Economy
Hungary to create immigration legislation that is "very different" from EU rules - Orbán
Rigth-wing media
Orbán said there is a “disturbance in information" as his party has lost one of their major support, a part of their media that helped guide right-wing voters. He explained this loss by saying that a conflict erupted between the government and the owners of the predominant-sized right-wing media. These people also own sizeable lands, whereas the cabinet has decided to create a system of small and medium-sized land to replace landlordism, he explained the reason behind what he views as an indissoluble conflict.
This disturbance will remain as long as the right-wing world does not add new written and electronic media to the few remaining ones, does not mobilise its intellectual talent, funds, organising skills to create publicity that could be a source of reference information again, Orbán said. He also noted that the government cannot be tasked with this therefore he urges the cabinet’s supporters to invest more energy in this matter.
Capital punishment
PM Orbán said last week that the question of the death penalty should be kept on the agenda, triggering international outcry, including some acrid comments from several key EU officials. He told the television channel that it is too early to answer the question whether capital punishment should be reintroduced in Hungary or not but he stressed it would be important to talk about it. Responding to the harsh reactions to his remark from Brussels Orbán noted that a “democracy debate has surfaced", adding that “we are once again where" some people in Brussels do not want to allow the debate. “And who told you that the rules people have conceived in the EU will not change later on, especially if European people want to change them? Who said that the majority of the citizens of the other countries do not think the same as we Hungarians do, that this issue needs to be kept on the agenda?," he asked.
"We don’t want immigrants."
As regards immigration, Orbán noted that the number of immigrants compared to the size of the population is the largest in Sweden and the second-largest in Hungary. This means that “Hungary is in a much worse situation than any other country in Western Europe."
Orbán’s anti-immigrant rhetoric has also raised objections in the EU.
The PM thinks that Hungary has the right to represent its own interests. Immigrants “will not stay in Hungary as long as they can move on," but sooner or later - due to decisions to be made by the Austrians, Germans and others - when they are no longer able to move on, they will stay here, he said.
Regarding a “national consultation" soon to be launched over immigration and terrorism he said “here and now we don’t need to pay heed to legislation"; we will need to deal with legal issues when it comes to creating legislation after the consultation, but now “we must free ourselves from the know-it-all judicial shackles."
“Our community does not want to see immigrants in Hungary," he has stressed, rejecting the European idea to embrace immigrants in the continent and “distribute" them in the different member states.
Hungary needs to have its own immigration rules “that will be different from the current European regulations in many aspects," he said, adding that although there will be a “great battle" there is still chance that Hungary’s regulation will be approved in the EU.MEPs against Orbán’s plans
The national consultation will ask respondents whether they agree with 12 statements linking immigration to threats to security and incomes.
“Economic migrants cross our borders illegally, and while they present themselves as asylum-seekers, in fact they are coming to enjoy our welfare systems and the employment opportunities our countries have to offer," the PM writes in an accompanying letter to the questionnaire.
“As Brussels has failed to address immigration appropriately, Hungary must follow its own path. We shall not allow economic migrants to jeopardise the jobs and livelihoods of Hungarians," he adds.
The plan drew condemnation from members of the European Parliament, with Sophie in ’t Veld, a Dutch liberal MEP, saying the consultation was “manipulative and leading", the Financial Times reported last week.
It also cited Louis Michel, a Belgian liberal lawmaker, condemning the survey as “ethically untenable".
“This stigma that systematically links the migrant with a criminal can only come from a far-right populism where xenophobia is at the very root of ideology," Michel said.
Analysts also criticised the wording of the Hungarian poll, saying it did not meet standards for objective polling and may manipulate public views of migrants, rather than reflect them.
“All these questions tend to push a negative view of migration. They are extremely unbalanced," the FT cited Scott Blinder, politics professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. “The fact that they have sent this questionnaire to everyone instead of a random sample also suggests that they are after something more than public opinion."Financial system to be cleansed
As regards the recent brokerage fraud scandals Orbán said that after creating a fair banking system and rescuing the system of savings co-operatives the next step is to set new rules for other financial investment forms, e.g. creating new legislation for brokerages. “[...] in another one or two years and the entire Hungarian financial system will be cleaned up."
