Hungary: Viktor Orban’s illiberal Democracy

The re-election of far-right leader Viktor Orban and his Fidesz party represents a real challenge to the rest of Europe. Having based his campaign on fear of migrants and championing ’illliberal’ democracy, there are fears for what his third mandate will bring.

Under Orban, Hungary has become the most closed-off country in the European Union. On the Hungarian border with Serbia, the barbed-wired wall can be seen for miles. Equipped with thermal cameras, loudspeakers broadcasting hostile messages, and patrolled by armed guards, this wall is truly impassable.

But despite the few migrants in Hungary, xenophobic discourse is everywhere – on government-funded tv clips and episodes, and even in the recently-updated school textbooks. Simultaneously, the rhetoric coming from extreme-right movements is spreading. The opponents are powerless and judges and journalists expected to follow the party line.

An uncompromising look at Hungary today.