Hungary reported to slip further down in democracy

A new Freedom House report says Hungary, driving the decline in Central and Eastern Europe, fell out of the category of 'consolidated democracies'. The demotion to 'semi-consolidated democracy' came after seven straight years of score declines.

According to the website politics.hu, the report says that after its victory in the 2014 general election, the governing Fidesz party continued to enact laws quickly, as it had done in the past, by circumventing procedural regulations. It noted an increased range of laws that require a supermajority to pass. Any opposition party coming to power in the future would have its hands tied by the ruling party’s officials with long mandates heading independent institutions.

The report notes with concern the statements by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán regarding Hungary as an illiberal democracy. Referring to an attempt to create an 'illiberal state'. Freedom House questions the government’s commitment to democratic values and it also cites changes to the electoral law which are said to disproportionately favour the dominant party. Critics described the 2014 general election as 'free but unfair'. OSCE expressed its concerns about a lack of balanced media coverage.

In a response, the Hunharian government says the Freedom House report "paints a false picture of Hungarian democracy." In a generalized statement, the government notes that it "both perceives and takes effective action to support disadvantaged social groups. The main tools of these efforts are triggering economic growth, stopping inflation, creating jobs and public catering for children."