Gabor Gasztonyi Photo 2021.
The right-wing government in Hungary, led by its leader
Victor Orban is a Mafia state, as noted by the Hungarian sociologist Balint Magyar. The Hungarian
government's entire organisation is best understood when compared to a Mafia
family controlled by a god-father, Victor Orban. Power, privilege and control of all state
resources are in the hands of a few loyal politicians, oligarchs and friends
whose sole purpose is self-enrichment and the continuation of that
enrichment. The Hungarian constitution
was rewritten several times by Orban, and today, even if they lose an election,
the new government is hamstrung unless they have a two-thirds majority. The entire legal system, the financial system,
is staffed with members of the mafia family, resulting in complete domination
in all aspects of civilian life. The
state of Hungary is worse than the darkest days of communism. Sadly the state
controls all media, television and political advertising, with members of the
mafia family emulating the propaganda of 1930's Germany under Goebbels. Although some might say this is an
exaggeration, I submit it is not far off the mark. The impact of this regime is evident in the
lives of the poor and in those unable to speak.
Often in the mafia state, the poor and helpless are objects of ridicule
and little importance as they are not sources of wealth for the privileged.
Last week I was sitting at a café in the sixth district on a
day when all the garbage cans were assembled on the corner, ready for
pickup. A well dressed older woman
walking with a cane and a shopping bag opened each garbage can, looking inside
for leftover food or beverage containers.
She was not a street person or homeless, but I am sure she lived in one
of the nearby apartments. Often
pensioners are unable to heat their homes or pay for repairs to heating equipment
and often unable to buy enough food.
The other day on Terez Korut, I noticed an elderly lady on a
street bench grasping a bag of buns and some toilet paper rolls. She had taken them from the grocery store
without paying. The police arrived, and
she said she was ill and wanted to go to a hospital. The officers called an ambulance. I am sure the officers felt as sad as I was
and were trying to help. How can we not
look after the poor and the hungry in a country that is part of NATO, part of
the EU and part of the modern world?
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