Democracy Digest: Hungary’s Public Media News Back on Air as Magyar Marks 100 days

Elsewhere, fugitive Polish ex-deputy minister traced to Transnistria; Fico and his economy minister row over how much Slovakia should pay for CEZ’s stake in JESS; and Czech ministers begin talks over 2027 budget allocations.

Peter Magyar’s Tisza party completed its first 100 days in office this week, prompting praise from the government and criticism from the now-opposition Fidesz party. In a Facebook video, Magyar said that during this period the new government had introduced measures to restore the rule of law and strengthen the fight against corruption, put relations with the EU on a new footing, paved the way for the release of previously frozen EU funds, and even managed to save around a trillion forints in an effort to balance the budget. The salaries of MPs, government officials and ministers were cut, major public investments were put on hold, and Fidesz’s reform of the universities – which placed them in public-interest asset management foundations headed by allies and funded with state assets, triggering criticism from Brussels – was revoked. As promised in its election campaign, the government also forced several senior public officials appointed by former PM Viktor Orban – including the president, chief prosecutor and some members of the Constitutional Court – to step down. “But the real hard work starts now,” Magyar declared, referring to the monumental tasks of rebuilding Hungary’s struggling healthcare, transport, education and child-protection systems. But Fidesz parliamentary group leader Janos Boka criticised the government for failing to deliver on its election promises, such as doubling child benefits – which Fidesz hadn’t increased for 16 years – and raising wages in the social sector. “Instead of governing, they are only acting, and in an increasingly autocratic manner,” Boka said. However, internal divisions in Fidesz are becoming more visible by the day. Tibor Navracsics, a former foreign minister, and Orsolya Ferencz, an internal critic of Orban who was previously responsible for Hungary’s space strategy, launched a civic initiative under the name “Civic Democrats”, which promotes dialogue between political sides. Many see the project as a potential seed for a new centre-right party with a more moderate profile than Fidesz.

Hungarian public service television resumed news coverage after more than a month of absence. The news programs went off air on July 7 following criticism of their biased reporting during Orban’s time in office and the channels have been broadcasting only movies since. PM Magyar promised during the election campaign to suspend its operations and launch a comprehensive review. Lead editors and some of the most notorious anchors have already been dismissed, but controversy still surrounds the new appointments, many of whom also had some previous connections with the Fidesz-close media. It is yet to be seen whether the newly launched news programs – two per day – will help the public service broadcaster regain its audience share in a media environment where many viewers had already switched to other channels or now obtain most of their information through social media.

Elsewhere, the full 450-page report compiling how Fidesz government officials exerted pressure on the MTI state news agency over the past 16 years was published. Diligently put together by employees of MTI (which was merged with the public media in 2011 under the Fidesz government), the document details how reporting was required to adapt to the government’s needs and strict censorship was imposed on news concerning the governing party and Orban. Foreign news was closely scrutinised and stories in some critical foreign outlets about Hungary were simply not reported. For example, a report on Fitch’s assessment of Hungary’s economy ahead of the 2026 elections, which included negative economic data, was not allowed to be published. On another occasion, a Politico story was falsified to create the impression that Fidesz was on the verge of winning the general election in April. Unknown and dubious news sites were often used as sources. One example was a claim that USAID funds had been used to finance Joe Biden’s 2024 election campaign. Such stories were frequently echoed by government officials and subsequently went viral on pro-Fidesz media. As one journalist commented wryly: “What a shame. The news agency survived two world wars, the Communist regime and the democratic transition, but it could not survive Fidesz.”

