Majority of central Europeans oppose Brussels’ migration policy, survey reveals

The majority of central Europeans oppose the European Union’s migration policy and more people in the region support Hungary’s policy than oppose it, a recent survey by Nézőpont Institute said.

The survey prepared in eleven countries, including Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia, showed that 74 percent of respondents consider European policies bad for Europe. Hungarians and Slovaks are especially opposed to migration from beyond the continent, with 89 percent holding a negative view. Czechs and Bulgarians follow, with 88 percent and 80 percent opposed respectively. Even 63 percent of Austrians and 58 percent of Germans said migration is, on balance, bad for Europe rather than positive.

Some 44 percent said they supported the Hungarian government’s migration policies and 40 percent said they opposed them.

A total of 78 percent of people in the Visegrád Group countries of Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia said they were against the mandatory migration quota. A total of 56 percent of Visegrád Group respondents said they supported the Hungarian government’s policies and only 32 percent said they opposed them.

Austrians (65 percent) and Germans (55 percent) were the most against the Hungarian government’s migration policies.

The survey was conducted by telephone with a representative sample 1,000 people per country between Sept. 26 and Oct. 27.

Source: MTI