The following video contains the full speech given a few days ago by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, reviewing the events of 2016 and looking ahead to 2017 and beyond. It is one of the best speeches by a European political leader I have ever heard.
Mr. Orbán talks frankly and lucidly about the major crises that are currently bedeviling Europe, including the “refugee” crisis and the heavy-handed behavior of the European Union towards the nations of Europe — which it considers its vassal states. The prime minister focuses on the primary overarching issue, which is the attempt by trans-national organizations to impose global governance on nation states. He describes the current “populist revolt” that has arisen to resist the globalists, with Brexit and the election of Donald Trump being the most recent major examples.
The entire speech is 44 minutes long, but it’s well worth listening to. The middle third is mostly on Hungarian domestic issues, but the rest will be of great interest to non-Hungarians. It’s possible that Vlad may want to excerpt smaller sections and make separate videos, so suggestions are welcomed on the times where the relevant break-points should be.
Many thanks to CrossWare for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:
Transcript:
00:08 | Respected [former] President Pál Schmitt and his dear wife, | |
00:12 | Dear Mrs. Dalma, [former] Prime Minister Peter Boros, | |
00:16 | everyone who invited me, ladies and gentlemen. | |
00:20 | It is good to see you all again, | |
00:24 | it is the 19th time — that is way too much, even from dumplings — | |
00:28 | I would like to evoke the words of István Szabó, our greatly respected bishop, | |
00:32 | in his little story, where two little boys | |
00:36 | are listening to the mass… “This is boring,” | |
00:40 | says the smaller one, then the older boy answers: “Well, this is how supposed to be.” | |
00:44 | … Well, dear audience, | |
00:48 | Today we do not have to be afraid of that. | |
00:52 | The year 2016 was not boring, not the least bit. | |
00:56 | And the year 2017 looks rather | |
01:00 | interesting too. We had — and we will have — excitement, | |
01:04 | surprise, scratching of heads, | |
01:08 | wiping of foreheads and rubbing of eyes. | |
01:12 | We will ask of each other: it is really possible, | |
01:16 | what unfolds before our eyes, | |
01:20 | and takes shape? Who would have | |
01:24 | thought — just a couple of years ago — that history | |
01:28 | would defy the prophecies, and laughingly show the fig sign | |
01:32 | to the prophets of liberal politics, | |
01:36 | and would lively show an “up yours!” to the beneficiaries and protectors of | |
01:40 | the international order: the globalists and | |
01:44 | liberals, to influential people, living in their | |
01:48 | ivory tower palaces and sitting in their television studios. | |
01:52 | To the army of media locusts and their masters. | |
01:56 | To everybody who believed, taught and spread, | |
02:00 | who enjoyed its gains and absorbed its revenues, | |
02:04 | that the global liberal world order is unalterable. | |
02:08 | That nation states are finished, and along with their devotees they | |
02:12 | may be relegated to the museums. And we simple citizens have only | |
02:16 | to accept this eventuality and resign ourselves to it. | |
02:20 | And if we do not want to lament over our pinned down and | |
02:24 | jailed principles until the end of our lives, | |
02:28 | and we do not want to be hopeless losers, | |
02:32 | then we must stand in the line and get used to the | |
02:36 | liberal flavours of the open world. But history — respected | |
02:40 | ladies and gentlemen — did not read the writings of smart alecs. | |
02:44 | According to them, he — I mean history — | |
02:48 | is complete; his course and his riverbed have been appointed, | |
02:52 | and his flow only permitted to run between the well-built dikes. | |
02:56 | History did not read all these things; | |
03:00 | he simply did not know that for him it was all over. | |
03:04 | Kaput! Suddenly he put up his hands: | |
03:08 | “I am sorry, but I am still here, and I would like to show you a couple of | |
03:12 | new tricks.” He took a sharp turn. | |
03:16 | He broke through and swept away the carefully planned | |
03:20 | Dikes, and stepped out from his assigned riverbed. | |
03:24 | Indeed, respected ladies and gentlemen, | |
03:28 | from this you may see that history is ourselves, | |
03:32 | not just in Hungary, but in Europe too. | |
03:36 | Everybody, in our flesh and blood reality, with our ideals and thoughts, | |
03:40 | plans and hopes — we do not like and do not tolerate it | |
03:44 | when others want to tell us and decide for us, | |
03:48 | why are we in the world, what we should do and how we should do it, | |
03:52 | or not do it, what we should think or not think. | |
03:56 | Yes, my dear friends, it was a beautiful thing to see | |
04:00 | — just as in the 60th anniversary of the 1956 revolution — | |
04:04 | that in the world freedom is still such a big thing. | |
04:08 | How was all this possible in | |
04:12 | the 2016th year of our Lord? … Hubris! | |
04:16 | as the ancient Greeks would say. The mix of | |
04:20 | immodesty, cockiness and pathological self-love. | |
04:24 | Arrogance and a superiority complex, | |
04:28 | as they would say in the language of the modern world. | |
04:32 | The old mistake of the rich and powerful of mankind | |
04:36 | is when they believe, they can imagine themselves in the place of God, unpunished. | |
04:40 | They can just proclaim things, or make statements | |
04:44 | beyond any criticism, force utopias | |
04:48 | on countries and nations. They can decide what others can or cannot say, | |
04:52 | what they can or cannot believe, | |
04:56 | appoint their circle of insiders and think that their global power | |
05:00 | is unquestionable. Money, media, world government | |
05:04 | and an open world society. | |
05:08 | In 2016 the people of the world, | |
05:12 | in many places, had enough. Brexit, | |
05:16 | the American presidential election, | |
05:20 | the tossed-out Italian government, the Hungarian migrant | |
05:24 | referendum, and after that more are coming, perhaps. | |
05:28 | “You start to become great again, oh people.” | |
