Der Umbau Ungarns geht rasant weiter

Es war dann Orbán selbst, der erschien: Er werde nach seinem klaren Wahlsieg eine ganz neue Politik einleiten, die sich deutlich von der vorherigen unterscheiden werde. Wie, das sagte er nicht. Der Neuanfang werde mit einer neuen „Regierungsstruktur“ einhergehen, und einer ebenso neuen Regierungsmannschaft. „Alle bisherigen Minister und Staatssekretäre haben ihre Arbeit beendet, und ich danke ihnen dafür“, sagte Orbán.

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Magyar Nemzet, Lánchíd Rádio to cease operations effective April 11th

Magyar Nemzet, Hungary’s largest and most important independent conservative newspaper, will appear for the last time tomorrow. The 80-year old print daily is closing its doors, according to a statement issued by its publisher, Nemzet Lap- és Könyvkiadó Kft. “Due to financial problems, on the basis of the decision taken by the owners of Magyar Nemzet, the publisher will end its media content activity. In this way, the Magyar Nemzet daily and its online version, mno.hu will cease to exist. The last printed edition of the Magyar Nemzet daily founded 80 years ago will appear on April 11th, 2018.”

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How Illiberal Leaders Attack Civil Society What’s Happening in Central Europe Is Part of a Larger Trend

Last month, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made his boldest attack yet on civil society. In a speech marking 170 years since Hungary’s 1848 revolution, Orban railed against “media outlets maintained by foreign concerns and domestic oligarchs, professional hired activists, troublemaking protest organisers, and a chain of NGOs financed by an international speculator, summed up by and embodied in the name ‘George Soros.’” Unfortunately, such rhetoric is no longer confined to Orban, who famously calls himself an “illiberal democrat.” Increasingly, attacks on civil society and independent media have become normalized throughout central Europe, threatening the future of democracy in the region.

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How an Israeli Intelligence Company Attempted to Slur a Hungarian NGO and Failed

Migration Aid, a volunteer civil initiative to help refugees arriving to Hungary, became the target of an elaborate defamation scheme earlier this year. Two members of the Israeli company invited András Siewert, the director of MA to a personal meeting in Vienna. Siewert suspected that the approach might be a recruitment attempt by foreign secret services, so he notified the Alkotmányvédelmi Hivatal, (AH), the counterintelligence branch of the secret service. Siewert filed his report to AH on the 3rd of January, 2018, as evidence acquired by Index.hu confirms.

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