in hungary about the european union and there and a whole range of other issues in hungary then it wouldbe an impossible to have those debates there is now more of a need for pre-press free press and angrier than ever before isn't there especially since corruption has blossomed under your party's rule in september 29th in europe santy fraud office oluf warned that when it came to misappropriation of e.u. funds hungary was the worst performing state in the e.u. nearly 4 percent of e.u. provided money was misused and should have been returned during the 20142018 reporting period that's pretty shameful isn't it they were looking at in fact of all of situations and projects that go back to the time before the government the european parliament was just voting by the way this past week about. about some of those reports and the functioning of all of and other agencies those go back to as far as 200520067 those were years before if you just government began to function now in a more general sense but trying the 14 to 2018 we've had time to give the money back there is. there is there is corrup

not not at all in fact if you look at the hungary and public discourse if you look at hungary in politics if you look at the parliament we have one of the most vibrant debates here across the whole european union where the whole range of various opinions and different points of views are presented and can be presented at best right that way there's no intimidation at all those. those . commentaries have nothing to do with reality i don't think well you may not like the accusations against your country and we'll we'll look at some of them in detail but your denials that hungary was undertaking any anti democratic moves haven't exactly been believed have they and particularly now we have the reporters without borders organization saying that you've passed an orwellian law that introduces a full blown information police state in the heart of europe i give you a couple of examples which were criticized by the hungary and civil liberties union and you reject them out of hand you said in the past the accusations against hungary are false hungry has a free and independent world of justice scienc

doesn't hungary have to be careful?demic and these emergency powers, the eu parliament at the beginning of this year had said, quote, "the situation in hungary has deteriorated since the triggering of the article 7 investigation as to whether or not your country was in violation of basic eu values." the parliament's feeling injanuary, long before this began, was that the situation your government's actions are deteriorating. fortunately, the feeling of the european parliament liberal, leftist politicians is not the thing that have an imprint on how we do things in hungary. crosstalk you can throw out these smoke screens as much as you like, it was a clear parliamentary majority that decided that hungary needed to be investigated. it was not just leftists. the european parliament simply had no mandate on that. look at how they have broken their own rules in accepting the declaration, and if we are engaged in a discussion with the european body, we believe it is a commission that should be addressed and should be talking

hungary has fought for these values. a right declaration to say whether some countries would not abide by this. but when it comes to ideological and political blackmailing, we cannot use this word — rule of law — because there is no objective criteria to that. and by this, you are infringing upon principal values, which is a legal security. actually, you have to be aware of the scene, what you have to commit in order to be sanctioned. and that's why the treaties are providing a higher guarantee when it comes to the values. and this is article 7 procedure, which requires unanimity, which requires member state governments to look into each other‘s eyes and have a dialogue on those values, including rule of law. so i would actually ask whether you could define the rule of law and what does this mean? minister, it is interesting you say there should be a dialogue on this issue of rule of law. seems to me since the european parliament invoked, as you say, the article 7 procedures based on serious concern that hungary was in v

hungary is unquestionably one of europe's most beautiful countries. the seat of power of budapest much as any capital for share opulence. it's fairytale paul and is perhaps the prettiest in europe. but for the last decade according to critics it has passed some of the ugliest laws on the continent. vic's all been has given hungary for 13 years during which time he has taken steps which mirror those taken by other autocrats centralizing power detailing press freedom and attacking and g.m. . he likes this kind of new types of opportunity and leaders are also the ones who are coming moving the political system that he pushes your way. too lazy motives all for her bonnet this treasure them is on one hand the concentration of political power and on the other on the actual ational personal wealth his refugee policy is the whole shift. what is happening in hungary is quite unique this type of treatment of depriving asylum seekers of food. winning less than hoff of bud's his policy for desh in concert with its smallest satellite allies the christian democrati

in any debate the we have had with hungary.per look at the circumstance and we are trying to make the best and most efficient measures against the virus. kovacs, thank you very much for being on hardtalk. tuesday was another sunny but when the day in most parts of the country. there was some cloud across cornwall, the channel islands gives a couple millimetres of rain and many along the south coast of wales and temperatures reached 21 celsius. we had a lovely sunset across parts ofan we had a lovely sunset across parts of an been helped by a bit of high cloud that is coming in from continental europe. and a lot of wet weather to come in the mediterranean, but our weather is dominated by an area of high pressure over scandinavia, not as many isobars pressure over scandinavia, not as many isoba rs but pressure over scandinavia, not as many isobars but the winds would not be quite as strong. but with a bit ofa be quite as strong. but with a bit of a breeze, these are the temperatures the restraint to start off with on wednesday mo

