Orban Presses On With Illiberal Democracy
By Martin Arostegui April 10, 2019
Hungary's firebrand populist Viktor Orbán will face a serious test of his popularity in May when opposition parties try to coordinate their challenge to his ruling party Fidesz in elections for the European parliament.
The opposition accuse Orbán of backsliding when it comes to democratic freedoms, but the Hungarian leader remains undeterred in his shaping of what he likes to call an "illiberal democracy" but what critics see as a semi-authoritarian state.
This year Freedom House, a U.S.-based think tank, described Hungary as only "partly free," the first time in history its has withheld from an EU member state the designation "free." It accused the Fidesz-led government of having "moved to institute policies that hamper the operations of opposition groups, journalists, universities, and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) whose perspectives it finds unfavorable."
Last week, an unrepentant Orbán launched Fidesz's campaign for the 2019 European parliamentary elections in characteristic fiery style, lambasting Brussels for wanting to replace Europe's population with migrants with the aim of destroying Christian culture and rubbing out nation states.
Standing before a backdrop of Hungarian national flags, Orbán demanded rhetorically, "How did we get to the point where it's a possibility that we need to fight for our lifestyle, our way of life, and our natural living space?" He also targeted civil society and the press, saying liberal "universities, research institutes, NGOs, the media" represent powerful forces, but can't deter Europeans from "common sense."
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