Being Hungarian is a mission, probably one of the most beautiful missions in the world

Hungarians needn't explain themselves, it is very much a European phenomenon that a political party holding a majority governs a country for a long time, Hungary's premier said at Tranzit Festival in Tihany. The essence of politics is to be able to explain a situation and bring about joint action, he said at the event that focuses on political and public life issues.

Tihany, 2023. augusztus 25. A Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda által közreadott képen Orbán Viktor miniszterelnök a Tranzit politikai fesztiválon Tihanyban 2023. augusztus 25-én. MTI/Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán Fotó: Miniszterelnöki Sajtóiroda/Fischer Zoltán

After eleven years, Viktor Orban once again contributed to the discussions at the Tranzit Festival, this time in Tihany. Daniel Bohar, Megafon journalist and host of the talk, greeted the prime minister, noting that the last time PM Orban shared his thoughts at the Tranzit was in Koszeg in 2012, where he said that the two-thirds majority was rock-solid.

In relation to this statement, Daniel Bohar asked Viktor Orban whether the two-thirds majority is a guarantee of Hungarian national unity. 

Viktor Orban noted that there are some quite meaningful debates unfolding around the question whether it is unnatural for a political party to hold a majority for a long time, adding that political majority is not in direct proportion to the quality of democracy.

Sooner or later, a big ruling party emerges in every era.

The Hungarian premier recalled Kalman Tisza's government, followed by Istvan Tisza's governance. Then came the consolidation period under Istvan Bethlen and the same would have happened to the Smallholders' Party, if history had not turned out the way it did.

Photo: Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan  Fischer

Hungary must stand its ground against very big forces, Viktor Orban said. People are looking for the party that gives them the highest chance of doing what is important to them. There is  an international example of this idea, the CSU in Bavaria, so

Hungarians needn't explain themselves, it is very much a European phenomenon that a political party holding a majority  governs a country for a long time.

Describing the opposition, PM Orban said that in football, there is a clear line separating the amateurs from the professionals. There are the amateurs, the children, and if you throw in a ball, they will all go after it.

In comparison, professionals will run to the point where the ball will be. This is the best way to describe the difference between the current ruling party and its opposition. The governing party has a long-term plan and its moves are coordinated,

he pointed out.

At the same time, every team, even those who play football like children, has owners and financiers, PM Orban said, noting that the left represents world trends in intellectual and ideological terms, and represents major global forces in sociological and financial terms.

"There are those big financial groups that have clear intentions for the world, for Europe and for our country. These forces are looking for their agents and find them in Hungarian left-wing parties, whose political mindset is more focused on how Hungary can become part of the big world powers. In contrast, the ruling parties think in terms of national interests."

 

Viktor Orban: I enjoy being in the Hungarian flow!

Everyone should clarify for themselves whether they are Hungarian, whether this is of significance to them in their lives, and whether it is good to be in this "Hungarian flow".

"I enjoy being in the Hungarian flow," PM Orban said, stressing that this also implies a duty that must be fulfilled, whatever it may be.

There are many ways to be Hungarian, but the main question is whether this mission is seen elsewhere, he said.

"The Hungarian language, culture and history will not disappear in only one case: if we sustain them,"

he underlined, adding that English-speaking nations or Germans do not have such a mission. The Hungarian language will only continue to exist if we sustain it.

 

Viktor Orban: Most of the communists turned liberal

It is important to study in a place where you can constantly be among clever people, the Hungarian premier said, because you can learn a lot from them in order to find answers to complex questions such as whether the systems we see today or the opponents we meet today are comparable with those in previous periods.

"We have a difficult time with the liberals and the communists because, at first sight, they appear to be very far from each other," 

the prime minister pointed out and went on saying  

"and then you are surprised to see that most of the communists turned liberal after the collapse of communism".

"You come to realise that the dividing line lies in the understanding of 'man'. The communists and today's liberals see 'man' in the same way. The liberals and the left now say that the most important thing in life is 'you' as an individual," Viktor Orban said, adding that this view is embraced by a large political camp in the Western world.

He continued as follows:

"The other understanding of man, the right-wing conservative understanding, says that there are more important things in the world than the individual: family, home, God and the relationship with him."