in 1989 hungary set off a chain of events that brought down the berlin wall. >> in may, hungary beganire, becoming the first east bloc country with an open border. >> wertheim: hungary might have been the first country to puncture the iron curtain, but 30 years later, it is at the vanguard of the european right. so much so that hungarians we asked, struggled to characterize the country's current form of government. do you not feel you're living in a democracy right now? >> anna donath: well, it's a tricky question, because by law and regulation, it's a democratic country. >> wertheim: anna donath is a hungarian member of the european parliament and a leader of the momentum party, a political upstart which opposes the government that's now been in power for ten years. >> donath: it would be too easy to say that-that it's a dictatorship. it's not. it's clearly not. we can say that it's an autocratic regime, but autocracy is a scale. >> wertheim: hungarian prime minister victor orban certainly doesn't see himself as an autocrat. he popularized a term to describe his regime, "illiberal de

but for events hungary's new law is a step backwards. and hungry you always need your i.d. whether at a hotel renting a bike or at the post office and every time that's a risk for me because i don't have to out myself as a trans woman. the law makes it impossible for people to legally change the gender critics of the government say introducing adjourning the pandemic was undemocratic but it's a politically popular move for prime minister viktor orban. founder topic that fits both his opinion and the view of most trying gary and that's how we can keep his voter base together even when we're going through an economic crisis right wing premia isn't commenting nor is the minister responsible for the law but a year ago a speaker of the hungary and parliament defendant the ruling threw dish party. notes were accused of being populists empty european islamic and homophobic just because we're here to our culture and traditions of. the young actress adele the was the 1st trans woman on the cover of the hungary in edition of elle magazine she no longer feel safe in hungary where she

thousands of protesters have marched through central budapest in support of journalists at hungary's most read news site index dozens of journalists have now resigned over the sacking of its editor in chief earlier this week his dismissal has raised concerns that prime minister viktor or bands nationalist government is intensifying its if it to muzzle critical voices. a sea of solidarity lighting up central budapest thousands of hungary and standing up for press freedom which many fear is disappearing under the rule of right wing prime minister viktor orban the latest victim hungary's most retinue sight in next you seen as one of the country's last independent media that's made it a frequent target of the prime minister who once called for the fake news factory but its independence has come under threat after an ally bought control of the site at sales. the final straw came a few days ago when the site's editor and she was fired prompting more than 80 staff to resign on friday. that the 1st said. our editor in chief was fired this week and while i don't want to speak on behalf of all

it's very important to us to maintain our connection to hungary. for some 100 millions the loss of territory after world war one remains a national humiliation over a century later and viktor orban the right wing populist government has consciously stirred up these old feelings even suggested that the treaty of triano which redefined hungary's borders in 1020 will stay in effect forever. we are doing. the job yes we are the ones who are reverse hungary's fate but the decisive battle that must be fought by the generation following us the 5th generation after triano. now it will not be easy and it will not be simple but it will be worth it the great times are ahead of you. get ready and prepare every day . hungary before all else god above us all. that you wish to i mean don't you. over the past decade trian on has become a mantra under victor or abandon his governing party fetus across from the hungarian parliament a monument inscribed with the names of thousands of places which belong to hungary until 1920 was unveiled this summer. historians the p

time when still every day there was $1000.00 plus new cases in moscow of covert dine ting but in hungary there's only a total of $4000.00 a bit more than that aren't you worried and is it really time already to go back to business as usual when it comes to diplomatic trips look i never stop basically i didn't stop during the crisis at all if i had to travel abroad for example for humanitarian reasons bringing mosques or protective clothes for our friends in the vegetable canes or somewhere else i did travel i did travel i take care about the hygienic prescriptions and obligations you know washing cans not to go to clothes no shaking hands but to some time we did because now it's in our case it's it's over i mean from the crisis perspective but but during the peak of the crisis i really seriously tried to to respect the rules and regulations. well i mentioned the words business as usual i would like to come back to something you've been talking about for a while with other people you've had interviews with. critics have said that your prime minister destroyed democracy as usual or democra

