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Orbán talks about lack of "white Christians" in Europe at Vásárhely
"Hódmezővásárhely is one of the bastions of the national Christianity, you can always count on it, for better or worse, in war or peace", Hungary's far-right prime minister Viktor Orbán said at a rally held in the town on Saturday afternoon, Telex reports. The main topics discussed were war, migration, families, Mayor Péter Márki-Zay, and how to campaign until 9 June.
After the Minister of Construction and Transport and regional MP, János Lázár's speech, the floor was taken by Orbán. He shared his thoughts on war and peace. He said that we pay an economic price for war, that "prices are high in stores", but this is secondary to human lives. The prime minister said that "there are not enough white Christians in Europe", and that this can be explained by the fact that "they were killed in the two world wars". Orbán said that migration is also caused by "their children and grandchildren are missing, so there are not enough people" where migrants are "sent".
Momentum politician Anna Donath criticized Orban's comments for their racist tone on Facebook, calling them "hateful sentences, hateful thinking, hateful rants."
Members of Fidesz voted against allowing questions for Szijjártó about Chinese issues in the Foreign Affairs Committee
The governing Fidesz majority of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Assembly voted down an opposition initiative that would have allowed MEPs to ask Péter Szijjártó about issues related to China, HVG reports. According to the weekly paper, the MPs wanted to ask the Foreign Minister about Chinese police patrolling Hungary and Chinese facial recognition cameras, among other matters.
Zsolt Németh, chairman of the committee, explained to HVG that "the hearing is not justified, and the minister will give an annual report to the committee in the autumn anyway." A few weeks ago an internal report, was obtained and made public by 444. hu showed the extent of Russian hacking operations targeting Hungary's Foreign Ministry.
Survey reveals major distrust in Hungarian government
A recent survey by the Vienna-based Institut für Motivforschung paints a grim picture of public trust in Hungary's far-right government. Only 24.5% of Hungarians trust the government and civil servants.
In contrast, the survey revealed that more than half of respondents trust other key institutions. The police scored a trust rating of 63%, while the institutions of the European Union were trusted by 62.1% of those surveyed. Local governments and the courts achieved 54.3% and 53% respectively.
When asked to identify key issues facing Hungary, a significant majority pointed to economic and political concerns. Inflation was cited as a major problem by 74.8% of respondents, closely followed by abuse of political power (72.1%) and government corruption (71.6%). Interestingly, less than 10% of those surveyed viewed EU membership as a major issue.
Corruption remains a serious issue. 79% of respondents believe the Orbán government handles corruption either very poorly or rather poorly. The survey also highlights widespread perceptions of corruption at the highest levels of government. Specifically, 37.2% of Hungarians believe that PM Viktor Orbán and his circles are involved in corrupt activities, while 30% think that the majority of them are involved.
Tree of shame built at the memorial site of Srebrenica massacre, with Hungary's name on it
Hungary has stood as the only European Union member to vote against a United Nations General Assembly resolution aimed at commemorating the 1995 genocide of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica. Among European nations, Serbia, Belarus, and Russia joined Hungary in opposing the resolution, which seeks to designate July 11 as the “International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica.” The other dissenting votes came from China, North Korea, and Syria. The resolution passed with 84 votes in favor, 19 against, and 68 abstentions.
To ensure that the result of the vote is not forgotten, the Srebrenica Mothers' Association will build a tree of shame at the memorial in Potocari, on which the states that voted against the resolution will be written, Balk Magazine reports.