With Wehrmacht combat uniforms, Russian flags and the Z symbol, swastikas and the SS sign: This year, the traditional neo-Nazi parade took place in Budapest in February - completely undisturbed, even though it is forbidden by law in Hungary to demonstrate in uniforms and wear totalitarian symbols.
Unlike the so-called LGBTI propaganda. Because of it, a bookstore in Budapest was fined 32,000 euros in 2023 - because it openly offered a comic book about two homosexual boys and this was visible to everyone, and LGBTI propaganda is banned in the country.
„We will liquidate the entire shadow army"
Under the pretext of protecting children, Orbán's ruling majority has now also passed a ban on pride marches, which are actions for diversity and tolerance. After the hastily adopted ban, no public gatherings can be organized in the future where symbols such as the rainbow flag are displayed, sexuality is presented as an „end in itself" or people dress „in contradiction to their gender". Violations will be punished with a fine of up to 550 euros - slightly less than the minimum wage in Hungary.
The ban on LGBTI marches is the latest episode in Viktor Orbán's new offensive against his alleged or real critics and opponents. In his speech during the national holiday of March 15, he promised a "great purge by Easter", and called his critics "wooden people" who must be "liquidated". "We will liquidate the financial machinery that bought politicians, judges, journalists and pseudo-civil organizations and political activists with dollars. We will liquidate the entire shadow army", Orbán vowed.
Dehumanization of all critics
In Hungary, everyone who thinks differently from Orbán is already used to the prime minister's way of acting. In recent weeks, an extremely harsh government campaign has been carried out against allegedly corrupt recipients of US aid through USAID. The Sovereignty Service - Orbán's propaganda institution - accused the popular news portal Telex of being financed mainly with foreign funds, respectively, of advocating foreign interests, i.e. betraying the homeland.
But the generalized definition of "wooden people" shocked even the most hardened opposition politicians and independent journalists. Many speak of the "dehumanization" of all critics, of "rising fascism" and "rapid Putinization" in Hungary.
Indeed, Orbán is the first to use such rhetoric, reminiscent of the vocabulary of German National Socialists and Soviet Stalinists of the 1930s. According to the famous Hungarian political scientist Gabor Török, the mention of "wooden people" is a crossing of the line, which could also harm the prime minister and his party.
Discontent with Orbán is growing
In fact, Orbán's current "great purge" is both a distraction maneuver and an expression of his fear that he may lose power. Since dissatisfaction with Orbán and his government has been growing for a long time, and currently the prospects are that a change of power will occur in the parliamentary elections in the spring of 2026.
The Hungarian economy is not in a severe crisis, but it is in a permanent stagnation. Inflation is high and affects mostly average Hungarians. The measures that the government wants to counteract, such as a price cap, do not work or do not support those actually affected. Trump's tariff war could plunge Hungary, which is heavily dependent on the German automotive industry, into a deep crisis. Added to this is that Hungary's education and healthcare, as well as its public infrastructure, are in poor condition. Meanwhile, football fan Orbán has been investing heavily in giant stadiums and sports facilities.
This week, the Direkt36 portal spread yet another piece of information about corruption and fraud - this time in the Hungarian National Bank under the management of its former boss György Matolcsi, who provided opportunities for a luxurious life for his family and especially his son through an opaque scheme to drain money from the bank.
The dissatisfaction is also evident in the success achieved in these circumstances by opposition politician Péter Magyar. Only a year ago, he was almost unknown, and now his party "TISA" is advancing more and more in the polls and is now significantly ahead of "FIDES" Orban, and Magyar himself is currently the most popular politician.
How far will Orban go?
The essence of a system like that of the Hungarian Prime Minister is to increasingly move towards authoritarianism and dictatorship. Because if the power in Hungary changes, Orban and his entourage are threatened with expropriation, accusations and imprisonment.
From this perspective, it seems logical that Orban is currently exerting increasing pressure. The goal is not only to silence critical voices in Hungary, but also to achieve maximum polarization of society before the parliamentary elections.