well if you look at the world press freedom index according to which hungary's ranked 8989 out of 180 countries worldwide it gives us one indication about the state of press freedom in this country which has been challenged not by only the current government but by any government ever since that democratic election since 1900 what makes a current amendment of the criminal code so worrisome to some of the joys here that i've spoken to is the fact that you're not only punishable fool sharing or spreading false information but also for spreading information that is true in a forte distorted manner but what does that mean who is defining what distortion means what does it mean for journalists to operate in your underground trying to report about the consequences of this pandemic i asked some of these questions to zoltan but because one of the investigative journalists would have passed and he had some very interesting answers to tell me let's have a report let's have a look at the report. like most of his peers soltani an investigative journalist is confined to working from home. and this

it's a project that's been a decade in the making but hungary's prime minister viktor orban is almost there he or his backers are now in control of every domestic media outlet that matters until about 10 days ago index h.-u. was the only major independent outlet left that changed on july 21st when the editor was fired and another 70 journalists showed their support for him by quitting on the spot ever since coming into office back in 2010 viktor orban has steadily chipped away at hungary's for the state numerous outlets have been shut down or seen a drastic change in their editorial lines usually after an order ban ally takes control index was the last one standing but with its editor gone and the majority of its staff looking for work it is now water bans for the take our starting point this week is the index office in budapest. it wasn't a matter of it just a question of when hungary's most popular news site index study chew would lose its independence and be turned into a pro-government platform. this past week that day grew significantly closer. i. said it's. index is editor in ch

to get into hungary physically and also to get protection in hungary so 1 we have to hold unfortunately a low road in demolishing to get functioning beside them system given the european union this is a pretty unique situation unfortunately in a negative sense because i don't think it has happened you know any other member states and barons we had 2000 and thousands of people coming in 2015 as you're well the go sort recall that i also remember very well yeah right now basically we had 7 people in july who were able to fly and i mean thanks to seek asylum at the consulate in belgrade so i think this is a long road to hide here in government travel bts policies now the e.u. you mentioned that the hungry has declined to accept meaningful numbers of refugees why do you think that it. well i think this has been an important part of the government's policy the anti migrant stance with slater you know they extend the to attack all those organisations that and that actually assist the asylum seekers and refugees and they have proven successful politically with dates and and then they went alon

thousands of protesters have marched through central budapest in support of journalists and hungary's most read news site index thousands of journalists have now resigned over the sacking of its editor in chief earlier this week his dismissal has raised concern that prime minister viktor or bands nationalist government is intensifying its efforts to muzzle critical voices. the new site trusted by millions of hungary and is no more so thousands march to the prime minister's office with this message. that we are together we believe in free press. we've reached a point now where getting access to real information is in real danger as well as its very existence. in court about the overall you do she. honestly regardless of the website the reason why i came to demonstrate is that another independent news reporter has fallen victim to the government but i really don't like that and that's why i came i don't think there's any free press left. for the protests followed an early a walkout on friday when more than 80 journalists the vast majority of the newsroom quit index. to take a 1st step j

it does not mean he has the support of all the people in hungary.e people of hungary want. a quick final one about brexit. you have had long experience with brexit because you worked with the european parliament on their brexit negotiations and we are now in a period where we are in transition, the british government and the eu were supposed to be negotiating in very short order a trade deal which would avoid a harsh end of transition at the end of this year, but michel barnier said the other day that the negotiations were disappointing and on the other hand the british government says "no more extensions, we will not continue this transition after the end of the year." how dangerous do you believe this to be, given the economic disaster that coronavirus is already threatening to impose on the eu? you do not have to be a rocket scientist to see that it is almost impossible to meet the deadlines but, you know, mrjohnson is responsible for his own choices and his own strategy and there are some cynics who say that maybe he is just calculating because

the european parliament has long threatened to suspend hungary's e.u. voting rights but still hasn't lifted a finger the lack of political will in brussels is ever so the government continues to cleanse the country's media of its critics and since hungary gets far more in funding from the e.u. then it puts in some of the money the government is using to do that is coming from brussels itself. for that concern and that there are closely following the media environment hungary but what we haven't heard very much is how they feel about the fact that european money is being used to create a class oligarchs and capitalists within hungary who are then using that capital to create the media if they see. it would be worth asking these tough questions to the european union until when are they. to be comfortable financing the construction of a class of overgaard. which directly contributes to the disintegration of media freedom and. we're looking at another media story that's on our radar now with one of our producers tarek nasr targets in the u.s. a video full o

