Try as he might to win her over, Hungary Prime
Minister Viktor Orbán has
not persuaded U.S. Ambassador to Hungary Eleni
Kounalakis or her boss
Hillary Clinton that Hungary isn't going the way of
Mussolini's fascist Italy.
Amerikai
Npszava, United States
America Does Battle with Rising Fascism in Hungary
"The
American government is taking the destruction of Hungarian democracy quite
seriously and will not stand idly by as an anti-West, anti-democratic and
authoritarian regime with all the elements of Italian fascism emerges
there."
Annette Lantos, the wife of former U.S. Congressman Tom Lantos, speaks about her husband at the inaugural ceremony at the Hungary Parliament for the Tom Lantos Institute. Lanton and his dog are depicted in the painting below.
Washington:
According to left-leaning Hungarian newspaper Népszabadság, the American
government is taking the destruction of Hungarian democracy quite seriously and
will not stand idly by as an anti-West, anti-democratic and authoritarian
regime with all the elements of Italian fascism emerges there. Recent
legislation and events in Hungary has prepared the ground for ideological comparisons
between Hungary and former fascist Italy.
In
October, European and American diplomats met to discuss the critical situation
in Hungary and emerged with calls for the E.U. to confront this very serious
problem. Foreign Minister Zsolt Németh, in true
right-wing Fidesz Party
fashion, wondered whether that meant that the U.S. would be joining the others
“against Hungary.” His wild remarks offended his negotiating partners.
The
state of Hungarian democracy has been and remains a concern of the American
administration. It's worth recalling that in October, the U.S. State Department
invited E.U. diplomats to a conference with the theme of Hungary. German
delegates weren't present at the meeting, but Swedish, French and Polish
representatives took part in the consultation after which a unanimous
conclusion was reached: Hungary suffers from a lack of democracy.
Since
February the U.S. State Department has been keeping abreast of developments in
Hungary - and they sense no substantive response to their concerns. Sources well
acquainted with the situation recall that Pamela Quanrud, deputy assistant
secretary of European and Eurasian Affairs, was the first to mention these
concerns at a 2011 conference in Washington. Without naming names, she noted
that freedom of the press and "checks and balances" are vitally important
in young democracies.
That
was followed by Hillary Clinton's visit to Budapest in June for the opening of
the Tom Lantos Institute. In order to build a closer relationship with Viktor Orbán's Hungarian government, U.S.
Ambassador to Hungary Eleni
Tsakopoulos Kounalakis sought to moderate Hillary Clinton's pointed remarks to
Budapest, but the secretary still managed to convey Washington's concerns about the
constitutionality of recent measures to limit freedom of the press and
religion. Clinton highlighted the fates of “fundamental” laws, particularly in regard to the type of electoral law that is eventially adopted. Ultimately,
this will be considered the benchmark to determine whether the ruling Fidesz Party leaves room for
voters to freely and fairly express their will.
Budapest chose
not to respond to the words of warning, so the Americans raised their voices: in
late July, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Democracy Thomas O.
Melia criticized Hungary by name before the House Foreign Affairs Europe and Eurasia Subcommittee. The Hungarian
government dismissed the criticism, while Fidesz Party European Parliamentarian
Tamás Deutsch posted an obscene remark about Melia on Twitter.
[Editor's Note: Deputy
Secretary Thomas O. Melia testified in part: Several recent events are cause for significant concern about Hungary‘s
democratic trajectory. Hungary is an important E.U. and NATO member. At the
same time, we have seen the current one-party government use its unprecedented
two-thirds parliamentary majority to lock in changes to the Constitution that
could solidify its power, limit checks and balances, and unduly hamstring
future democratic governments in effectively addressing new political, economic
and social challenges. The government replaced members of a media oversight
board, for example, with candidates aligned with the ruling party. More
disconcerting, the board has been given the power to issue decrees and impose
heavy fines - up to $950,000 - for news coverage it considers
"unbalanced" or offensive to "human dignity."]
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
Americans waited in vain for a
substantive response from Hungary, so Washington was in broad agreement that
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán should be made aware of what was being said. More
than one government agency acted to realize a meeting famed for its quotes - a
diplomatic critique. For instance, great emphasis was placed on a new Church
Law, which requires re-registration of all but 14 of 352 religious groups - including
major U.S. denominations the Methodists and Mormons.
[Editor's Note: Quoting again the
testimony of Deputy Secretary Thomas O. Melia: "The new law on the Right
to Freedom of Conscience and Religion and on the Status of Churches, Religions
and Religious Communities," which requires re-registration of all but
14 religious groups, negatively impacts the atmosphere for religious freedom in
Hungary."]
U.S. Ambassador Kounalakis was reportedly
displeased with the task, but in September, she dutifully passed on
Washington's views to the Hungarian Foreign Ministry. However, problems arose
setting a date with Prime Minister Orban. Finally, seven weeks later, the
Washington Post published an op-ed on the increasingly-embarrassing
affair. In their brief meeting, the Ambassador Kounalakis went through the list
of America's complaints with Prime Minister Orban. Orban ignored any item he
was unable to address. The meeting appeared to accomplish nothing.
But Washington wasn't finished. They
sent another message, this time to Deputy
State Secretary Gergely Prőhe: if Washington doesn't get answers, further
steps will be taken. Prőhe took note of the communication. He took them in
stride, unlike State Secretary Zsolt Németh, whose accusations of an anti-Hungarian
alliance offended many. American foreign policy - according to sources familiar
with the volatile situation - will continue to monitor Hungary and remains greatly
concerned about the deteriorating situation.
