Norway’s ambassador to Hungary was called in for a rebuke on Monday, along with his diplomatic colleagues from all the other Nordic countries. Hungary’s controversial prime minister Viktor Orbán is not at all happy that all the Nordic foreign ministers have sent a message of concern about his authoritarian government to the Council of Europe.
News service NTB reported that the foreign ministers of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland sent a letter expressing alarm about how Orbán used the Corona virus crisis to win widely expanded powers. He can now govern by decree, without consulting Hungary’s Parliament, and that’s led many to conclude that Hungary can no longer be considered a democracy.
Even in an emergency situation, the Nordic foreign ministers claimed, the rule of law must come first. That has angered Orbán and his government, which came to power in 2010, has clung to it since by cracking down on critics and the opposition, and now is making it clear they won’t be told what to do or how to act. The Nordic critics have essentially been told to mind their own business.
The leaders of 13 conservative parties in Europe including Norway’s Prime Minister Erna Solberg have voted, however, to exclude Orbán’s party from their conservative alliance EPP. They jointly declared their “deep concern” for political developments in Hungary, after a string of conflicts between Orbán’s government and European institutions and human rights groups.
newsinenglish.no staff
