9th Budapest Human Rights Forum: New world order formed, says Hungarian foreign minister

Budapest, November 17 (MTI) – A new world order has formed but it remains to be seen whether it has reached its final form or if it will continue to change, Hungary’s foreign minister said in his keynote address to the 9th Budapest Human Rights Forum on Thursday.

The world faced extraordinary challenges throughout 2015 and 2016 such as regional wars, the rise of the Islamic State, terrorism and the migration crisis, Péter Szijjártó said.

Policymakers should respond to these challenges not with “hysteria-mongering” but rather by looking at these crises as opportunities for change so that they can be resolved, the minister said.

Szijjártó vowed that as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, Hungary would strive for the global community to “get an accurate picture” of every country in the world. He said that over the past few years, Hungary had received criticism from people who had not even visited the country, or if they had, they had only been in contact with a very specific circle of people. the minister said the same could be true for other countries.

As Human Rights Council member, Hungary will not allow the “smearing” of any country on the ground of democratic or human rights deficits, Szijjártó insisted. What discredits the fight for human rights is using human rights groups to smear other countries for political gain, he said.

Hungary considers respect for minority rights to be a key precondition for international peace and security and will devote close attention to this as a member of the Human Rights Council, he said. Hungary’s other important mission will be the protection of Christians, Szijjártó said, arguing that the world should no longer view anti-Christian sentiment as an “acceptable prejudice”. The persecution of Christians is no less of a crime than discrimination against any religious or minority group, he said.

On the topic of Europe’s migrant crisis, Szijjártó bemoaned the international media’s association of Hungary with its border fence. The minister said the migrant crisis was a very complex matter. Hungary protects its own borders and considers people displaced by conflicts victims who must also be protected, Szijjártó said. He said Europe should help the countries neighbouring the crisis zones to look after refugees. He said refugees should be helped in a way that they can stay close to their home countries, adding that this was the position Hungary would represent on the UN Human Rights Council.

Source: MTI