Europe's Illiberal Democrats: Hungary

The Documentary Podcast

BBC

Society & Culture, Documentary, Personal Journals

4.3 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 14 November 2017

⏱️ 28 minutes

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Summary

Hungary is becoming an “illiberal democracy”, in the words of its Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The government has changed the constitution, electoral law, and refused to take its EU-allocated quota of refugees, while warning of a “Muslim invasion”. The European parliament is so concerned about the perceived breaches of EU values that it has launched a procedure that could culminate in Hungary’s EU voting rights being withdrawn. Yet Hungary feels it is on the right path, a path that others should follow.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello from the BBC World Service and welcome to the latest edition of the
0:05.0	documentary podcast. Every week we bring you a range of stories from our
0:09.8	presenters and reporters across the world.
0:13.0	If you have the time, please rate the documentary on your podcast app and leave us a comment.
0:18.1	Let us know what you think.
0:20.3	BBC World Service.
0:22.3	I'm Nemy Grimley and I'm sitting on the edge of Heroes Square in Budapest.
0:27.0	It's the largest public square in this city and it's adorned with fantastic classical statues of the archangel Gabriel and the founders of the Hungarian
0:36.8	nation.
0:38.2	It was in this square in the summer of 1989 for the young unshaven 26 year old addressed thousands of protesters gathered here.
0:48.5	It was the dying days of the Soviet Empire and the young man railed against single-party dictatorship.
0:55.6	He demanded free and fair elections and he called for the withdrawal of Russian troops from
1:00.6	Hungarian soil. That political activist was a democracy for the democracy and the communism
1:08.8	us just a step that land.
1:11.9	That political activist was Victor Orban who is now Prime Minister of Hungary and his
1:17.0	critics say that in the space of those 28 years he's turned from a freedom fighter
1:22.3	to something more resembling an autocrat.
1:25.3	In this program Europe's illiberal Democrats will be looking at how Victor Orbán is changing
1:31.2	modern Hungary.
1:32.2	It's not Mr Roba who has changed but the world. Orbán is changing modern Hungary.
1:33.0	It's not Mr. Orbán who has changed but the world.
1:35.0	And we believe that our democracy, our perception of democracy is not a liberal one.
	...

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