Viktor Orbán

In Hungary, NGOs are now required to register as “civic organisations funded from abroad” if they receive financial support from a foreign source. The government is trying to delegitimise any organisation that criticises certain government policies, says Veronika Móra.

In April 2017, a series of demonstrations took place in Budapest against an amendment to the Higher Education Act. They were organised by mostly social media-based groups, but they differed in several aspects from the demonstration culture that has been the norm in Hungary in recent decades.

Two years ago, the Hungarian government began to criminalise asylum seekers and migrants with clear political motivations. Within a few months, their initial verbal aggression and hate campaign targeting refugees had developed into actual legislative amendments which violated refugees’ rights.

The attack on CEU is one in a series of attempts to eliminate the so-called enemies of illiberal democracy. The government has manufactured a fear-inducing narrative by inventing an imaginary enemy threatening the people of Hungary.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to access public interest data in Hungary. Not only does Mayor Lőrinc Mészáros fund Hungary’s propaganda machinery, he is also believed to manage the secret wealth of the Orbán family.

Europe seems to face a more immediate threat than Le Pen. It comes from a central European country whose governing party belongs to the most mainstream European party, the European People’s Party, Hungary.

A new opposition party established in Hungary: Momentum Movement, a youth party formed by mostly 25-to-35-year-old university graduates. Is it merely a moment or the inception of a long-lasting political force in Hungary?

Academics in the field of gender studies do not normally experience a high level of public interest in their work, yet in recent months things have taken a turn in Hungary.

If Hungarian President János Áder signs the law, it will most probably have serious consequences for Hungary’s diplomatic relations. No less importantly, it will mark the beginning of the end of an independent academic sector in the country.

Thousands of people are protesting against the close down of the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest. It is a political battle about “foreign influences” and pro or anti EU, US or Russia sentiments.

The Hungarian government trys to shut down the renowned Central European University. This is an attack on academic freedom in Europe.

An underreported aspect of Viktor Orbán’s rule is the harm Fidesz is doing to the environment. Due to urban development projects all over Budapest, thousands of healthy trees are in danger of being cut down.

"We’d like to retain Hungary as Hungary", says Victor Orbán in January 2015. Xenophobia is significant in his country. How a multicultural and multi-ethnic society became a mono-ethnic and closed one.

Putin’s visit to Budapest in February 2015 was his first bilateral meeting in an EU and NATO member country since the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine. By inviting him Budapest has broken Europe’s tacit agreement on a united Russia policy, and is arguing for a normalisation of relations with Russia.

On 2 February, Angela Merkel visits Hungary. The German-Hungarian friendship has undergone fundamental changes in the recent past - and the rewriting of Germany’s Russia policy also entails reshaping its ties to Hungary.

Almost three years have passed since the enactment of changes to the general law in Hungary. The overall message of the Orbán government’s new education system is:  you belong where you were born. An analysis.

The year 2014 was supposed to be a year of success stories for Fidesz in Hungary. But demonstrations against the internet tax have become a channel through which the people have been able to express their dissatisfaction.  

The EP election in Hungary resulted in a clear victory for the governing party Fidesz. The national vote was characterised primarily by an internecine competition on the left and secondarily by a battle between the far-right and the left - an analysis by Tamás Boros.

With the constitutional amendments adopted on the 11th of March, Viktor Orbán has once again caused a surprise. The reactions of the Western European public show that there is still an inadequate grasp of how political power is exercised by Orbán’s government. European democrats now finally need to formulate a common position against the power centralization in the country.

The cold December fired up Hungarian politics. For days, thousands of students marched on the streets to protest against the government’s plans to drastically cut higher education spending. The demonstrations resulted in a defeat for Viktor Orbán, with his government being forced to withdraw its reform plans.