Wikileaks - MCCCLXXX
212323 6/16/2009 10:45 09BUDAPEST429 Embassy Budapest UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY 09BUDAPEST362|09BUDAPEST410 VZCZCXRO0581 PP RUEHAG RUEHAST RUEHDA RUEHDBU RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG DE RUEHUP #0429/01 1671045 ZNR UUUUU ZZH P 161045Z JUN 09 ZDK FM AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4243 INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0018 RUEHSL/AMEMBASSY BRATISLAVA 1052 RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 1446 RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BUDAPEST 000429
SENSITIVE SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CE JAMIE LAMORE. PLEASE PASS TO JEFF HOVENIER AT THE NSC
E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL PGOV, EUN, HU SUBJECT: HUNGARIAN EXTREMIST HEADED TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
REF: A. BUDAPEST 410 B. BUDAPEST 362
1. (SBU) Summary. Two days after the extreme-right Jobbik party's surprising success in the European Parliamentary (EP) elections, lead candidate Krisztina Morvai provided further insight into her agenda at a breakfast with the international press corps. Self-confident, sometimes arrogant and occasionally mocking in her responses, Morvai described herself as a lawyer and a "human rights activist(not your typical fascist or Nazi career." Anti-international business, anti-globalization, an EU skeptic and defender of "Hungary for Hungarians," Morvai's presentation highlighted her agenda in the EP and key Jobbik positions. Dubbed "Nazi Barbi" in the Hungarian press, Morvai, a former Fulbright Scholar comfortable with both high-level discourse and the crudest anti-Semitic rhetoric, is clearly relishing her increasingly potent public profile. End summary.
--------------------------------------
NOT YOUR TYPICAL FASCIST OR NAZI CAREER
--------------------------------------
2. (SBU) In a June 9 meeting with the Budapest international press corps following the extreme-right Jobbik party's strong showing in the EP elections (ref A), Krisztina Morvai opened with a brief summary of her career. Morvai, who will lead the three-member Jobbik EP delegation, emphasized her professional work in human rights advocacy, particularly her four years (2002-2006) as Hungary's representative to the United Nation's Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Calling herself a human rights and women's rights activist, Morvai ridiculed the foreign journalists present, commented that "she believes hers is not your typical fascist or Nazi career," referring to frequent press accusations about her.
3. (SBU) Stating that she will never give up her work as a "fighter for human rights," Morvai proudly reminded the audience that she was the recipient of the Red Cross's Freddie Mercury prize for promoting AIDS awareness. She also noted her efforts to create the Independent Lawyers Committee to provide legal aid to the victims of police brutality during political riots in Budapest in 2006, strongly criticizing the international community and, in particular, the European Union for remaining silent. She said that every person should have immediately condemned the police response with the exception of those "who have a passionate love for dictatorships."
4. (SBU) Morvai also underscored that she is not member of Jobbik even though she led the party list. She made it clear that she has no intention of joining Jobbik in the future, preferring to remain a "civilian." She explained an aversion to political parties in general, criticizing even Jobbik for not having any women in its eight-member party leadership council.
--------------------------------------------- ----------
&Passion and Justice8 headed to the European Parliament
--------------------------------------------- ----------
5. (SBU) Condemning the EU as a "completely unjust, neo-liberal, bureaucratic and corrupt system," Morvai stressed that Jobbik gained three seats in the EP because they were emotionally very strong and remained dedicated to their goal despite the "nasty media reporting" of their objectives and actions. She said that few Hungarians admitted publicly their intention to vote for the party due to their fear of losing their jobs, and thus the polls underestimated Jobbik support.
------------------------------------
THE EUROPEAN UNION ) A FAILED SYSTEM
------------------------------------
6. (SBU) Calling the European Union "a failed system which needs to be fundamentally changed by people with the right heart," Morvai said she is committed to cooperation with other Euro-skeptics in the EP to make their voices much
BUDAPEST 00000429 002 OF 003
stronger. Morvai said that although she will probably speak in a more diplomatic way, she will not lose her passion for human rights, underlining her strong pledge for finding allies even among the other Hungarian MEPs (including Socialists) to fight jointly for the dignity of Hungarian people. (Comment. Morvai's reference to speaking in a more diplomatic way was in response to her shocking, crude comments on a website to a Hungarian-American who had strongly criticized her. She suggested that the individual go play with his &Jewish circumcised XXXX (male anatomy) rather than wasting time trying to besmirch her." End comment.)
