Case-Study: The Hungarian Government of Viktor Orban under the Pressure of Markets, the EU, and the IMF
Melani Barlai, Andrassy University Budapest
The paper deals with the economic and financial policy of the Hungarian government of Prime-Minister Viktor Orbán and discusses its influence on the democratic system. The Hungarian bankruptcy could be avoided in 2009 only with the help from the EU and the IMF. The political incapacity of the social government caused dissatisfaction and frustration in the society. The \\\"depression\\\" of the population reached in March 2009 the negative record which was also noticeable on the level of the political elite. The result of the ongoing moral crisis has been appeared at the parliamentary elections in 2010. The campaign ended with a historical victory of the opposition party Fidesz, who scored 52.7 percent of the votes and secured a sensational comeback for Viktor Orbán. The right-wing-extremist party Jobbik reached 16.6 percent of the votes and entered as the third largest party in the Hungarian parliament. Because of the new economic and financial policy of Orbán his popularity is steadily declining, probably in favor of Jobbik. The EU Commission accuses Hungary of violating the European rules and threatens with sanctions. Brussels questions the independence of the Hungarian central bank, the data protection and the judiciary. The EU fears an attack on one of the pillars of democracy and is now threatening with economic sanctions. The paper will answer the following questions: What is the economic and financial strategy of the Orbán-government in the Euro(pe) crisis? What institutional and societal crisis scenarios are present in Hungary? How does it impact the domestic and foreign policy? Which role will Jobbik play in this process? Are Right-wing movements in Hungary strengthened by the economic crisis and if yes, do they threaten the democratic system?