05:32 | Of course — this is a reference to the people — in vain we use Petőfi [revolutionary poet] to shield us. | |
05:36 | To the Liberals this is simply “populism”, | |
05:40 | which obviously, as a well-known fact, is an ugly thing, | |
05:44 | Harmful, and a fully “housebroken” politician would not say such things in Europe. | |
05:48 | However, my dear audience… | |
05:52 | … | |
05:56 | However, in 2016, this is exactly what happened. | |
06:00 | Those who were never asked, whose voices were never heard, | |
06:04 | who had never been in the circles of the media, | |
06:08 | who were tossed aside by the gears of global economy, | |
06:12 | the seemingly weak, the vulnerable ones, | |
06:16 | the ones in economic and cultural strait jackets, | |
06:20 | whose mouths were sealed in the name of political correctness, | |
06:24 | who were promised that they will benefit from the | |
06:28 | global world economy and world government. | |
06:32 | Well, they have rebelled. | |
06:36 | They demand their countries back. They demand their economic | |
06:40 | and societal chances back. They demand the return of that world, | |
06:44 | the wide and colorful world of nations, where | |
06:48 | once upon a time they felt right at home. | |
06:52 | That is what was flowing and still flows from the American, the French, | |
06:56 | the Italian, the Dutch and the Austrian election campaigns. | |
07:00 | “The pie is hot” — as they say in the soccer dressing rooms. [slang — a tactic did not work, so we lose] | |
07:04 | European countries that are getting ready for elections | |
07:08 | use such dramatic tones and speak with such dark voices | |
07:12 | that we Hungarians just shake our heads. | |
07:16 | Yes, from the previous ornate, nuanced, global citizens, | |
07:20 | courteous and polite leaders, opposition | |
07:24 | and government side alike, now argue about the survival of their homeland, | |
07:28 | the horrors of globalism, the flood of a fundamentalist | |
07:32 | migrant mass, endangering their nationality, | |
07:36 | and they orate about the bottomless appetite of world capital fattened up to planet size. | |
07:40 | What the heck happened to them? | |
07:44 | Looking at it from Central Europe, the first | |
07:48 | thought comes to mind: “The abundance made them lose their minds.” | |
07:52 | My mother used to say: “In their wealth, they do not even know | |
07:56 | what to do.” Very unusual thing, that. | |
08:00 | We have a hard time to even understanding. For seventy free and peaceful years, | |
08:04 | accumulated family and community wealth, high incomes, | |
08:08 | excellent universities, products piled up into mountains, | |
08:12 | roads, airports and high-speed trains. | |
08:16 | The Western, the Western European lifestyle, which | |
08:20 | is envy of the world and desired by everybody. | |
08:24 | After all, they are the rich ones. We go there to work, in hope | |
08:28 | of higher income. Self-confident, the West is sure | |
08:32 | about its own future, and the uncertain worrisome | |
08:36 | Eastern Europe, this was the setup until now, this is what we got used to. | |
08:40 | But if we listen carefully, we can understand that, | |
08:44 | in reality, they have serious doubts about their future. | |
08:48 | Of course, in the important clubs of the important people, they are just grimacing. | |
08:52 | For them this is too uncouth, a rough | |
08:56 | and earthy stink. They are not used to | |
09:00 | taking it straight, as they say it in the street, | |
09:04 | “pacekba” [slang — vulgar style]. They have never seen it before, | |
09:08 | that all kinds of mobs can just break into Dévény [important medieval fortress on the Slovakian border], | |
09:12 | in the new times, with long-forgotten old songs. | |
09:16 | My dear friends, these are not the arguments about tastes and styles. | |
09:20 | Moreover, we are also the members of the European Union. | |
09:24 | We can’t just pull ourselves out from under that. The bell | |
09:28 | will chime for us too; this is not a game and the bet is not in beans. | |
09:32 | The most serious stakes are at risk here. | |
09:36 | Western people feel their generation, and that generation’s | |
09:40 | fate can be decided. There is no pathos | |
09:44 | in this, no exaggeration. Can they continue the lifestyle they | |
09:48 | inherited from their parents, or has something irreversible happened | |
09:52 | without their consent, moreover against their will? | |
09:56 | Will they have the right to their own culture? | |
10:00 | Will they be able to defend the non-material intellectual possessions of Europe? | |
10:04 | Will they have a chance — as used to be the case — | |
10:08 | to learn in good schools and to have a job with a decent income, | |
10:12 | to thrive, to own property and establish a home, | |
10:16 | to raise a family and grow old with dignity. | |
10:20 | Will there be terror-free safety? And | |
10:24 | city life without fear? The present abundance | |
10:28 | and economy of the European Union do not matter, | |
10:32 | now that the future casts a shadow into the present. | |
10:36 | A long and dark shadow. | |
10:40 | It is not that we envious Easterners are saying that, nor is it | |
10:44 | the inept Soviet propaganda of the past; this is different. | |
10:48 | They are saying this about themselves, about their own situation, | |
10:52 | and about their own future. Respected ladies and gentlemen, | |
10:56 | the military positions in 2016 were drawn with sharp contours. | |
11:00 | Nations rebelled against the globalists, | |
11:04 | and the middle class revolted against their leaders. | |
11:08 | This means in our community, in the European Union, | |
11:12 | that we, the sovereign nations, are standing against | |
11:16 | the Unionists, and the voters are standing against | |
11:20 | the bureaucrats from Brussels. All of this | |
11:24 | did not happen between one day and another like a thunderclap, but | |
11:28 | is rather the bitter and thorny fruit of dissatisfaction | |
11:32 | that grew ripe over long years. | |
11:36 | But why did the dissatisfaction turn into a rebellion? | |
11:40 | Up until now they taught us that the old | |
11:44 | Western democracies represent a higher quality | |
11:48 | than that of the dirty Central European democracies | |