Photo: Prime Minister's Press Office/Zoltan  Fischer

In Mr Orban's view, the most exciting debates took place in the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, between liberals and conservatives. The decades that followed saw many changes, but the world that existed before totalitarian tendencies emerged will return. This means that

liberals and conservatives will confront and they will have big debates.

The liberals were quick to realise that the traditional post-1990 arrangement was about to end soon, and began to prepare for this. The conservatives were slow to wake up and are now ten years behind. Liberals had already organised themselves internationally and infiltrated universities, foundations and the media when conservatives only began to get themselves together, the prime minister said. 

The problem is that the liberals have gained dominance, Viktor Orban opined, noting that this is not true for Hungary, but internationally conservatives are clearly at a disadvantage.

In his view, there is no internationally organised competitive conservative political force field because the opponent side makes very good use of their ten-year advantage. And we are not persistent enough, we do not put enough work into it, so we are slow to close the gap.

The predominance of the Right in Hungary is first of all the outcome of the efforts we put into organising ourselves, but it also came about "thanks"  to the Left.  God has repaid the forty years that were taken from us,

Viktor Orban said.

 

The Right must continue to rebel!

Viktor Orban also said that the generation of 1968 issued the slogan "Go to institutions!" and the members of this generation have occupied the places where ideas are shaped. According to him, conservatives did not realise at the time how serious consequences this would entail.

"We must understand the left-wing strategy," the prime minister pointed out, stressing that the members of the 1968 generation have occupied institutions, and today they are in power in many countries.

Viktor Orban recalled that when Fidesz lost the parliamentary elections in 2002, many people warned that "between 1998 and 2002, we were in government, but not in power." 

 Power remained in the hands of the left, he stressed, because historically they had dominated the main institutions that could shape people's thought, such as the media.

"The right must continue to rebel and fight to prevent the country from being plundered," Viktor Orban said.  

Those in the English-speaking world believe they are always morally right, and no one else can be

It is an illustrative example that those in the English-speaking world not only represent their interests but also claim that they represent moral supremacy on all issues, that they are always morally right, and that no one else can be, PM Orban explained. Moreover, this implies that the latter group is made up of bad people, he added.

"They have also formulated the morally correct position on the war in Ukraine," he said, adding that the political culture of the English-speaking world remains present to this day, and best exemplified by "acting like good people".

 

A ceasefire is needed first

Speaking about the war in Ukraine, the Hungarian prime minister said the most important thing to note is that hundreds of thousands have died. Horrible things happen. Statistics reveal that those who go to the front line die within four to seven days.

"While we've been sitting here, a dozen people have died," Viktor Orban pointed out. This is why a ceasefire is needed first, and then a peace plan must be worked out. He also recalled that after the outbreak of the war he was practically the only leader in Brussels to call for the localising of the war. In contrast, the European Union globalised it, believing that if they gave money and weapons and the Ukrainians gave their lives, the Russians would be defeated. However, it proved impossible to defeat the Russians with this strategy.

"This strategy will only lead to further killing," he underlined, highlighting 

what is needed is an immediate peace, or a new strategy, but there is none. 

It is forbidden to talk about this position, he added. This opinion is not presented in the Western world, and if he shared this position in the media or at a forum, people would boo and call him stupid.

 

Hungary is strong, secure and worthy of respect 

Touching on economic issues, the Hungarian premier said that the goal is for Hungary to be rich, strong, secure and respectable. There is a plan for achieving this, as there was in 2010, and it has remained in place to this day. A large part of the country is contributing to this plan.

 Indisputably,  the country is heading in this direction,

he noted. However, the plan must be kept under constant review, and this is precisely why we must strive for peace, because if we are drifted into war, we cannot bring it to completion, he pointed out.

 

Power is the ability to act together

Power is the ability to act together, Viktor Orban underscored. The essence of politics, in his view, is to be able to explain a situation and bring about joint action. 

"If we succeed in doing this, we will be big, we will be strong, and we will be respected,"
 

Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in conclusion.

 Cover photo: Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the political festival Tranzit in Tihany on 25 August 2023 . (Photo: MTI/PM's Press Office/Zoltan Fischer)