under hungary which passed a new law that stops transgender people from changing the gender recorded on their birth certificates critics in the community say this effectively ends legal recognition of trans people we spoke with some of the people affected to find out how the law has affected their lives. software engineer event took a big decision to change gender and start a new life she still young has a successful career and says she feels lucky but at the same with her and i know they're my friends have accepted me as i am hardly anyone has turned their back on me. but for events hungary's new law is a step backwards and then when you can coin a hungry you always need your eye day whether at a hotel renting a bike or at the post office and every time that's a risk for me because i don't have to out myself as a trans woman. the law makes it impossible for people to legally change the gender critics of the government introducing a during the pandemic was undemocratic but it's a politically popular move for prime minister viktor orban. the american red cross founder topic that fits

it's very important to us to maintain our connection to hungary. for some hungary and the loss of territory after world war one remains a national humiliation over a century later and viktor orban the right wing populist government has consciously stirred up these old feelings even suggested that the treaty of triano which redefined hungary's borders in 1020 will stay in effect forever. we are doing it for the job yet we are the ones who reverse hungary's fate but the decisive battle that must be fought by the generation following us the 5th generation after triano. now it will not be easy and it will not be simple but it will be worth it the great times are ahead of you. get ready and prepare every day . hungary before all else god above us all. that you wished i mean don't you. over the past decade trian on has become a mantra under victor or abandon his governing party fetus. across from the hungarian parliament a monument inscribed with the names of thousands of places which belong to hungary until 1920 was unveiled this summer. historians the

the european court of justice has ruled that hungary is in violation of the laws with regulations for higher education they were introduced in 2007 team critics say those rules specifically targeted a liberal university in budapest founded by the u.s. billionaire george soros in an unprecedented move the university was forced to quit the country. in 2017 changes to gary in law governing foreign universities for tens of thousands of protesters out onto the streets of budapest the law stated among other things that a university could only operate if the hungarian government had a specific agreement with the university's own country only one university was unable to fulfil the new requirements of the central european university or c e u founded by one garion born us billionaire george soros the 90 year old philanthropist funds causes that support democracy and human rights he has long been a source of i for hungary's right wing populist prime minister viktor orban he was accused of interfering in domestic politics the university has since moved to the austrian capital vienna where the on

with respect, poland and hungary are not being targeted. is mentioned in this deal that was put togetherjust a few days ago. and it's quite clear that all eu member states want to protect their sovereignty. as i say, 25 of the 27 see no threat to their sovereignty here. what makes poland so different? well, obviously, in the written text, there's no specific country mentioned. that's the nature of legal texts, but the conditions for triggering sanctions are so wide, so ambiguous, that the commission could start this procedure simply by declaring that there is potential risk and potential sufficient risk, which can mean absolutely anything. and we already heard in the previous weeks from various politicians as high in the european institutions as deputy president of the european parliament, that hungary must be starved, financially starved, and poland likewise. so, there's no doubt that this mechanism will be used, will be abused in the nearfuture if it is adopted. we cannot agree to this. agreeing to this would be unreasonable from our side

same sex couples will not be adopting children in hungary. that's part of the new anti-lgbt legislation approved by the hungarian parliament. a change to the hungary and constitution also states a person's sex is determined at birth and cannot be altered. it is the latest push by the prime minister's party to have more socially conservative policies in the country. joining me to discuss this is my colleague. pablo, breakdown this latest round of anti-lgbt measures in hungary. >> you mentioned a few of them. the main one is it prevents gay couples from adopting now. it is very clear and states a parent -- parents need to be a man and a woman. up until now, lgbt members, members of the community, could adopt as single parents. if they were in relationships -- also in hungary, there is now also gay marriage permitted. so it complicated matters even more. now it's adding another layer and difficulty for members of the lgbt community to be able to adopt children. at the moment, they can do it as single people, but it needs to be approved by the pa

with respect, poland and hungary are not being targeted. is mentioned in the deal that was put together just a few days ago. and it's quite clear that all eu member states wa nt to clear that all eu member states want to protect their sovereignty. as i say, 25 of the 27 see no threat to their sovereignty here. what makes poland so different? obviously in the written text there is no specific country mentioned in the nature of the legal text. but conditions for triggering sanctions are so wide and ambiguous that the commission could start this procedure simply by declaring that there is potential risk and potential sufficient risk which can mean absolutely anything and we already heard in the previous weeks from various politicians as high in the european institutions as deputy president of the european parliament that hungary must be starved, financially staff, and poland likewise. there is no doubt that this mechanism will be abused in the near future doubt that this mechanism will be abused in the nearfuture if it is adopted. we cannot ag