11:52 | just now writhing their way out of that lousy socialism. | |
11:56 | Because over there in the West, democracy does not only mean free elections, but | |
12:00 | rather the living tissue of freedom, an adaptable, flexible | |
12:04 | organism, which continuously responds to changes | |
12:08 | and is capable of repairing its own faults | |
12:12 | over time. Perhaps this was once true. | |
12:16 | Once upon a time, when the European democracies | |
12:20 | were at the apogee of their orbit. | |
12:24 | But since then the era of open societies dawned upon | |
12:28 | the Western part of Europe and over the great ocean, too, | |
12:32 | and gave birth to their thought police: political | |
12:36 | correctness. Some years ago | |
12:40 | democracy was based on debate, | |
12:44 | precise measurements of pro and con arguments, | |
12:48 | open expression, free thoughts and | |
12:52 | associations, vibrant, encouraging | |
12:56 | innovative solutions, a lively intellectual life. | |
13:00 | That is why was so attractive to our gladly-visiting neighbors, | |
13:04 | pub-loving, café-gossiping Hungarian folk, too. | |
13:08 | The new political system, the so-called “open society”, | |
13:12 | liquidated all of this. | |
13:16 | Instead of a debate-based democracy, a correctness-based democracy arrived. | |
13:20 | In the terrain of ideology, that meant | |
13:24 | the liberal intellectual trend turned against the ideal of democracy, | |
13:28 | that is, the majority-based ideal, against the will | |
13:32 | of the cohesive majority community. | |
13:36 | In the political realm, the open society meant that the true | |
13:40 | power, decisions and influence, instead of residing with elected parliamentary | |
13:44 | representatives and governments, were put into the | |
13:48 | hands of unelected global network of people, to media gurus | |
13:52 | and the unelected international organizations, for whom nobody voted, | |
13:56 | and they outsourced it to their local offices. | |
14:00 | In the economic sphere, the open society | |
14:04 | Meant that peoples and nations | |
14:08 | and cultures would be cut to size — like hamburgers — | |
14:12 | so that they could make products out of them. | |
14:16 | Countries were to be converted to railway stations — everybody can freely go in and out. | |
14:20 | And finally, with the tearing down of the rules of economic self-defence, | |
14:24 | they let the foxes into the hen house, so they can freely | |
14:28 | compete there. And it’s nobody’s fault that the foxes are | |
14:32 | always winning. And when hapless slowly-awakening | |
14:36 | European citizens tried to put their foot down, | |
14:40 | they would be flooded with a couple of million migrants. | |
14:44 | If these backward Europeans were unable to free themselves | |
14:48 | from their Christian nature and from their nationalistic feelings, | |
14:52 | or if they did not want to be freed from them, did not understand the good word, | |
14:56 | then let’s dig deeper, let’s replace the subsoil | |
15:00 | of European life too; let masses come in who have | |
15:04 | a different religion, raised with different morals and customs, | |
15:08 | who do not understand anything in Europe, and | |
15:12 | let them teach us a lesson. This how there came to be | |
15:16 | the world’s most bizarre alliance between human smugglers, | |
15:20 | human rights activists and top European politicians, | |
15:24 | for that purpose, in a pre-planned way, to transport | |
15:28 | into Europe many millions of migrants. | |
15:32 | What will come of this? … | |
15:36 | … | |
15:40 | … So the question is, | |
15:44 | What. will. come. of. this…? In conclusion, | |
15:48 | at the beginning of 2017 we can state that the rulers among globalist | |
15:52 | politicians are not looking inside themselves for faults, but | |
15:56 | blaming the people and the nations. They decided they will not give up | |
16:00 | their positions, and the people’s opposing will against | |
16:04 | the open society and liberal governments will be extinguished. | |
16:08 | they proclaimed that if their ideological comrades, | |
16:12 | if the liberals do not win the elections in any country, | |
16:16 | then democracy no longer exists. | |
16:20 | They proclaimed that the people are endangering democracy. | |
16:24 | And because the people are dangerous, the ones who until now | |
16:28 | hysterically demanded the freedom of the press suddenly want | |
16:32 | to restrict the press, the media and the internet. | |
16:36 | If someone finds something that us not unbiased and neutral | |
16:40 | enough on Hungarian “Royal” state TV [Soros-paid opposition calls it “Royal”, Orbán being the dictator (king)] | |
16:44 | They should switch over to some American channel; it will be refreshing | |
16:48 | to switch back … If the… | |
16:52 | … | |
16:56 | … If the dissatisfied ones do not keep their mouths shut, | |
17:00 | or if the media fail to inhibit their voice, then they will be denounced, | |
17:04 | stigmatized and disinherited. And in this, | |
17:08 | there is no mercy, even for the new American President. | |
17:12 | No wonder then, that the high pressure became permanent | |
17:16 | in the European Union. The valves sooner or later will seize up and stop working, | |
17:20 | and the people, lacking any other options, will revolt. | |
17:24 | That is, they are kicking it out with their votes, | |
17:28 | tossing out the liberal elite. This is how the world works now, | |
17:32 | respected ladies and gentlemen, respected [former] President, in the wintertime | |
17:36 | of 2017. That’s enough of all this. | |
17:40 | Because we are not gathered here to evaluate the European Union, | |
17:44 | no matter how alluring for a Hungarian the perspective of | |
17:48 | world governance might be. But… but… [a joke at Soros’ expense — translator] | |
17:52 | … | |
17:56 | But how are the… | |
18:00 | but how are things for the Hungarians? | |
18:04 | … First of all, Hungary’s situation | |
18:08 | should be examined, embedded into the European processes, | |
18:12 | and then evaluated from there. Looking at it from this angle, it is clearly visible: | |
18:16 | we have been through the rebellion. | |
18:20 | Compared to us, the others are debutantes. | |
18:24 | We were one of the first or perhaps THE first | |
