Blog - Update on Hungary & Orban (eng)

Update on Hungary, the protest movement & Orban 

– (With Putin, Turkey & Serbia thrown in for good measure). 

The Western Mainstream Media, (WMM), an example of which is the UK’s Guardian have picked up on the Internet tax rallies in Hungary. One sentence is particularly interesting: “The demonstrators likened Orbán to Russia’s Vladimir Putin, and flew the EU flag, which Orban regularly denounces.” Eagled-eyed readers will notice that this does not directly relate to the proposed tax laws. In a similar vein, an article by the Business New Europe referred to Hungary’s Orban politics as “Goulash Putinism”.

The Western mainstream media are evidently going into overdrive pushing out as many comparisons between Orban & Putin, in the same way as they earlier in the year had articles that compared Putin to both Milosevic & Hitler. The article reported that “Nuland roasted Hungary in a speech at the start of October for contesting liberal democratic ideas, inflaming nationalist sentiment and crushing the freedom of speech. Replace the word "Hungary" for "Russia" and she could have used the same speech for having a go at Putin again.” The article continued with presenting the political situation in Turkey, in which “Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is another that seems to have been infected with Putinism.” It then followed with comments on Serbia as well, describing its Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic as “prickly and increasingly shows certain Putin-like traits.”

We are certainly now living in the era of “Yellow Journalism Hyperbole”, with President Putin & Russia being the current barometer. 

NOV 5th Update

The Hungarian  government scrapped the taxs plans after 2 large country wide protests. 
Yet the protests in Hungary have not stopped, in fact they have muted into  demands for the resignation of the tax chief Ildikó Vida, since she mentioned that she was one of those who have been banned from the US.  The US pressure it seems is still being applied, or the intial inertia of protests has been starte.  It remains to be seen when and how this pressure will change or diminish.

NOV 8th Update 

Viktor Orban is clearly getting attention in the US & European press, highlighting the fact  that he is feeling the heat because of his 'cozy' relationship with Russia. A recent headline from Reuters leaves no one in doubt as to how events will unfold in Hungary:

Hungarian Internet Tax Protesters Aim to Be New Opposition Force

Both the US & the EU take issue to the fact that Orban wants to put Hungary first & foremost. In a recent press conference, Viktor Orban said that the US was putting Hungary under great pressure due to its objections to the South Stream pipeline and the expansion of the Paks nuclear power station. In other words the US is seeing the world through blinkered eyes as it sees Hungary getting closer to Russia.  This theme is repeated again in the press.




Last word

"Hiding behind civil society groups gives a special color to the Hungarian opposition. If they cannot get anywhere with parties they use civil society groups."

Government spokesman, Zoltan Kovacs

 Sources:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/oct/29/budapest-viktor-orban-democracy-edge-hungary 

http://www.bne.eu/content/story/putinisation-europe 

 http://www.bbj.hu/politics/next-facebook-demo-to-protest-tax-chief_87660