Prime Minister Viktor Orban was first the young liberal who precipitated the fall of communism in Hungary. Then, having returned to power in 2010, he set about building “a new constitutional order based on Christian and national values” : the media and the Constitutional Court were brought under control; a generation of entrepreneurs close to power made their fortunes with major contracts; and Viktor Orban consolidated his political base by denouncing the interventionism of Brussels and the interference of the American billionaire George Soros.
In Hungary, Viktor Orban launches a new anti-European campaign
In a 90-minute documentary, American director Connie Field tells us about Hungary’s slow decline over the past fourteen years, and how Viktor Orban has moved away from the rule of law to build an autocratic regime based on the most reactionary forces and the profiteering of a few.
Three views on Viktor Orban
This long format allows the story to gain breadth. We follow three committed women: Timea Szabo, an opposition MP, Niko Antal, a young environmental activist, and Babett Oroszi, a journalist working for independent media. The story uses archive footage, as well as excerpts from debates in the European Parliament, when MEPs clash with Viktor Orban.
The three protagonists speak at length. We follow them in their daily lives, we share their hopes and their disillusionments, the day after elections that are won by Fidesz, the conservative party of the Prime Minister. “They hacked democracy”loose, dejected, one of the characters commenting on the electoral success of Viktor Orban.
Hungary: Hungarian students deprived of Erasmus
The documentary shares the point of view of these three opponents, all three of whom are endearing. However, we can regret that it does not give many explanations about the workings of the regime and the mechanism that allowed Viktor Orban to drag a majority of Hungarians with him into this anti-democratic drift.