18:28 | that rebelled in 2010. | |
18:32 | We proclaimed — and with seven years of sweaty work, | |
18:36 | we built up — our own economic and political | |
18:40 | system. Tailored to our own body, | |
18:44 | made to our taste, based on our traditions, | |
18:48 | for our instincts, forged from our way of thinking, | |
18:52 | the Hungarian model, the system of national cooperation. | |
18:56 | National because it is comes from within… | |
19:00 | … Cooperation, because it is not at the expense of each other, | |
19:04 | but we want to succeed by helping each other, and | |
19:08 | because the foundation of the system, its walls and its roof, | |
19:12 | its components and its parts, were held together by | |
19:16 | logic and rules of common sense, and because its carpentry | |
19:20 | was based on the iron laws of economy and history. | |
19:24 | That is why we have to insist that tax deductions | |
19:28 | and wage increases always must be backed by | |
19:32 | the competitiveness of the Hungarian economy. | |
19:36 | The binding material of the Hungarian model is courage. | |
19:40 | Without it, no political superstructure can stand, | |
19:44 | especially not here, in the windy Carpathian Valley. | |
19:48 | We bravely redrew the borderline between politics | |
19:52 | and economy. The borderline between the state and the market. | |
19:56 | And between the proven and new ideas, too. | |
20:00 | We did all this in such a way that the stability of the country | |
20:04 | would not waver, not even for a moment. | |
20:08 | The stability of politics, especially in critical times, | |
20:12 | is a necessity above everything else. | |
20:16 | In the 20th century, especially at times of crisis, | |
20:20 | our leaders failed and were incapable | |
20:24 | of leading and directing our country. | |
20:28 | We become vulnerable in the face of our enemies and | |
20:32 | people who wished us ill. That was a big lesson. The consequences | |
20:36 | were the loss of homeland, servitude and | |
20:40 | misery. The loss of political stability, which is such | |
20:44 | a luxury, we can’t let happen again, | |
20:48 | and it will not happen so long we are at the helm. | |
20:52 | We are not kidding about that, and no forgiveness. | |
20:56 | … | |
21:00 | … Respected ladies and gentlemen. | |
21:04 | We rebelled first, when we decided | |
21:08 | to send the IMF home, to buttress the big banks’ accountability, to tax | |
21:12 | the multinational corporations and to eliminate loans in foreign currencies. | |
21:16 | We rebelled when they told us it not possible to correct the financial system | |
21:20 | and to start up economic growth at the same time. We started it, | |
21:24 | and we showed it. In the last four years the Hungarian economy | |
21:28 | has grown continuously. We tallied against unemployment, when they stated | |
21:32 | that in a modern market economy we must live with it. | |
21:36 | We set our sights on full employment and | |
21:40 | we aimed for one million new jobs. Seven years later, | |
21:44 | 700,000 new workplaces have been created. | |
21:48 | They also wanted to forbid… | |
21:52 | … They also wanted to forbid the reduction in living costs | |
21:56 | for families. But finally we were able to break down the cartel of | |
22:00 | the big providers and Brussels, the resistance of the opposition, and we made it happen. | |
22:04 | The previous government of the United States, Brussels, | |
22:08 | and additionally Berlin too, all proclaimed | |
22:12 | that stopping the migrants is not allowed, and anyway it is not possible. | |
22:16 | We resisted, drew a border, built a fence, | |
22:20 | recruited border hunters [the new border protection service]. | |
22:24 | We defended Hungary, and incidentally Europe, too. | |
22:28 | … and with the referendum, we forbade others | |
22:32 | to decide who can came into our country and who cannot. | |
22:36 | … | |
22:40 | Of course we will accept the real refugees. | |
22:44 | The Germans, Dutch, French and Italians, | |
22:48 | … frightened politicians and journalists, | |
22:52 | … Christians who were forced | |
22:56 | to leave their homelands, who lost their Europe | |
23:00 | and hope to find it with us. | |
23:04 | Ladies and gentlemen, respected association, | |
23:08 | we were a black sheep, but today | |
23:12 | we have become a success story. Even reluctantly, | |
23:16 | those who do not like how we reached it are forced | |
23:20 | to acknowledge it. Nothing | |
23:24 | is as successful as success… | |
23:28 | we ended up today that financial rating companies | |
23:32 | have upgraded us several years in a row. Finally, in 2016 | |
23:36 | the lower middle class is making | |
23:40 | a living from employment, but with low incomes | |
23:44 | they managed to start a life. Incomes are growing, | |
23:48 | family debt is decreasing, and they can now | |
23:52 | buy more and more with their income. Just in time — they did a lot to earn it. | |
23:56 | Not welfare, not gifts, not grants, | |
24:00 | not the dole, but real wages, | |
24:04 | real performance and inherent recognition and respect. | |
24:08 | It would not be good if the respectability of | |
24:12 | having a lower-income job, requiring less knowledge | |
24:16 | but hard work, were to decrease, | |
24:20 | if by adopting Western fads, we were to bring the cheap labour | |
24:24 | of foreigners to fulfill such positions. | |
24:28 | Instead of that, I would recommend that all workplaces, | |
24:32 | all properly performed work, | |
24:36 | and all workers should be esteemed. We should be capable | |
24:40 | of maintaining our own country… | |
24:44 | … we must be capable | |
24:48 | of maintaining our own country and we manage it. | |
24:52 | We need everybody: Hungarian cleaning ladies, | |
24:56 | navvies, draymen, utility workers | |
25:00 | and day laborers, we must respect them in the future, too. | |
25:04 | That is why we raise the minimum wage by 15%, | |
25:08 | and workmen’s minimum wage by 25%. We are one nation | |
25:12 | and one country; they also have a place in our common future. | |
25:16 | Respected audience … | |
25:20 | … | |
25:24 | It is hard to say certain things about the future. You can see | |
25:28 | things can turn upside down from one day to another, at a moment’s notice. | |
