it wasn't so easy even today to hold it, it's heavy. so where and this is typically saw the fur co say there are the nights and you can find out much more on everything we've been covering and beyond on our website the address. there it is, al jazeera dot com. ah and now the top stories on al jazeera, haiti's, justice minister says a criminal gang is demanding $17000000.00 for the return of a group of christian missionaries. 17 people including 5 children, were kidnapped near the capital port prints on saturday, f b i. agents are now helping haitian law enforcement. who say a well known gang is behind the abduction. john hendern has more now for miller's bergen ohio, where the christian missionaries are based on the state department has a policy that it won't pay a ransom. in this case, it's

a whopper. $17000000.00. but we do know that there have been a number of pass incidences were individuals who've been involved have paid the ransom. and while the u. s. does not facilitate that, they don't tend to interfere. in the case of this organization, it becomes an ethical question because this is an organization that brings in about a $130000000.00 a year and donations from all around the world. so it actually has the money likely to make this payment. the question is, do they want to do that? because if they do that, then they tend to feed that kidnapping machine in haiti. but if they don't, they endanger the lives of 70 missionaries that they sent out there to do their work. supporters of pro rainy infections in iraq are protesting against the result of last week's parliamentary election. o. parties linked to the pairing military group known as the popular mobilization forces saw big losses in

that election. crowds and baghdad have gathered to demand a recount. floods in india have killed dozens of people in northern and southern regions. large parts of with their account have been cut off. and in cadillac rescue teams are preparing for worsening conditions. dams, near capacity have been opened with more rain predicted on wednesday, health care workers in ethiopia, t gray region, or calling on the federal government to lift the siege on mckinley. a shortage of medical supplies is worsening, a humanitarian crisis in the region. the un says 400000 people are experiencing family now and a for the 1800000 people are on the brink of it. those are the top stories there with us democracy maybe is coming up next more news from door in half an hour. thanks for watching. bye bye. we understand the differences and similarities of cultures across the world. so no matter what lucy,

al jazeera will bring you the news and current affairs that matter to you. out as in europe. me all the better. no. i thought of my journalistic camry 44 years ago in 1985. i was appointed the most school bureau, chief of hungary and television. those were the board bunch of years. nobody at that time wanted to go to the soviet union. and when i

came back home, communism was over in hungary, it was a completely new and strange world. the whole truth must be withdrawal for important that everybody in hungary had great expectations about democracy and about changing to capitalism. and that that time hungary was in the forefront of the changes the hungarian society created legislation model type artist and new parliament, elected by the people and old all the institutions of democracy were billed when the old bond government came to power in my view, it margaret a sharp change ah,

i would say it is much closer to dictatorship, where the exclusive only ideology is to retain power at whatever cause a me hi occupants when get group one session reflect lindsay on he sent or not or not, or no load i it's bad so i'm glad your buffet is, eat sugars, asha oz and m ha ha, made the on natural with other seo frequency and got as if they get i don't think that victor or band could be voted out of power. no prices is high enough, just he wants to be in power and that is his only goal in life. this is why i think he's so dangerous for hungarian democracy.

a prime minister or bond came to power for the 1st time, very young still in his thirty's, in 1998 with when he lost the elections. i think he made the wow to himself that he will never let go with the power. i've never met them, keep a check or south albany or look mindy bessie clinic. oh. or by the door to lecture a he was defeated in 2002. that the reason why he could use the lecture because he didn't occupied the media. my personal view, 2010 when he just came to power with

a 2 thirds majority. it meant that politically, he can do anything he wants because he had a full even constitutional, strong position in parliament with my daughter, my god, i'm with i. if you wanted, he could have introduce a kingdom in hungary because of the process you saw majors, you can override the constitution. you can change the, the cardi lowe's, you can do whatever you want. they changed it within 24 hours. so when he came to power in 2010, i think he had strategic plan off not letting go for this power any more about human growing, trusted with respect. so it's not for force is not free here. left free and hunger 1st before he occupied the institutional system, prosecutor's office. therefore, there can be no high level investigation started in government related corruption.

