Letters to Hungary
15 January 2013
Until the next election in 2014, Hungarian politics, at least superficially, will look the same as before. The opposition will seek to reverse their decline and reintroduce their particular form of government, although it is unlikely that the shape of their policies will be known for some time, if at all.
11 January 2013
Under the headline, ‘A Blow for Viktor Orban’, the Economist (10 January 2013 print edition) reported that a series of recent events has demonstrated that support for Viktor Orbán seems to be diminishing. It cited the Hungarian Constitutional Court’s ruling against the government on Electoral Registration, the recent student protests on student fees, an opinion poll and an inflammatory article by a political associate of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
8 January 2013
As the New Year unfolds in Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán could be forgiven for smiling. Despite the recent Constitutional Court ruling on voter registration and the ringing of student protester bells in his ears, Fidesz is not entering 2013 in such a bad shape.
25 October 2012
The celebrations to mark the anniversary of the Hungarian revolution were used this year to highlight the political partisanship of all and sundry. Milla, the anti-government protest group, managed to assemble several thousand disparate protesters – all determined to display their anti-Fidesz credentials. No million I hear you ask? What do they stand for?
1 October 2012
What a week it has been for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as the main opposition party, the Socialists, descended into farce.
16 August 2012
Hungary woke up this morning to the news that Gordon Bajnai’s own Foundation has completed a study on how to win the next election. Would it have reported it was not possible? I don’t think so. That is not the kind of objectivity you get when you buy your own think tank. However, it will be interesting to see how the Hungarian media reacts to this report and more importantly, how it will perceive this in the light of Mr. Bajnai’s political ambitions.
27June 2012
This has been the week of European visions. Without the merest hint of national consultations, the central European institutions launched a new centralisation plan for future economic policy and planning. Having presided over the debacle that is monetary union and the humbling of the Euro, Europe’s unelected elite tell us the answer is more federalism and a dilution of sovereignty.
19 June 2012
The Hungarian Parliament recently debated the achievements of the first two years of the current Fidesz administration. For many commentators, this was to be the first salvo in a battle for the hearts and minds of the Hungarian electorate, just at a time when a number of them were indicating that a political swing was underway against the government.
10 June 2012
Once again Fidesz is revamping its communications structure and strategy. I have lost count how often this has happened since the 2010 election but it tells you one thing – the governing party has failed to get to grips with a key component of modern governance.
The reason behind this debacle is simple – inexperience and ineptitude.Too many of Fidesz’s media managers are actually very poor communicators and are simply not up to the job. More, they are simply not qualified.
8 June 2012
A few weeks ago, Prime Minister Orbán spoke eloquently on the subject of Hungary’s role in Europe. His opponents, both at home and abroad, castigated his view of Europe as being petty-minded, nationalist and misguided.