25:32 | But we still can’t throw off the responsibility | |
25:36 | of forecasting from our shoulders. Governance and the leadership | |
25:40 | of the country should be provident, and that is a justifiable expectation, | |
25:44 | if haze descends on the landscape. | |
25:48 | This much — while exercising caution — | |
25:52 | can be stated: the future of Hungarians, | |
25:56 | — including students and pensioners, too — | |
26:00 | is secured. Hungary is getting stronger, | |
26:04 | flourishing. Not that we received it as a gift; we did not win it, | |
26:08 | not did others blow the wind into our sails, but | |
26:12 | we all worked for it, all ten million of us. We work | |
26:16 | our debts off continuously, our economy is growing, | |
26:20 | wages are continuously increasing; | |
26:24 | soon we will reach full employment, so everybody will have a job. | |
26:28 | I am personally committed to that; | |
26:32 | no child should grow up here without | |
26:36 | seeing his parents working. … Our borders are protected, | |
26:40 | … | |
26:44 | … | |
26:48 | … Our borders are protected. | |
26:52 | Our public safety is held in the right hands. | |
26:56 | Our police are dedicated and effective in tracking down crime. | |
27:00 | The people in the Office of Disaster Recovery | |
27:04 | are in constant readiness. Our soldiers are on alert, | |
27:08 | ready to serve in one of Central Europe’s | |
27:12 | military operations. Our family support system is slowly | |
27:16 | becoming unique in Europe, and versatile. | |
27:20 | The kids are in kindergarten from age three. | |
27:24 | They get to eat; 318,000 of them for free. [low income families get free meals for kids] | |
27:28 | We are taking care of them. | |
27:32 | We prepare them for school, and we mitigate | |
27:36 | the disadvantages brought from home. [mostly in the case of gypsy families — translator] | |
27:40 | 730,000 students are receiving their books for free. | |
27:44 | In school, besides teaching we also provide guidance, | |
27:48 | everyday physical training, the teaching of faith and morals | |
27:52 | will stay, and we will improve its quality. | |
27:56 | Our middle schools are awaiting them [children], even the acquiring of | |
28:00 | a second diploma is also paid now by the state. | |
28:04 | Since 2010, 97,000 | |
28:08 | Hungarians were able to learn or teach abroad, | |
28:12 | with the help of European Union, too. | |
28:16 | Between 2013 and 2017 | |
28:20 | teachers’ income increased an average of 50%. | |
28:24 | Instructors and researchers will increase | |
28:28 | by 27% through 2018. Doctors’, medical specialists’ and | |
28:32 | pharmacists’ income — in two steps — will increase by 207,000 forint. | |
28:36 | By 2018 nurses’ income | |
28:40 | will on average increase by 56%. | |
28:44 | We modernized 71 hospitals; we built | |
28:48 | 23 new clinics; 45 were revived. | |
28:52 | We built 27 new ambulance stations, | |
28:56 | and 35 others were renovated. | |
29:00 | To ensure our safe development, we concluded | |
29:04 | the necessary foreign policy and economic agreements. | |
29:08 | We have our own independent foreign policy. | |
29:12 | Every important actor in world politics and economy | |
29:16 | is interested, but at least not against our successes. | |
29:20 | Hungarian exports just yesterday broke some | |
29:24 | new historic records. That means, | |
29:28 | we are competitive in the larger world. | |
29:32 | We will break some diplomatic records this year. | |
29:36 | For a long time we have had such comings and goings here. | |
29:40 | After the Russian president, we await the Chinese prime minister, we await the prime minister | |
29:44 | of the state of Israel. From July we direct | |
29:48 | the work of Visegrad Four. In the fall we host | |
29:52 | a summit of sixteen European heads of state. | |
29:56 | About tomorrow … | |
30:00 | … | |
30:04 | To sum it up for you: concerning tomorrow, | |
30:08 | we have no reason to be nervous about it. Families will recuperate, | |
30:12 | and they will recover financially, too. | |
30:16 | In Hungary tomorrow does not cast a shadow onto today. | |
30:20 | If everyone does his job effectively and obeys the laws, | |
30:24 | we will have no problems, and every year, everybody | |
30:28 | can then move ahead. This is all well and good, | |
30:32 | but we are still far away from being able to say: this is enough. | |
30:36 | We have no reason to brag; quite the opposite: | |
30:40 | I advise everyone, we have to be modest now, | |
30:44 | because now we have something to be modest about. | |
30:48 | Respected ladies and gentlemen, I confess | |
30:52 | … | |
30:56 | I confess to you, I rack my brains not about tomorrow but the day after tomorrow. | |
31:00 | What will happen to Hungarians? What will happen to Hungarian life? | |
31:04 | 15-20 years from now? | |
31:08 | We can rejoice, that the number of births since 2010 is the highest. | |
31:12 | The number of marriages has also increased. | |
31:16 | The population decrease has not been that slow since before that, too. But the decrease, | |
31:20 | even when it is slow, remains a decrease. | |
31:24 | The number of children one decides to have is for every person the most intimate | |
31:28 | choice; although it is personal, it is also the most important, too, | |
31:32 | for our community. I also know | |
31:36 | that in this, the dimension of change is measured in decades. | |
31:40 | Success depends on the predictability of child policies and endurances, | |
31:44 | but I would like you to know, that on this frontier | |
31:48 | we have not yet reached a breakthrough. So the government | |
31:52 | will provide all possible support, if someone decides to undertake to raise children. | |
31:56 | They say … | |
32:00 | … They say | |
32:04 | It is not possible to find any correlation between | |
32:08 | living standards and the demographic indicators, | |
32:12 | but I believe that it is possible | |
32:16 | to find a correlation between a nation’s will to live, and | |
32:20 | people finding themselves, and the demographic | |
32:24 | indicators. In the fact, they are capable of believing, | |
32:28 | Trusting in their nation and the future of their descendants, | |
32:32 | and in the fact of how many children they want to raise. | |
