Hungary

“Hey Europe, sorry about my Prime Minister!!” read one of the placards as Hungarians thronged the streets of Budapest in early January to protest about the new constitution introduced by Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his Fidesz party. The “Viktator”, as he has been dubbed by his opponents, is accused of threatening Hungarian democracy and attempting to give himself a stranglehold on power.

But the new constitution is only the latest of Orban’s projects to attract a storm of criticism at home and abroad. Since taking over the Premiership for the second time in May 2010, he has overseen the passing of literally hundreds of new laws: having a two-thirds majority in parliament means that Fidesz can make radical changes to the country’s institutions without opposition support. These have included a controversial new media law, which was widely criticised for restricting freedom of the press in Hungary, and a new bank law passed on 30 December 2011, which was condemned by both the EU and the IMF as jeopardising the independence of Hungary’s central bank. The new constitution comprises changes to the judiciary, data protection and election systems, amongst other things, which have provoked concern. Veteran Hungarian dissidents stated in a letter that "never since the regime change of 1989 when communist dictatorship was crushed has there been such an intense concentration of power in the region as in present-day Hungary.”

On 17th January 2012, Jose Manuel Barroso stated that the European Commission was starting legal proceedings against Orban’s government, as several aspects of the new constitution breach European law. It was also made clear that a proposed €20 billion loan from the EU and the IMF to aid Hungary’s failing economy would be withheld until the controversial bank law was amended. After a visit to Strasbourg on 18th January for discussions with the European Parliament, Orban agreed to make amendments to some of the legislation. The EU has given Fidesz one month to make the necessary changes.

But what these amendments will be is yet to be established. While they may bring Orban back onto to right side of EU law, It is unlikely that they will address all of the concerns raised by the new constitution. It must also be noted that despite all this, the keen footballer and father-of-five is far from universally unpopular in Hungary. It is true that Fidesz’s popularity rating has fallen to 18%, but they are still ahead of opposition parties. 22nd January 2012 saw another demonstration take place in Budapest, but on this occasion it was in support of Orban and his party, and it was the EU and the IMF that were the subjects of derisive banners.

So whether you believe that Orban is taking necessary measures to reform a country in crisis, or that he is systematically destroying its democracy, he is certainly going to be a prominent figure on the EU scene for some time yet. In his website biography, it states that he is “committed to an independent and democratic Hungary.” The latter point, at least, would certainly seem to be a matter for some debate.

Image source: Flickr/European Parliament, http://www.flickr.com/photos/europe...

The smooth launch of the Hungarian Presidency has been marred by the controversy surrounding the adoption of a media law in Hungary. The law, which has been called into question by the EU’s Digital Agenda Commissioner, contains a number of provisions that have caused concern. The “obligation to provide balanced coverage” has been criticised as undemocratic and in breach of the right to freedom of expression. Both European and World Newspaper Associations have voiced their objections to the law, which they argue would unreasonably subject journalists to restrictions and fines. The provisions have been scrutinised by Commission officials who now require that Hungary submits “observations” in order to address their “serious doubts” as to the law’s compatibility with EU law. Failure to do so could result in the launch of infringement proceedings against Hungary, which would undoubtedly undermine their Presidency programme for the next 5 months.

Photo:Flickr, GiantsFanatic

The start of the year has seen the Presidency of the Council of the EU pass to Hungary, the final country in the current ‘trio’ presidency, which has also included Spain and Belgium. Hungary’s presidency kicked off with a large-scale event in Budapest on New Year’s Eve entitled “Europe is Us”, which included a line up of acts performing folk, electronic and jazz music as well as the national anthem and fireworks at midnight. Hungary has chosen growth and employment, a stronger Europe, a citizen friendly Union and enlargement and neighbourhood policy as its priorities for the 6 month term, although concerns have been raised as to whether the introduction of Hungary’s controversial new media law (see ’the Bad News’) may somewhat overshadow their programme for the Presidency.

European Union, 2011