Politics and Society in Hungary: (De-)Democratization, Orbán and the EU

Description

Hungary was once a frontrunner of democratization. However, since Viktor Orbán came to power in 2010, the country has been the subject of critical media coverage and concerns due to illiberal policies and anti-EU rhetoric. The book helps to analyze and evaluate the developments by providing relevant case knowledge. It provides sound insights into Hungary’s system of government, society, parties and media, as well as selected policy areas. It focuses on how different policy areas have been influenced by the EU, traces important lines of development over the past decades, and compares the findings with other states of the region. The authors’ professional expertise and broad knowledge of the political systems of Hungary and Europe provide a well-founded analysis of the developments in the region. Contents Editors and Contributors (De-)Democratization, Party Competition and Structural Constraints in Hungary 1 Introduction 2 Hungary in Research 3 Structure and Key Findings of the Volume 4 Conclusion, Open Questions and Research Perspectives References Functional Deficiencies of Democracy and Instrumentalization of Democratic Procedures in Hungary 1 Introduction 2 The Political Development Before 2010—Pioneer of Democratization, But Deficits in Implementation 2.1 The Negotiated Regime Change in 1989 2.2 The Political System from 1990 to 2010: Formal Consolidation with Functional Deficits 3 The Restructuring of the Political System After 2010: Steps and Instruments 3.1 Institutional Reforms 3.2 Comprehensive Exchange of Elites 3.3 Ideological Foundations and Understanding of Representation 4 No Agreement on the Assessment of the Orbán System 5 Conclusion and Outlook References The Agony of a Young Constitutional Democracy. The Hungarian Constitution 1989 to 2019 1 Historical Overview of the Law 2 The Constitutional Amendments from 2010 to 2012 3 Overview of the Current Constitutional System 3.1 Lack of Stability and Political Instrumentalization 3.2 Manipulation of Democratic Mechanisms 3.3 Liberal Catalogue of Fundamental Rights with Exceptions and Diminishing Effectiveness 4 The Constitutional System’s International, Social and Cultural Background 5 Resume and Outlook References Judicial Review and Politics in Hungary 1990–2018 1 Introduction 2 International Context and Academic Discussion 3 Origin, Structure and Development of the Constitutional Court 4 Judicial Review in Practice 1990 to 2018 5 Conclusion References Traditional Social Cleavages and their Impact on the Hungarian Party System 1 Introduction 2 The Cleavage Concept of Lipset and Rokkan and its Applicability to Hungary 3 Traditional Social Conflicts in Hungary 4 Impacts of Historical Conflicts on the Clevages and Party Structures after the Change of System 5 Resume and Outlook References Referendums and ‘National Consultations’ in Hungary 1 Introduction 2 The Concept of Hungarian Direct Democracy 3 Legal Framework of Direct Democracy 3.1 Transition-related Referendums 3.2 The Process of European Integration 3.3 Referendums in Consolidated Democracy 3.4 Deconsolidation and Intensification of the Power Struggle 3.5 Instrumentalization of Direct Democracy 4 Conclusion Appendix References Civil Society, Social Movements and Political Participation in Hungary 1 Introduction 2 Historical Development and the Blueprint of Civil Society 3 Regulations and Trends in Political and Social Participation 4 Civil Society in Illiberal Democracy 5 The Patterns of Activism in Hungary 6 Conclusion References The Political Economy of Hungary: Managing Structural Dependency on the West 1 The New Model of a Dependent Competition State 2 1986–2010: Lack of Convergence and Economic Collapse 3 Since 2010: Combining Dependent Market Economy with Incentives for Particular Electoral Groups 4 Summary References Hungarian Foreign Policy 1990 to 2018: Europeanization without Conviction 1 Introduction 2 1990 to 2002: Hungary on the Way to Europe 3 Arrived in Europe: Hungarian Foreign Policy 2002–2010 4 The Foreign Policy of a Sovereign State: 2010 to 2018 5 The Europeanization of Hungarian Foreign Policy References Hungary’s Self-Peripheralization in the European Union: Background and Prospects 1 Introduction 2 The Objectives of Hungary’s European Policy Government Strategies 3 Ambivalent Relationships between Hungary and the EU Since 2010 4 Hungary’s Policy Priorities in the EU 4.1 Fiscal Policy and European Monetary Union 4.2 Cohesion Policy and EU Budget 4.3 Hungary and the GASP 4.4 Migration 5 Conclusion References Hungary’s Asylum and Migration Policy: Change in Three Stages 1 Introduction 2 A Policy Field with National and EU Requirements 3 Three Development Phases of the Asylum and Migration Policy Field 3.1 Asylum and Migration Policy in the Pre-Accession Phase 3.2 The Asylum and Migration Policy after Joining the EU 3.3 Asylum and Migration Policy and the Refugee Crisis 4 The Politicization of the Policy Field of Asylum and Migration 4.1 Mobilization 4.2 Polarization 5 Resume References Right-wing Populism and Freedom of Science in Viktor Orbán’s Hungary 1 Science in the System of National Cooperation 2 Autonomy and Control: The Relationship of Hungarian Universities to the State 3 Hard Line: The “CEU Affair” and the Ban on Gender Studies 4 Break with Tradition: Conflict with the Academy of Sciences Since 2018 5 Conclusion: Centralization References Regional Policy in Hungary: Effects of EU Membership and National Priorities 1 Introduction 2 Regional Policy as a New Policy Area 2.1 The Situation in Hungary in 1990 2.2 The EU Concept of Regional Policy 2.3 From the Turn to EU Accession: Parallelism of Policy Field Genesis and Adaptation to EU Regional Policy 2.4 Implementation of EU Cohesion Policy after EU Accession 2.5 Changes in the Regional Policy Approach of the Hungarian Government Since 2010 2.6 Re-Adjustments in EU Cohesion Policy 2021–2027 and the Hungarian Government 3 Summary References