No one can be allowed to make disparaging remarks about Hungarians or their democratically-elected government, Levente Magyar, the deputy foreign minister, told public media on Friday.
Magyar reacted to a now deleted Facebook post by the CEO of Austrian public broadcaster ORF, Karl Pachner, who had said that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán dying of a heart attack would be a “fair thing”.
Magyar said he had told the charge d’affaires of the Austrian embassy in connection with the matter that the Hungarian government was convinced that a leading figure of Austria’s public media had made “especially harsh and outrageous comments” about Hungary’s democratically-elected prime minister.
Because of the overwhelming support behind the prime minister, Pachner’s comments could be seen as insulting to all Hungarians,
Magyar said.
This issue needed to be brought up to the representative of the Austrian government, who distanced himself from the comments and expressed an intention to cooperate, Magyar added.
“However, I made it clear that if such comments are made in the future, this will not be enough to settle the issue,”
Magyar said. “These words go beyond the civilisational norms that are allowed in Europe even in such a time of war when we should be focusing all our efforts on meeting the challenges presented by the shockwaves of the war together.”
Hungary strives for good relations with Austria, but will not allow Austria or any other foreign players to disparage Hungarians, their democratically elected government and its leader, the deputy minister said.
Wishing another person’s death is unacceptable and can’t be smoothed over with an apology, Tamás Menczer, the state secretary for foreign relations, said on Friday. Menczer said Pachner’s position as a leader of the Austrian public media had “made the situation even graver”.
“This post is already terrible in itself, it is a slap in the face of an entire country, as the prime minister was elected by the people,”
he said. He called on Austrian media authorities to act.
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Source: MTI
5 Comments
Everyone obsessed by Herr Pachner’s remark should get a life!
If One is in politics, One should be able to roll with the punches, and if One can’t, then One should not be in politics.
I would bet my bottom Ft. that PM Orbán couldn’t give a fruit about that remark, and even if he were to (PUBLICLY) appear to do so, that would only be for show, to garner sympathy.
I seem to recollect a senior member of the EU once saying “Here come the dictator” about Viktor Orbán, and no-one asked him to resign.
REMEMBER – the Austrain Government – do not run & control the Media – as is the case, under the Fidesz led Government of Hungary under Prime Minister – Victor Orban.
Austrian Laws – under Democracy – freedom of PRESS without control nor manipulation.
Hungary – under its Laws – of the Fidesz Party/Victor Orban – far removed from Freedom of the Press – Media.
Is this Democracy – a CORE of which, throughout History – is Press & Media being permitted to have express OPINIONS – without – do as we tell you and this way, as is the on-going practice of the Hungarian Government.
Members of the Hungarian government are forever making disparaging remarks about political figures in other countries, as published here in the DNH (as well as elsewhere) quite often. Suck it buttercups, although Hungarians are generally speaking quite rude, other people can be rude as well. Rank hypocrisy going on here.
Pachner is indiscreet. No one expects logic and normal human behavior from an Austrian broadcaster.
I take offence to “Hungarians are, generally speaking, quite rude”, as would anyone else who knows the Hungarian people well.
I suspect that your, (@Anonymous), experience must’ve come through experiences with an uncouth, uneducated, or undereducated MINORITY, perhaps even football hooligans.
Going by my own experience, a huge majority of Magyars are very polite and very friendly. Yes, there are rotten apples in every barrel, but let’s not say that nearly the whole barrel is rotten. Thank you.