Globalization 3510W

“A statue of Saint Stephen, the first king of Hungary, overlooks the city of Budapest.” -Encyclopædia Britannica Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Hungary/History/media/276730/89998

Hungary is a bit of an odd country. Being a land-locked country in the middle of Europe next to Austria, most people probably know it best as being the second half of the Austro-Hungarian empire back during World War I. Of course, anyone who takes the time to look at the country its self will realize that it’s one of the most unique countries in all of Europe.

Before we dive in to its current events, let’s go through a quick rundown of Hungary’s recent history. Following the end of World War II, Hungary was placed into Soviet Union’s orbit, effectively turning it into a communist regime. By 1989 as the Cold War began to wind itself down, Hungary began to distance itself from the Soviet Union, and opened its borders allowing East Germans to flee to Austria.

Video: https://www.britannica.com/place/Hungary/History/media/276730/196769

Now, going onto current events Hungary was just ranked partly-free by freedom house, making it the first country in the European Union to do so. Most of this is the cause of current Prime-Minister Viktor Orban who has been accused of implementing undemocratic reforms in a seizure of power not seen since the fall of communism, according to Bloomberg. The government of course rejected the downgrading calling Freedom House apart of the empire of George Soros.

According to the Washington Post, this is being seen as embarrassment for the EU which prides its self on promoting democracy as one of its core tenants and being a democracy is a requirement for joining. Orban’s party has been using its political power to assert control over various groups and organizations including NGOs, the courts, the media and other institutions. The EU has also issued a report criticizing the current political situation in Hungary.

People have begun calling Hungary’s current government a “competitive authoritarian” regime, which even though political opponents aren’t jailed by the regime, there are still other methods used by the government to curtail democracy. Also according to the Washington Post, the EU is unlikely to do much about the crack down on democracy in Hungary because Orban’s party is a member of European People’s Party which is the most powerful party in Europe and includes Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union Party.

In other news, Hungary has also attempted an ambitious plan to raise the country’s birth rate. According to the Guardian, Orban has rolled out a new policy that will give women with four or more children tax exempt status for life on income taxes. Orban has stated that raising the birth rates among Hungary’s native population was preferable to allowing Muslims to immigrate into the country. Orban was quoted as saying, “They want as many migrants to enter as there are missing kids, so that the numbers will add up. We Hungarians have a different way of thinking. Instead of just numbers, we want Hungarian children. Migration for us is surrender.”

He also made the claim that George Soros is attempting to destroy Europe by promoting immigration. On the other hand, the Guardian says in the same article that central and eastern Europe’s decline in population can actually be blamed on people migrating out of the country and seeking jobs in more wealthier western European countries.

Regardless, there’s definitely a lot of interesting stuff that is happening in Hungary recently, and I’m sure there will be a lot more as time goes on. It will be interesting to see how the situation in Hungary continues to develop and how the European Union will ultimately react to it.