While some protesters call the MTV siege a "revolution" and compare it to the 1956 uprising, President László Sólyom on Tuesday sets the record straight:

"These are criminal acts that cannot be justified."

Sólyom says the state must protect its institutions and its citizens from such incidents, and he attributes the events to the small number of policemen and the lack of proper equipment.  Sólyom states that a line must be drawn between basic human rights (such as the freedom of expression) and criminal activities.

In a television interview, former Budapest police chief János Bodrácska says the water cannon vehicle deployed at the MTV building is several decades old and was imported under the socialist regime from Poland.