Orbán said there is a “disturbance in information" as his party has lost one of their major support, a part of their media that helped guide right-wing voters. He explained this loss by saying that a conflict erupted between the government and the owners of the predominant-sized right-wing media. These people also own sizeable lands, whereas the cabinet has decided to create a system of small and medium-sized land to replace landlordism, he explained the reason behind what he views as an indissoluble conflict.
This disturbance will remain as long as the right-wing world does not add new written and electronic media to the few remaining ones, does not mobilise its intellectual talent, funds, organising skills to create publicity that could be a source of reference information again, Orbán said. He also noted that the government cannot be tasked with this therefore he urges the cabinet’s supporters to invest more energy in this matter.
Capital punishment
PM Orbán said last week that the question of the death penalty should be kept on the agenda, triggering international outcry, including some acrid comments from several key EU officials. He told the television channel that it is too early to answer the question whether capital punishment should be reintroduced in Hungary or not but he stressed it would be important to talk about it. Responding to the harsh reactions to his remark from Brussels Orbán noted that a “democracy debate has surfaced", adding that “we are once again where" some people in Brussels do not want to allow the debate. “And who told you that the rules people have conceived in the EU will not change later on, especially if European people want to change them? Who said that the majority of the citizens of the other countries do not think the same as we Hungarians do, that this issue needs to be kept on the agenda?," he asked.
"We don’t want immigrants."
As regards immigration, Orbán noted that the number of immigrants compared to the size of the population is the largest in Sweden and the second-largest in Hungary. This means that “Hungary is in a much worse situation than any other country in Western Europe."
Orbán’s anti-immigrant rhetoric has also raised objections in the EU.
The PM thinks that Hungary has the right to represent its own interests. Immigrants “will not stay in Hungary as long as they can move on," but sooner or later - due to decisions to be made by the Austrians, Germans and others - when they are no longer able to move on, they will stay here, he said.
Regarding a “national consultation" soon to be launched over immigration and terrorism he said “here and now we don’t need to pay heed to legislation"; we will need to deal with legal issues when it comes to creating legislation after the consultation, but now “we must free ourselves from the know-it-all judicial shackles."
“Our community does not want to see immigrants in Hungary," he has stressed, rejecting the European idea to embrace immigrants in the continent and “distribute" them in the different member states.
Hungary needs to have its own immigration rules “that will be different from the current European regulations in many aspects," he said, adding that although there will be a “great battle" there is still chance that Hungary’s regulation will be approved in the EU.MEPs against Orbán’s plans
The national consultation will ask respondents whether they agree with 12 statements linking immigration to threats to security and incomes.
“Economic migrants cross our borders illegally, and while they present themselves as asylum-seekers, in fact they are coming to enjoy our welfare systems and the employment opportunities our countries have to offer," the PM writes in an accompanying letter to the questionnaire.
“As Brussels has failed to address immigration appropriately, Hungary must follow its own path. We shall not allow economic migrants to jeopardise the jobs and livelihoods of Hungarians," he adds.
The plan drew condemnation from members of the European Parliament, with Sophie in ’t Veld, a Dutch liberal MEP, saying the consultation was “manipulative and leading", the Financial Times reported last week.
It also cited Louis Michel, a Belgian liberal lawmaker, condemning the survey as “ethically untenable".
“This stigma that systematically links the migrant with a criminal can only come from a far-right populism where xenophobia is at the very root of ideology," Michel said.
Analysts also criticised the wording of the Hungarian poll, saying it did not meet standards for objective polling and may manipulate public views of migrants, rather than reflect them.
“All these questions tend to push a negative view of migration. They are extremely unbalanced," the FT cited Scott Blinder, politics professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. “The fact that they have sent this questionnaire to everyone instead of a random sample also suggests that they are after something more than public opinion."Financial system to be cleansed
As regards the recent brokerage fraud scandals Orbán said that after creating a fair banking system and rescuing the system of savings co-operatives the next step is to set new rules for other financial investment forms, e.g. creating new legislation for brokerages. “[...] in another one or two years and the entire Hungarian financial system will be cleaned up."