32:36 | I am convinced there is a correlation between what we have accomplished over | |
32:40 | the last seven years and the fact that this nation wants to become | |
32:44 | young again. What is maybe not possible for older people — | |
32:48 | to become young again — is possible for a nation. | |
32:52 | For an aging population can be young again; it only | |
32:56 | depends on us; we just must want it to be so. | |
33:00 | It is a beautiful thing, too, that from the age of three | |
33:04 | our children enter the kindergarten educational system. | |
33:08 | It is good too, that the state pays for | |
33:12 | meals and study books. But in the meantime, | |
33:16 | are we educating them to love their country? Are we giving them patriotic feelings | |
33:20 | and teaching them patriotic thinking? Whether | |
33:24 | Hungary will become their shared passion like | |
33:28 | it is for us. Will they have the feeling of national justice? | |
33:32 | Which will be nourished by the love for one’s country. Will they understand | |
33:36 | that we only avoid the fate of being servants of others, | |
33:40 | that we only remain independent and free | |
33:44 | as a nation, so long we declare ourselves Hungarians. | |
33:48 | All of this we should teach very carefully in our schools, | |
33:52 | because that is the only way for our children to understand what is connected | |
33:56 | and keeps us together. And I have to admit that today | |
34:00 | I do not see a guarantee of that yet. And from the question mark, | |
34:04 | robotic technology and the digital revolution, | |
34:08 | would not be enough, here banging on our door, | |
34:12 | which after the economy have reached the world of life sciences. | |
34:16 | Not just the machines and the technology, | |
34:20 | and the necessary knowledge are changing, but slowly we must | |
34:24 | face with the change of our human existence, too. | |
34:28 | We are stretching our borders, we stepping over some | |
34:32 | ancient borderlines. Borders between species, | |
34:36 | borderlines between living beings | |
34:40 | and man-made machines. We are at the threshold of | |
34:44 | tempting our God. The results of science, | |
34:48 | healing diseases are inspiring for us. | |
34:52 | But perspectives are also upsetting. | |
34:56 | We must prepare for those changes, too. I would like to stop here; | |
35:00 | I think I rushed too far ahead. Let’s leave something for the next annual review. | |
35:04 | Respected ladies and gentlemen, | |
35:08 | in 2017 Hungarian politics must find answers | |
35:12 | To five serious questions. It must defend | |
35:16 | Against five big attacks. That is why in 2017 | |
35:20 | we must have anew national politics. | |
35:24 | This year, even at the beginning, Brussels | |
35:28 | wants to forbid us to lower living costs. [Hungary has profit-limiting state regulations on energy companies] | |
35:32 | Their plan is already on the table: instead of independent national energy politics, | |
35:36 | they want central regulation, where | |
35:40 | they would take away the right of states to establish energy prices. | |
35:44 | The question will be: can we defend our price regulation; | |
35:48 | should we insist on our right to determine prices; | |
35:52 | or accept the decision of Brussels and surrender the right to make decisions | |
35:56 | — to set prices — to big companies? | |
36:00 | The case of migration remains in question, too. No matter that | |
36:04 | illegal immigration brings up unsolvable problems and danger of terror | |
36:08 | all across Europe; no matter the everyday bloody reality, | |
36:12 | and the horrifying facts; the migrants can move unrestricted | |
36:16 | all over Europe, until their case is finally adjudicated. | |
36:20 | The question of the year 2017 will be: | |
36:24 | Should we keep them in custody | |
36:28 | until a legally binding decision is made about them? | |
36:32 | And in 2017 we must also face the increasing | |
36:36 | activities of international organizations. | |
36:40 | In an increasing number of countries, including ours, | |
36:44 | — especially we will have an election too, in 2018, which causes problems | |
36:48 | that in secret — financed by foreign sources — they want | |
36:52 | to influence the Hungarian politics. I believe we have proven | |
36:56 | many times that we are capable of making decisions about our own fate. | |
37:00 | So the question is: will we allow | |
37:04 | non-transparent attempts at foreign influence? | |
37:08 | Here we are not talking about (real) civilian organizations, | |
37:12 | which thrive to champion some important cause. | |
37:16 | Here we are talking about international organizations and their paid activists, | |
37:20 | and their local Hungarian offices. Are we going to do something about this? | |
37:24 | At least for the purpose of their transparency and | |
37:28 | their accountability. We also must be aware, respected ladies and gentlemen, | |
37:32 | that there are some large-bodied predators swimming in the water. | |
37:36 | This is the transnational empire of George Soros, | |
37:40 | with lots of money and international artillery. | |
37:44 | I still feel that we have had enough, | |
37:48 | that despite of the will of the people — shown in the quota referendum — | |
37:52 | George Soros’ organizations work continuously to | |
37:56 | transport the migrants by the hundreds of thousands to Europe. | |
38:00 | They work, to divert the Hungarian Parliament and Hungarian government | |
38:04 | from the path on which the people’s will is directing them. | |
38:08 | In 2017 do we want pour clean water into the glass? | |
38:12 | Or as, I heard it not long ago: “Let’s pour clean water on the cards on the table”? | |
38:16 | … In 2016 | |
38:20 | In 2016 … it came to light | |
38:24 | that Brussels wants to collect more and more economic concessions, | |
38:28 | wants to skim more away from the nation states. | |
38:32 | The “code name” in Brussels’ language is “social pillar”. | |
38:36 | It also happened earlier that Brussels blocked | |
38:40 | the Hungarian government’s radical tax cuts. | |
38:44 | We could increase taxes, but were never to decrease them. So the question is | |
38:48 | whether we want it, and are we going to be capable of | |
