Demény Pál was a writer and a politician. He was member of the Hungarian Communist Party from 1919. He was the editor of the first underground newspaper. Demény Pál was arrested several times by the Hungarian Police. The prosecution demanded he be sentenced to death but the court only condemned him to imprisonment. Demény Pál was among the founders of the new communist movement that stood for independence from Moscow. In 1944, after the German occupation, the various factions of the Communist Party united, planned a civil revolt and armed rebellion in Budapest. Demény cooperated with the members of “Hashomer Hatzair” who provided him with forged documents for deserters from the army and those who were being persecuted mainly for political reasons. Demény helped the Zionist underground in finding hiding places, food and weapons.
After the liberation of Budapest, in February 1945, Pál was arrested by the pro-Soviet government on charges of allegedly being an informer for the fascist police. He was sentenced to four and a half years in prison but was not released after serving his term. In 1953 Pál was tried again and this time condemned to ten years in prison on charges of being a traitor to the homeland. In 1957 he was exonerated from treason and in 1989 also from being an informer. In 1990, after the change of the regime, Demény Pál was a representative of the Socialist Party in the Hungarian Parliament. He died in the conference room of the Parliament.
