Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban today accused his successor, Peter Magyar, of creating an “illegitimate authoritarian system” in remarks delivered at a press conference hosted outside his party’s headquarters in Budapest.
“This new political system is not a democracy, it is tyranny,” he said.
Orban served as Hungary’s prime minister for 16 consecutive years before losing his bid for reelection to Magyar’s pro-European Tisza party in April.
He claims Magyar seized his party’s own network equipment with the intent of disabling any opposition to his party’s new leadership.
Magyar’s administration had earlier suspended Orban’s public television and radio, arguing the news service was a “propaganda factory” for Orban’s Fidesz party, and even raided Fidesz data servers on suspicion of embezzlement.
These actions caused Orban to claim Magyar’s rule is reminiscent of “severe dictatorships,” while calling for a “peaceful resistance movement” against the country’s new government.
Magyar’s actions are part of the new prime minister’s wider “Operation Purgatory,” a series of reforms meant to dismantle Orban’s alleged misuse of government funds. Hungary’s new leadership even approved a constitutional amendment intended to prevent Orban from ever returning to power in June.
Magyar’s first address pledged an end to state-run media and a return to closer cooperation with European allies, in sharp contrast to Orban’s stated support of “illiberal democracy” and close diplomatic ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Orban blocked a $104 billion EU loan to Ukraine during his final weeks in office.
“We will restore the system of checks and balances, guarantee democratic functions of the country and never allow anyone to capture the free Hungarian state,” Magyar said. “We will restore institutions that protect democracy. Hungary will once again be the strong ally of the EU and NATO.”
The Tisza party passed a constitutional amendment last week that removed Hungary’s president from power while setting 12-year term limits for all members of Parliament.
Like the preceding Orban, however, Magyar has been criticized for committing authoritarian actions under the justification of winning the popular election, reported The Hungarian Conservative. Magyar was himself once part of Orban’s political circle for over two decades and was previously married to Orban’s Justice Minister Judit Varga, reports Reuters.
The Trump administration had viewed Orban and his nationalist Fidesz party as a major political ally due to the former prime minister’s criticism of the European establishment and staunchly conservative social views. Vice President JD Vance even spent two days in Hungary in support of Orban’s leadership ahead of the election.
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Orban visited the White House and State Department last week, though it remains unclear who he met with and what was discussed.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