38:52 | keeping our tax policies under our national purview. Can we freely make a nation’s | |
38:56 | decisions about our own taxes? And finally: we must be prepared | |
39:00 | that Brussels will attack our job-creation programs, | |
39:04 | too. Numerous countries, including ourselves, | |
39:08 | are using this economy-boosting tool. | |
39:12 | So the question is whether the nations should decide, | |
39:16 | whether they want to give support for their companies to create jobs, or | |
39:20 | whether we should hand over that right, also, to Brussels. These are the five questions | |
39:24 | to which we Hungarians must give an unequivocal answer, if we | |
39:28 | want that our country in the year 2017 | |
39:32 | to remain a winning country. In reality, | |
39:36 | behind all five questions stands the issue of national sovereignty. | |
39:40 | So we have now returned to the starting point, | |
39:44 | nations against globalists, sovereignists against unionists. | |
39:48 | If we want solid and stable answers, | |
39:52 | we must find agreement with the people. We must ask them, | |
39:56 | to make them stand beside us, just like we did in the past, | |
40:00 | in every important question. It is not enough if we do not allow, | |
40:04 | but the Hungarian people would not allow | |
40:08 | others to make decisions above their heads. Respected ladies and gentlemen, | |
40:12 | finally we have only one question left. | |
40:16 | Did the government do a good job governing the country in 2016? | |
40:20 | We could even refuse the question, | |
40:24 | because its judgement belongs to the | |
40:28 | citizens rather than us. But I am not avoiding it. | |
40:32 | You must know I am a big believer in open talk. | |
40:36 | Moreover, we can find something instructive, if we look hard enough. | |
40:40 | We can have tax cuts, wage increases, full employment. | |
40:44 | No matter how thick the butter is on the bread, the Hungarian | |
40:48 | man always thinks: I would like to see a government | |
40:52 | I am satisfied with. That is the Hungarian way of thinking. | |
40:56 | And because that is the way, from the noise of dissatisfaction | |
41:00 | we should never ever take offense. It is enough. | |
41:04 | I have seen plenty of offended prime ministers, and believe me, | |
41:08 | they were not a pretty sight. But … | |
41:12 | … | |
41:20 | … But not just taking offence, | |
41:24 | we must also never become uncertain. | |
41:28 | The Hungarians have suffered enough from uncertainty, impotence, | |
41:32 | to not even say, “s***head” leaders. | |
41:36 | … From those … | |
41:40 | … From those, who always explained | |
41:44 | why something is not possible and how unjust it is that the | |
41:48 | people are always asking impossible things from them. | |
41:52 | Who always explained to audiences, “but the circumstances, | |
41:56 | the circumstances are robbing us of our dreams, | |
42:00 | thwarting our plans and restraining our hands.” My dear friends, | |
42:04 | from this it is just one step to self-pity, | |
42:08 | and self-pity was for so long our | |
42:12 | God-given curse. Comforting each other, | |
42:16 | with hands in our laps, | |
42:20 | turning our eyes hopelessly to the sky, | |
42:24 | while sitting in the lukewarm water of impotence and complaint and envy | |
42:28 | were those who want to do something; well, that was the culture of the | |
42:32 | socialist governments. This is where we tore ourselves away from; | |
42:36 | this is the ancient source of all our results. | |
42:40 | … Succeeded, finally Hungary succeeded, | |
42:44 | to step over from the culture of self-pity to the culture of | |
42:48 | activity. Dear ladies and gentlemen, the poet | |
42:52 | Sandor Marai taught us we can’t be mediocre. | |
42:56 | That is the iron law | |
43:00 | of the Hungarian political leadership, too. | |
43:04 | Hungarians should never be happy with mediocre leadership and mediocre government. | |
43:08 | They need more, and they deserve more. | |
43:12 | But a good question is: what do good governance and a good leader look like? | |
43:16 | By my understanding, good governance is | |
43:20 | what will take the people to their destination. | |
43:24 | When we arrive, the people not even think they need leaders. | |
43:28 | Let the year 2017 be such a year, where in the end | |
43:32 | we will feel, this went off by itself, like a charm. | |
43:36 | Hoorah Hungary! Hoorah Hungarians! | |
43:40 | … |
Very good. He is a great speaker, moves along and never boring.
It was a magnificent translation for a magnificent speech. Thank you CrossWare.
I would like to take up several points that leaped out at me.
National Security
Orban specifically mentioned that the military was on alert. So, who are the potential enemy attackers? Obviously, Russia is always a threat. Of course, while there is no love lost between Russia and Hungary, Russia can be kept at bay by specifically not taking actions to threaten Russia, such as putting NATO missile emplacements on Hungarian soil.
Turkey is a traditional aggressor in Eastern Europe, but Turkey now wants to maintain a fig leaf of alliance in the fading hope of opening the EU gates to Turkish membership. The main threat from Turkey at present is immigration from Turkey, both Turks and “Syrians”, which Hungary has pretty well controlled with its fence.
The main threat to Turkey is from the EU, which, as Organ describes later in his speech, is constantly trying to assert control over Hungarys national decisions, such as price supports, borders, migration, and even internal politics. Thanks to the election of Trump, the use of NATO forces for enforcing EU control is now totally off the table, and countries like Hungary have far more latitude in asserting their independence.
A secondary means of enforcing EU control was to hook countries on living beyond their means via German money in the form of loans backed by international bankers. This worked for Italy and Greece, but Orban describes a conscious and successful effort by Hungary to live within its national means. The mechanism of coercing/enticing countries to spend beyond their means, through greed and also through EU bureaucratic regulations, is exactly analogous to the British moves to keep Chinese hooked on profitable heroin and cocaine prior to the Opium War.
