Hungary’s governing Fidesz party is in crisis over an issue it has staked its credibility on: the defence of the traditional family. One of the ministers who pioneered Viktor Orban’s family policy and served as president of Hungary, Katalin Novak, has been forced to resign over a paedophile scandal. Novak resigned on 10 February after a story revealed she had pardoned a man convicted of covering up sexual abuse cases of children at a state orphanage. Judit Varga, the former minister of justice, who signed off the pardon last April, was also forced out. Varga had been due to lead Fidesz’s list in the upcoming European parliament election.

Fidesz pro-family policies are part and parcel of efforts to keep Hungary ‘ethnically homogeneous’

This is not the first scandal to taint the image of Orban’s Fidesz as a conservative Christian force upholding traditional family values in Europe. In 2020, Belgian police responded to a call regarding a Covid lockdown violation in Brussels. They found a 25-strong gay orgy. Officers apprehended a man attempting to flee the scene down a drainpipe with ecstasy in his backpack. He turned out to be Jozsef Szajer, a founding member and MEP of Fidesz, leading to his prompt resignation a few days later.

The simultaneous departure of Novak and Varga is a major blow to Fidesz. They were both young, popular with the voters, and as women in prominent positions, rare in a male-dominated party. Novak was a key figure in the government’s family policies and efforts to reverse the declining birth rate in Hungary.

When Fidesz came to power in 2010, the birth rate was at a record low, with Hungarian mothers bearing an average of 1.25 children. Through cash handouts, tax incentives and interest-free loans, young couples were encouraged to have more children. By 2021, the birthrate was up to 1.59

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Hungary / Is Orban’s family policy coming unstuck?

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21.02.2024

Hungary’s governing Fidesz party is in crisis over an issue it has staked its credibility on: the defence of the traditional family. One of the ministers who pioneered Viktor Orban’s family policy and served as president of Hungary, Katalin Novak, has been forced to resign over a paedophile scandal. Novak resigned on 10 February after a story revealed she had pardoned a man convicted of covering up sexual abuse cases of children at a state orphanage. Judit........

© The Spectator


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