Politics In Depth

What no one wanted to hear in Hungary

September 29, 2006

Ferenc Gyurcsany's comments might derail a reform process that had already been deemed controversial.

Abstract: Mario Canseco - A recording spawned the biggest riots that have taken place in Budapest since Hungary abandoned the influence of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Mario Canseco - A recording spawned the biggest riots that have taken place in Budapest since Hungary abandoned the influence of the Soviet Union in 1991. The voice of prime minister Ferenc Gyurcsany appeared unexpectedly in a radio program. The tape was allegedly recorded in May, a few days after the Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP) was confirmed as the winner of the legislative election. The head of government of the European nation declares, without hesitation, that his administration "lied throughout the past one and a half or two years" about the state of the country's economy.

A specific sector of the population in Budapest reacted immediately. The program aired on Sunday, Sept. 17, and by Monday, more than 150 people were wounded in the disturbances that culminated close to the Parliament building. Gyurcsany has ruled out resigning, and maintains that his comments were taken out of context, declaring, "It did not refer to the economy precisely, but it referred to the fact that in the last 10 or 15 years, the whole Hungarian political elite was not ready to face the necessity of reforms, and it started to make the people believe that they can be free without bearing that responsibility."

In mid-May, Gyurcsany officially received the mandate to form a new government. In August 2004, he had become prime minister after Peter Medgyessy resigned due to a cabinet dispute. When all the votes from the April election to the National Assembly were tallied, the Socialists and the Alliance of Free Democrats (SZDSZ) secured 210 of the legislative branch's 386 seats, securing a full term for Gyurcsany.

In June, Gyurcsany introduced a fiscal "austerity package" of state subsidy reductions and tax increases, aimed at lowering the country's fiscal deficit from a projected 10.1 per cent this year, to 3.2 per cent in 2009. The prime minister has voiced his intention to have Hungary use the single European currency between 2010 and 2012.

Now, the revelation of what Gyurcsany really thought about the economy just a few months ago has created an enormous controversy. Hungarians are already suffering the consequences of the government's measures, and voting intention polls had shown a severe drop in support for the Socialists. Opposition Hungarian Citizens Party (Fidesz) leader Viktor Orban has called for the prime minister's resignation, armed with surveys that gave his political organization an 11-point lead, even before the latest scandal broke.

Public opinion has not been particularly cruel with Gyurcsany. In a poll by Szonda Ipsos conducted on Sept. 18, responders were almost evenly split on whether he should continue to head the government. Another survey showed lingering questions over the way the opposition behaved in the aftermath of the tape's broadcast. These numbers are nowhere near the level of anxiety and dismay that have been seen in other countries where the leader's reliability is called into question.

Beyond the actions that Gyurcsany might take to appease his critics, there is one thing that must change. The Hungarian prime minister has had problems in the past for saying things without taking the consequences into account, either publicly or privately. In February 2005, Gyurcsany referred to Saudi Arabia's soccer team as "Arab terrorists." The remark caused the Saudi government to recall its ambassador from Hungary in protest, and the prime minister was forced to apologize for his remark.

On the other hand, this incident also suggests a deeper debate on the true nature of a head of government's labour, and on the type of language that can be used in some occasions. Some people present at the first meeting that took place after the Sept. 11 attacks in the White House bunker have stated that U.S. president George W. Bush said: "I want to kick some ass." When Brian Mulroney commented on his failed bid for the leadership of Canada's Progressive Conservative party in 1976, he claimed that he was stopped by "the biggest gang bang in history." In both cases, the politicians evidently were not speaking in a literal way, but their words are analyzed with extreme vigilance, precisely because they are not what the common citizen would expect from someone with their stature.

Gyurcsany claims this is all a misunderstanding, but there is no way to confuse the fact that he used the word "lied" when referring to his government. Since the electoral campaign, the prime minister attempted to place himself as a saviour, as the person who would give Hungary what it needed to become one with the new Europe: The common currency. Now, the people are wondering, understandably, if this administration's austerity has been worth their while. This Sunday's municipal elections provide the first opportunity for the electorate to have their say.