7. (SBU) Stating that Hungary is treated as a "second class member" of the European Union, Morvai said her number one objective in the EP is "the protection of the Hungarian agricultural land," which will be open for sale to foreigners beginning in 2011. Morvai vehemently condemned the governmental politics that led to diminished markets for Hungarian products and the disappearance of family owned farms. She stressed that "Hungarian land needs to remain in Hungarian hands as we don't want to become a second Palestine," sarcastically adding that "you are welcome to publish this statement in the headlines of tomorrow's papers, I don't care." (Comment. At the end of the session Morvai quoted Simon Peres, You Tube comments in which he made reference to the success of Israeli international investments, including "Israel buying up Hungary." In connection with the anti-Semitic comments and the public denial of the Holocaust associated with the extreme-right, Morvai stated that while violence needs to be prevented, the freedom of expression needs to be protected. She argued that only dialogue as opposed to silence can decrease social tensions. End comment.)
---------------------------------
THE ROMA'S NEW CHIEF EP ADVOCATE?
---------------------------------
8. (SBU) Continuing to outline her EP agenda, Morvai stated that she will strongly fight for Roma rights, especially "the right to a proper education for Roma children despite their parents, reluctance to ensure it." While ironically denying holding any nostalgia for the Communist era, she acknowledged that the past regime did manage to defend and educate poor children. She passionately emphasized the need for strong state protection for Roma women against trafficking rings and for Roma families against usury. Morvai underlined the importance that the Roma must have legitimate representatives who can speak on their behalf as opposed to the current Roma politicians. She stressed that a dialogue has to be started with the Roma community, asking them how "they see their future and how they see the future of their children?"
------------------------
AND THE TRIANON QUESTION
------------------------
9. (SBU) In response to a question from the Serbian Embassy's Deputy Chief of Mission with regard to ethnic Hungarians living beyond the borders, Morvai stated she wants to organize an international conference on the Trianon Treaty, framing the issue as "a human rights rather than a political question." Claiming that the discussion on autonomy and self-determination is included in all the major human rights conventions, Morvai stressed that this issue needs to be shifted to a group of experts who can start working out a plan for autonomy based on the principles of human rights.
-----------------------------------------
HUNGARY - A THIRD WORLD COUNTRY IN EUROPE
-----------------------------------------
10. (SBU) Repeatedly comparing Hungary to a third world country in terms of the lack of protection for workers, rights, human dignity for Hungarians, and crime prevention, Morvai said Hungary is like some Latin America countries where "a small group of rich people can buy their own physical security but the rest of the nation doesn't matter for them." Morvai stressed her strong belief that the state has an obligation to protect vulnerable people and this is
BUDAPEST 00000429 003 OF 003
why Jobbik wants to build a stronger state and fight against crime. In this regard, Morvai said that "the only problem with Magyar Garda (MG) is that it is not strong enough," confessing great happiness over its creation. Continuing, she said that the MG has to be much stronger in order to successfully protect Hungarians from the State's suppression.
----------------------
HUNGARY FOR HUNGARIANS
----------------------
11. (SBU) Responding to a question from the press, Morvai explained that the Jobbik's slogan "Hungary for Hungarians" includes even those minority groups "who have been living in Hungary for a long time" (i.e. the Roma). However, she emphasized that the slogan excludes the multinational companies that take all the profit out from the country. Morvai claimed that the multinational companies should not be given special privileges, rather they need to bear the same burdens as local, Hungarian owned small and medium sized enterprises if they want to do business in Hungary. Hungary, she said, should not be owned by global capital but the Hungarians, capturing her sentiment with the phrase "we need to move from globalization to localization."
12. (SBU) Comment. Self-confident and charismatic, Morvai definitely made a strong impression on the members of the international Press Corps ) although not always a favorable one. Highly critical of the national and the international media, she had no qualms in telling one journalist that her "idiotic question" comparing Jobbik and the WWII era, Nazi-oriented Arrow Cross party only reflected the fear of the entire international media supporting global capital. Morvai suggested that the journalist should rather "go to Israel and ask what the difference is between Israel and the Nazis."
13. (SBU) Comment continued. With excellent English and strong speaking skills, Morvai, citing the outspoken American critic of corporate globalization, Dave Korten, as her ideological model, conveyed a message filled with contradictions. Interestingly, during her presentation, Mr. Zsolt Varkonyi, Jobbik's Foreign Policy Advisor, (ref B) who accompanied her to the breakfast, often provided quiet guidance prior to Morvai answering a question. Although Jobbik has developed some connections with the British National Party, it remains to be seen just how effective Morvai and the other two Jobbik representatives will be during their five year EP term. It is clear, however, that the far-right has found a capable figurehead who cannot be easily categorized and should not be underestimated. Levine