Protectionist economics versus a free market and free trade
This is a topic very important for the US, and Hungary has served as a laboratory of sorts. One of the reasons (supposedly) why so many Republican “conservatives” opposed Trump was that Trump was not an advocate of the pure free market. Classical economics dictates that trade should be free and unrestricted between nations, to maximize production efficiency. To a certain extent, classical economics also favors the movement of labor across borders for the same reason: bring labor and skills where they are needed, for the cheapest production possible.
The problem with classical economics is that the model itself is fatally flawed. The objective of a purely economic analysis is the cheapest units of production. But, the duty of governments is not to provide the cheapest production possible but to protect and give benefits to its citizens. As the US Constitution puts it,
The Constitution does not specify that goods should be as cheap as possible.
In fact, the welfare of national citizens is enhanced by a strong social structure, ample free space, and a relatively homogeneous population, not to mention physical security. The homogeneity does not need to be total, but there should be a strict control over the proportion of people with distinct differences from the native population.
The classical economic model uses the price of goods, rather than the well-being of the people, as its unit of study. I believe that economic science can, in fact, be appropriately adapted, but that’s in the future. For now, the totally free-market model is simply inappropriate for economic analysis.
Note that Orban states that under nationalist economic policies, wages, employment, standard of living, and public welfare in general has been measurably increasing. This claim, if true, is an extremely powerful validation of Trump’s approach to trade and economics.
Orban mentions the law birth rate as a problem for Hungary. He also mentions public support for children, including (and especially) Gypsy children. My interjection is that the Gypsies are a blight on Europe and wherever they live. There are YouTube videos of Gypsies training their children to steal and bragging about not working.
In my opinion, the public support of families through government benefits will eventually cause huge problems for Hungary, in the same way as it has for Sweden. It’s the old welfare state model: take resources from the productive and use it to support the families of less capable, less productive or non-productive people. Hungary has recently come out from Communism. A Communist government, whatever else it does, creates a strong Darwinian government of survival of the fittest in an environment of insufficient resources. Even modern medicine causes this type of problem, by keeping alive infants who would never have been able to reproduce in earlier times. I’m not saying, do away with medicine. I’m saying modern medicine and the welfare state cause unintended problems which need to be examined.
Hi Ronald,
First of all thank you for your kind comment about my translation! Some of the glory belongs to Baron as well, he helps me by editing my translation. But thank you very much! 🙂
You wrote an excellent analysis of the speech and your points are very valid. The gypsy population is already thinning out the Hungarians patience. We just call them “ol’ migrants”, because their behavior almost indistinguishable from the “new ones”.
To answer your question, why the army is on standby…
One is the southern border, where new flood of migrants can be expected if Turkey opens the floodgate. The border control officers with the new border-hunters are not enough. The new border force not completed yet, they still getting the people there and they have no real experience yet. So that is possible conflict source 1.
Another issue is the Ukraine. We have direct border with them and we have fairly large Hungarian population living there (thanks to the Trianon treaty after WWI.). The situation seems like escalating there and we have to be ready if a large portion of refugees start flowing from there (most of them will be Hungarians of course).
In my
decliningreclining years I decided to begin actually studying the “geo” in geopolitics. I never had time before. The B, having been educated in England, certainly knows geography, so I always took the shortcut and asked him.[Thus when Crossware says Hungary has a border with Ukraine I grab my map. It’s glued to a table I can slide under my chaise longue. Oops, nowI have to plug in the magnifying lamp to find that border. Wow. It’s there…as they say around here, “Golly, Well, I’ll be.” And, no, I am not the only geography-ignorant “educated” American. There are millions and millions of us on both sides of the political divide. The only time we haul out the maps is when we invade someplace. I’ll bet that’s how Hillary learned her geography when BHO appointed her to head the State Dept.
Kind of like the way I’ve come to know more about human anatomy as more of my body parts begin to wear out…and in a similar fashion learning about what was under the hood of our old junker cars. Except now they keep making the insides of cars more and more people-proof…]
No worries Dymphna, as Viktor Orbán said we small country folk, must learn our place… We small, we lost 66% of our country after the Great War. I am not sure how the country survived the loss of 2/3…
Don’t worry, as bad as that was, it’s nothing compared to what’s about to happen to some of Western Europe, I’m afraid…
Thanks again for your efforts at translating these gems. It’s very much appreciated, all the more so that the mainstream press gives a completely twisted picture of Orban.
Ah, I love geography…I love maps and globes…There are many U.S.ians who like geopraphy, but it does seem like too many of them are dull witted when it comes to learning about such things.
While growing up the globes were always displayed on a nice table in the living room.
There is something wrong if I walk into a house where children are growing up, and there is no globe displayed. It is not right.
It is some of those younguns’ out there I am concerned about. If I bring out a map they get all smart’assie, and state that they don’t need to learn geography, they can just look it up on Google. Ugh!
Are the schools teaching geography like they use to?
ExpressUK: Hungary border controls IN CRISIS with police shortage as 80 migrants storm nation DAILY
A STRICT new Hungarian border force patrolling the 110-mile razor-wire fence blocking off Serbia is facing crisis as there are a shortage of “suitable” recruits.
Well I would not say shortage, but obviously you can’t just pull out thousands of trained people out of thin air. A bunch of them under training, it takes time. In the meantime police and army guarding the border…
The MSM have tried to smear Orban for years. If you didn’t actually read what he said and just read th0se sources your impression of him would not be a good one. It’s down to the Internet that we can find out the truth if we want to find it. Let’s hope the UK and Hungarian governments forge an alliance that will benefit the populations of both countries. The signs look promising.
It is the same type of smear campaign, which is now going against President Trump…