Fugitive Polish ex-deputy minister traced to Transnistria; alleged Russian assassination plot foiled

The long-running hunt for former deputy justice minister Marcin Romanowski has acquired a distinctly post-Soviet twist. Polish PM Donald Tusk said this week that intelligence services in neighbouring countries had made him “99 per cent” certain that Romanowski is now in Tiraspol, the capital of the Russian-backed breakaway region of Transnistria in Moldova. “I don’t think this needs any comment,” Tusk quipped. “That fact alone says everything not only about Mr Romanowski, but also about the entire political formation that relied on people like him and continues to protect them to this day,” the PM added, alluding to the PiS party. Romanowski, a PiS MP, is wanted in Poland over alleged misuse of the Justice Fund, which he supervised while in government. He denies wrongdoing and says the prosecution is politically motivated. He fled Poland in late 2024 and spent nearly a year and a half in Hungary, where Viktor Orban’s government granted him political asylum. That protection was withdrawn after the change of government in May this year. Polish media later reported sightings of Romanowski in Serbia and Croatia. His latest location came to light after a Warsaw court received a signed request for safe conduct, posted from Tiraspol, in which Romanowski offered to return to Poland if guaranteed freedom pending trial. The geography matters. In a recent interview, a ruling coalition MP Marek Sawicki argued that sending the correspondence from Transnistria would have been impossible without the knowledge or assistance of Russian security services. “Even if he is not there, and is, say, somewhere in Serbia or in other Balkan countries where FSB penetration is enormous, the Russians must have enabled him to send this letter from that place. He didn’t drop it into a mailbox while passing through by chance,” Sawicki said. Transnistria is internationally recognised as part of Moldova but lies outside Chisinau’s control and hosts Russian troops, which would complicate any attempt to bring Romanowski back.

A Russian intelligence plot to assassinate a Ukrainian-American citizen in Warsaw was stopped shortly before it could be carried out, PM Tusk said on August 13. The suspect, allegedly recruited by Moscow’s secret services, was arrested on August 7 and placed in pre-trial detention for three months. TVN24.pl reported that he is a 29-year-old dual national who travels on a Ukrainian passport but comes from the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine and is of Russian origin. Polish officials have not identified the intended victim, saying only that he was a US citizen of Ukrainian origin and considered troublesome by Vladimir Putin’s regime. The operation was conducted with help from US intelligence services. Tusk called the situation unprecedented. “This is the first case in which someone from Russia has decided to carry out an assassination attempt against a US citizen on the territory of another NATO country.” It comes amid a wider campaign of suspected Russian sabotage and targeted violence in Europe. In June, a Russian anti-Kremlin artist was shot dead in eastern Poland; Polish authorities have not yet formally attributed that killing to Moscow. “We have to assume that Putin’s regime will try to eliminate people it considers troublesome,” Tusk commented. “That is why we are stepping up our efforts.”

Slovak PM, economy minister at odds over deal to buy out CEZ; Smer moves closer to far-right Republika

The dispute between PM Robert Fico and Economy Minister Denisa Sakova has grown from a disagreement over missed deadlines into a broader row over how much Slovakia should pay for CEZ’s 49 per cent stake in the Slovak Nuclear Energy Company (JESS). Fico wants the ownership question settled by September and says full state ownership is needed to move ahead with preparations for a new nuclear power station at Jaslovske Bohunice. He estimates the project will cost around 15 billion euros. JESS is currently owned 51 per cent by state-controlled JAVYS and 49 per cent by the Czech energy group CEZ. Ernst & Young (EY) valued the CEZ stake at 189 million euros. Its book value has been reported at around 100 million euros, but the EY valuation also takes into account other factors, including expected future earnings. CEZ originally invested 116.6 million euros when JESS was established in 2009 and says the project has made considerable progress since then. Sakova has questioned whether Slovakia should pay 189 million euros and wants the price checked by another independent international valuation. CEZ says the EY valuation was carried out under a process approved by both shareholders. The row intensified after the political commentator and former advisor to Fico, Eduard Chmelar, alleged that someone was seeking to gain 90 million euros from an overpriced deal. He provided no evidence for the claim. CEZ rejected the allegation and said it was considering legal action. Fico also described it as unfounded. the PM has meanwhile stepped up pressure on Sakova over missed deadlines and indicated that Government Office could take over the negotiations. Sakova’s party, Hlas, continues to back her and says it would accept the transfer if Fico believes his office can negotiate a better price.