and of course, he needed to conquer the media because he understood that the media is the 4th key element of any democracy or power. the media with the central bank and many other bodies. so the so called independent institution of refuge laws, their independence, it has, it really became a typical populace politician. i think the only thing that matters is himself retaining power and making himself ready to reach abraham lincoln once said mm, if you want to test a man's character, give him power. ah, it's important to recognize that democracy without constraint can be extremely dangerous. in some places what we've seen is a decay in those liberal rights. i'm without actually seeing an elimination of free

and fair elections or the if you could give me the planet. but i don't see them a little bit. i'm so fucking dark but in 2 more systematic runway, during most of modern history, up through the mid to late 20th century. the main way in which democracies died was through some kind of violent break with the past, you know, the military out on the street with the tags and the guns over throwing democratically elected government. these days, democracy doesn't die. suddenly it dies by a 1000 cuts. step by step and it dies silently and incrementally as elected leaders like victor, or bon and hungry. rather than autocrats violently over throwing democratic regimes . they come to power through the ballot box. and rather than ending free and fair

elections, they gradually undermine the norms and institutions of democracy from with. and so what am i supposed to do with this is that sometimes citizens don't know exactly what's going on until you wake up one day and you're free press is gone. you wake up one day, the system looks the same, but deep down. the system has been turned inside out and transformed from an electoral democracy into a competitive authoritarian regime. i think in the alternator an playbook, the 1st thing, what you have to do, if there are still elections, is to change the information environment. ah, ah,

10 years ago when little one came to the polar tv allies that he has to control the media. and they started to buy media outlets one by one. they have different tactics. if they can buy one media, they are buying. if they intimidate the other one, they are intimidating. and if they close one, maybe they will close it. so there is a pressure on us, but we have to be very careful of course, and we have to be brave enough to support that pressure. ah. 1 i was working for the largest daily newspaper at the time called hungary, on nation monday on them. and 2 days after the collection stay announced that the largest newspaper at the time we'll be closed. so we

decided to establish weekly magazines called hungary on voice. they had no money so we are starting from scratch. 1 ready unfortunately in hungary it's nobody brave enough to print our newspaper. so i had to find. ready another option since the beginnings we are printing or newspapers inflow achia ah, some of the retail chains are not brave enough to sell us. even the readers are not brave enough to be subscriber. even the market companies de monte national swans doesn't want to, to give advertising to us because they are afraid to be punished. everybody deal with the government and they doesn't want to take

a risk. that's all last chance to remain journalist if hungry i'm voice will be closed. we have to leave the journalism and we have to find a new way of surviving. so we could be stopped at any time by 2018, and they created a huge government controlled media. conglomerate off no less than $470.00 different media outlets. dest foundation controls, about 90 percent of the media, 90 percent of the audience. this is a huge media machinery that allows the government to boost its messages in

a highly concentrated form, more changing the attitude through the information in narrative. and i think change the media landscape and change the electoral system. so that makes it easier for you to read in hungary, the official politics of the government, i think is quest versus theory. and it's really remarkable that leading government officials, including the prime minister himself, are spreading the dicker, ask one suppressor theories. and if you are opening your mouth and criticizing the government, then you can easily find yourself in the very brutal and this honest this information can be they tried to silence. god, you'll be cation glad you wouldn't fit into this propaganda balloon. imagine that you spend a lot of time and money to build up a huge air balloon of propaganda and there is

a little hole in it. you have to close it. you have to close glue, brad, because glad you is the little hole. well, the truth comes out, if you close your eyes and, and put aside your moral obligations or profession, no principles. you can continue working for, for the government media. but you will know that you are lying every day. oh is also a term popu is under can be better described as to tribal politics because it's something and shock. hungary war bomb is rex's, the leader of his tribe. there is nothing in between either your be us or a gas spouse. i think this is how democracies start to die. that when you're

just gone dare to open your mouth invoice and i asked you to demo state that the government action taking guide actions. and it's actually a great feeling to be among so many people. oh, what is i think remarkably unique in the hungary case is a door bound could do it beads, almost no application of wireless handling. this was just one of the towns where protest is reported to have been shocked by the security services in mandalay. sometimes democracy fails and i think this is an

