Zsolt Enyedi at UC Berkeley – Hungary’s challenge to liberal democracy

Zsolt Enyedi, Professor of Political Science at Central European University Budapest, will speak at the University of California at Berkeley on September 2, 12-1:30 p.m., 270 Stephens Hall. (Details here.)

For some of us it is becoming clear that Fidesz is pursuing the same far-right policies as Jobbik, Hungary’s neo-Nazi party, and the country is slowly becoming a totalitarian state. Institutionalized racism and open anti-Semitism are hallmarks of Viktor Orbán’s policies.

Enyedi’s talk is about the Hungarian paradox. The country is a member of the European Union, it is located in the middle of Europe and is one of the most globalized countries in the world, yet, about two-thirds of its population supports parties which reject liberal democracy and are typically described as populist and authoritarian.

Zsolt Enyedi

Zsolt Enyedi

Here is Enyedi’s take on Fidesz vs. Jobbik. “Fidesz and Jobbik agree that once the most fundamental human rights are taken care of, the collective interests of the national community trump the interests of individuals and of minorities. They both reject multiculturalism, expect the government to represent the values of the majority and seek to restrict the presence of non-conventional subcultures (e.g. gays and lesbians) in the public space. Differences between the two parties are politically significant, but are related more to the degree of radicalism than to substantive positions. For example, while Jobbik promises to ban the annual Gay Pride, and the leaders of the party often participate in anti-Pride demonstrations, Fidesz treats the representation of minority norms as objectionable but legitimate.”

The summary of Jobbik’s extremism is sobering: “In the case of Jobbik the existence of the second layer is particularly visible: various speeches, public gestures and leaked internal communications of the party leave no doubt that a considerable part of the leadership — and probably of the membership — is racist (particularly anti-Roma and anti-Semitic) and ultra-nationalist. Speeches by parliamentary representatives attest that many party leaders believe in blood libels (that Jews used to kill Christian children); do not accept the current borders of Hungary; and consider the Gypsies to be tools in the hands of Zionist conspirators against the Hungarian nation.”

“Fidesz can be considered as being more purely nationalistic than Jobbik. Apparently Fidesz, in spite of claiming to be a Christian Democratic party, never accepted the reservations of classical Christian Democracy against nation-states and nationalism.”

*His paper is entitled Paternalist Populism and Illiberal Elitism in Central Europe (Click here).

György Lázár

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