. Judgments were also made against both of them in February, but in absentia - in Gabriele's case they wereHowever, the exact allegations are not known.

Antifascist:in Maja: A blatant injustice

There will be solidarity support during the verdict on September 30thshared bus journeyinstead of. It starts on September 29th in Berlin with stops in Schkeuditz (for the cities of Halle and Leipzig), Jena and Dresden. A rally outside the court is also planned.

For all information and tickets you can contact the organizers at the email addresssolibus.fuer.maja@systemli.orgreport. In addition to the solidarity-based process support in Budapest, solidarity actions can also be expected in several cities in Germany.

The postNew round of negotiations for anti-fascist Maja after harsh verdict in Hungaryappeared firstperspective.