example now that just happened in burma because you have some power for actor external to the political system that doesn't want to allow democracy, that feels threatened by democracy. and i think that's what's happened recently with the military coup and man maryan gun shows police standing here that you have a narrow cabal of rulers. and they control armed force. they have a monopoly of force now that they can suppress popular uprisings for chain. ah, [000:00:00;00]

ah, i was burning the midnight wine military coup with commander in shut off them at all, which is a military force all steamers. ah, i was shocked for a whole day. even we predicted them at all, we'll take over the control sooner or later as i am an executive member of revolutionary democratic for me and my comrade stood at our conversation about how

can we respond to the action. so i will move that does not supported or rely on any political parties or organizations. we walk on any parties who agreed with our principles, such as abolishing the military region, abolishing 2008 constitution, which is the main pillar of military aging and achieving for democracy and free all political prisoners. i don't want to live and see our generation live under the dictatorship. i a

a other than mine. ah, i was born and grew up in the middle military combat. as my father was a soldier who my father retired from military since 1999, one on return discrimination policy over race and religion announced and implemented within the middle. according to the policy, the military officers will not be promoted if he or she, if not barley's, and that coal, ironically, k virus. see, i mean, if you are being kitchen, korean chin, or other at the next and christian muslim or other religious,

your virus infect that person and will stay long in the society likely to test whether the government is minorities equal to the major team. people might have a question. also, susie and our fellows protecting the brutality, soap, damned, or even as the international state. and why the military wants to cool. it is clear, i don't expect that to be a role to elect to real process, but you see be filled in both 20152020 election. and of course they are not happy with it. there are places in the world where the military is so powerful, it just doesn't seem to be willing to allow a democratic political system. the

i think democracy stems from the innate desire of human beings for dignity, for respect, that comes with freedom and you can have freedom without democracy. in the absence of that, what is to protect you from a knock on the door in the middle of the night from the secret police, or just the police saying you've violated this law or that. and you're being taken away and then who will defend you. and who will protect you when everybody is living under the same fear of a with

because the really to read it, they hope at the 1st to you of to put it a blog that like the military guys did read it play hopes that they do. okay. this my wife and my brother since then like we locate in place it in different places every day with a guy

with hi hedge, it's alicia or both at cooper at 32 years early. so i just called because i knew that you know, they would look for me but i keep all the different activities for like a failure to be screwed for with my motorcycle group. we don't know. what do we do? we're going to have, if we do have it you know, maybe that as nursing doing

really to deal with with wow.

with the the the ah,

independent minded people are dangerous for any dictates or this is why they try to eradicate them both in style in russia or soviet union in hitler's nazi germany. the same was under cut, duffy in libya. the same happened in romania. and nikolai chesko meant it's happening now when me on mark i haven't seen anything better than democracy. ah, if you turn the question around, you see what the lack of democracy causes in human history, mass killings, oppression, poverty. so where are we heading? ah, what we are leaving behind for our children. this is or duty to bring about all day that come on guys,

we are heading into the wrong direction. i prefer to see things for myself. to look at things, not through the lens of politics, but through the lens of humanity. ah, i've been to the playground where to mere rice was shot and killed. i've been to the streets of ferguson, a protest. i've seen the anger and frustration of so many americans, but what was most clear was a desire for change. you could see black lives matter transforming from hash tag to a movement. ah, being a journalist is about listening to people and understanding where they're coming from. following a story, no matter how long it takes or where it leaves. i'm christian salumi

ah, a multiple people and told ashley including my father that he was gonna killer us laws prohibit some people convicted of domestic violence from owning firearms. phone lines investigates the gaps in the system that allow the law to go unenforced. and the deadly consequences that in see we should have laws on the books that are just for show on, relinquished on al jazeera, it's the world's. 2 most populous democracy, diverse dynamic and undergoing momentous, seen context. india dixon. in depth. look at the people and politics of india. exploring how the coven 19 pandemic struck the nation. it's continuing impact and

the lessons learned for the future. join me fade as those are for context. india anal his eda. oh be the hero and the world news oh machinery. ah north korea announce is that it's test fired, a new type of ballistic missile from a submarine. ah, hello, i'm daren jordan. this is al jazeera live from doha, also coming up haitian gang that abducted us and canadian missionaries demands