Fico’s ruling Smer party is moving to cooperate more closely with the far-right Republika movement ahead of the regional elections, although the two parties have stopped short of a formal alliance. Republika is already backing Smer candidates for the posts of regional governor in Trencin and Trnava. In Kosice it has also endorsed Igor Simko of Hlas, who is also supported by Smer. The bigger question is whether Smer will now return the favour and openly support a Republika candidate. That could happen in Banska Bystrica, where Smer has not yet decided whether to field its own candidate. One option is Miroslav Suja, a former Republika MP who is running for regional governor. If Smer backed him, it would be the first time the party supported a Republika candidate for such a senior regional post. There is also room for cooperation in Presov. Smer has nominated Smer MEP Judita Lassakova, while Republika is running MEP Milan Mazurek. Fico said earlier this year that if Smer voters had to choose between Mazurek and incumbent governor Milan Majersky, who chairs the opposition KDH, most would back Mazurek. Smer officials have since said that some candidates could be withdrawn after the September opinion polls if they show another candidate has a better chance of winning. The talks come as parties finalise their candidate lists for the October 24 regional and local elections. Nominations must be submitted by August 25, but candidates can still withdraw later and parties can switch their support. 

Budget talks underway; location of Prague’s ‘mega-hospital’ confirmed; norovirus outbreak suspected at Czech spa

The Czech government held its first post-summer recess cabinet meeting on Monday, with the 2027 budget top of the agenda. Throughout the week, ministers have been holding one-on-one talks with Finance Minister Alena Schillerova, with many of them emerging from the closed talks with promises of budget increases for their individual portfolios. Talks are still in the preliminary stages, and the draft budget should be submitted by the government by the end of September, with the ruling ANO party flagging healthcare and transport infrastructure as its two top priorities. Looking at some of the key announcements, Defence Minister Jaromir Zuna of the far-right SPD party said he expects defence spending to increase to 191 billion Czech crowns (about 7.9 billion euros) next year, thus reaching 2 per cent of GDP in contrast to this and the previous year. On the culture front, Minister Oto Klempir said he was striving to increase his department’s budget to 20 billion crowns (around 825 million euros) in 2027. And while the Culture Ministry has long been expected to start funding directly Czech public media from January next year as the government prepares to scrap licence fees, recent statements from officials close to finance chief Schillerova suggest a new model might be chosen: specifically, that the cancellation of licence fees might first be postponed, and that the nearly 8 billion crowns intended for Czech TV and Czech Radio would come not from the Culture Ministry, but from the General Treasury Administration – a separate chapter for public expenses that are not assigned to specific ministries in advance that includes, for instance, emergency funding to deal with natural disasters.

A key campaign promise of the current government, the Czech capital’s future “mega-hospital” will be built on the grounds of the current Kralovske Vinohrady University Hospital (FNKV) in Prague, the government announced this week. “It’s not like the entire campus will be demolished, we will only use part of the campus where there’s currently unused land,” vowed Health Minister Adam Vojtech as he unveiled the wide-ranging plans for the new hospital, where some of the current FNKV departments along with those of other Prague hospitals are set to be relocated. Just weeks ago, the government commissioned the ministries of health and defence to transfer the land to the Defence Ministry by the end of August. Plans to designate the new facility as a military hospital to include the costs in reported defence expenditures – and meet NATO requirements – have been met with scepticism by some who point out that mostly civilians will be treated there, and that Prague already has the Central Military Hospital (UVN).

The Regional Hygiene Station of the Olomouc region, in eastern Czechia, confirmed four new cases of people falling ill with what initial findings suggest could be noroviruses, bringing the total number of cases to 115 patients since the start of the outbreak at the Priessnitz spa in Jesenik earlier this month. “The regional hygiene station is recording a decrease in the number of newly reported cases,” a spokeswoman said, pointing to the effectiveness of the anti-epidemic measures taken by regional authorities and the spa’s management since the first cases began emerging, and highlighting that the risk of transmission to the wider population remained low. “Within a few days we managed to prevent the spread of the infection”, meanwhile assured the spa’s director Roman Provaznik, who also criticised the spread of fake news and alarmist statements on social media about the situation at his establishment. The cause of the outbreak remains unclear to date, however, and lab examinations are still ongoing to determine how more than 100 people fell ill with intestinal flu-like symptoms.

Source: balkaninsight.com