Csorba Zoltán, a Hungarian civil servant, has recently lost his job because of his political views (own photo).It seems that in Hungary, the official propaganda regarding the struggle between the Central European University (CEU) and the Orban government, has started to have serious repercussions not only on people connected to the University, but other progressive political groups.
Roma news portal Romnet has recently had two cases brought to its attention in which employees in the civil sector were seemingly dismissed in part because of their CEU affiliation. Taken together with another similar and widely reported occurrence that relates to a local civil servant pushed out of office because of his association with the newly formed Momentum Movement, such instances reveal a pattern of unacceptable political pressure on public employees. They are forced to limit their involvement with any institution or political faction disliked by the current Hungarian government on pain of losing their employment.
According to Romnet’s informants, some of whom declined to be identified, the Hungarian government cannot cope with criticism. Those people who don’t fit into its complex system of client-patron relationships and are connected to institutions that are deemed to be anti-government, can easily become persona non grata, and are then removed from any position of influence.
