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Guide book to embezzlement of European Union subsidies. Part I
Today and tomorrow I will look at three recent corruption cases in Hungary, all of which involve money received from the European Union. Two Hungarian politicians are currently spending a lot of energy...
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Viktor Orbán and the European Union: A forced change of strategy?
I sense a change in the Orbán government’s strategy as far as its attitude toward cooperation with the European Union is concerned. Although Orbán still talks about sticking to his government’s total...
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The latest Orbán stunt: A referendum on “compulsory settlement” of refugees
This morning I was surprised to find an “invitation” to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s press conference, to be held today at 13:00, in my inbox. I am, I presume along with many others, entitled to watch...
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Seehofer in Hungary: A disappointment for Orbán
Horst Seehofer, minister president of Bavaria and the leader of Christian Social Union, has been pursuing an independent foreign policy of sorts lately. In December he paid a visit to Moscow where he...
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Viktor Orbán’s “veto” turned out to be a hoax
The Hungarian media was abuzz for a few hours late last night with Viktor Orbán’s “veto” of the agreement between Turkey and the European Union at the March 7 summit in Brussels. If you visit the...
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Nationwide state of emergency is declared in Hungary
One of the first foreign newspapers to report that the Hungarian government had declared a “migration emergency” was the Daily Express. It ran the story shortly after Sándor Pintér, accompanied by...
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New polls challenge Fidesz’s political and ideological hegemony
Today I would like to cover three opinion polls which, when combined, may give us a better picture of the political situation and the Hungarian population’s frame of mind at the moment. The first one,...
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Viktor Orbán’s speech: war against the world
Ever since yesterday morning I have been receiving one e-mail after the other from people who wanted to be sure that I don’t forget about the speech Viktor Orbán delivered amid constant whistling by a...
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Teachers’ revolt, Nazi speech, and Orbán’s “battle” in Brussels
Hungarian public discourse at the moment revolves around three topics. The first two, about which I’ve already written, require updates. The third topic is new: today’s summit in Brussels and Viktor...
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Viktor Orbán in full armor: a knight or a liar?
Before I begin this post on the Brussels summit and Viktor Orbán’s role in the proceedings, I would like to call attention to a story I read in HVG about a little girl and her ethics teacher. It...
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The EU is playing hardball with Hungary over subsidies
Critics of the European Union, including many active participants on Hungarian Spectrum, argue that it is the Union’s generous subsidies that keep Viktor Orbán’s “illiberal democracy” alive. Economists...
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Corruption Research Center’s analysis of Hungarian public procurement practices
It might sound like a complaint that an important study on the extent of corruption in procurement practices involving EU funds that was published on March 3 was discovered by the media only today, but...
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Viktor Orbán, the “great supporter” of European common action
A couple of days ago we pondered the true meaning of the Kohl-Orbán joint communiqué, which emphasized a coordinated European response to the refugee crisis. What could have transpired during the hour...
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The fifth anniversary of the Fundamental Law of 2011
Viktor Orbán never disappoints. Every time he opens his mouth he comes out with something that takes our breath away. Today’s speech at a “conference” organized for the fifth anniversary of Fidesz’s...
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Letting the fox guard the henhouse: Hungarian prosecutors undermine justice
The thread that connects today’s topics is the state of the Hungarian legal system. As it stands, Hungary has a thoroughly corrupt prosecutorial system and a judiciary that at times shows itself to be...
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Viktor Orbán’s latest attack on the European Union
Perhaps tomorrow we will know more about the plans of the European Commission regarding the revision of the so-called Dublin asylum regulations. The revision may contain a punitive pay-off clause that...
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Despite massive government propaganda, Hungarians support further European...
It was heartwarming to read the latest Policy Solutions study, “The Hungarian Public and the European Union,” by András Bíró-Nagy, Tibor Kadlót, and Ádám Köves. The 40-page study, chock full of data,...
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Money comes, money goes: European Union subsidies in Hungary
Hungarian newspapers regularly report about widespread corruption in the country, amounting to billions of forints. But people complain that it is almost impossible for an ordinary mortal to comprehend...
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Tibor Navracsics’s political “coming out”
Tibor Navracsics, who is EU commissioner in charge of education, culture, youth and sport, doesn’t appear too often in the Hungarian media, and when he does he is asked mostly about matters relating to...
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Ferenc Gyurcsány: “Disintegration or something else?”
As always, Hungarian Spectrum welcomes democratic voices from and about Hungary. Today Ferenc Gyurcsány, prime minister of Hungary between 2004 and 2009, offers his solutions to the ills of western...
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