How democracy can win again in Hungary

The democratic erosion and state capture in Hungary is symptomatic of deeper structural problems that are afflicting most democracies and even threatening the future of human civilisation. Faced with such challenges, democrats must not allow themselves to succumb to fatalism or apathy

People march across the Szabadsag, or Freedom Bridge, over the River Danube in Budapest during a gay Pride parade in July. Rising anger over the policies of Hungary's right-wing government filled the streets of the country's capital as thousands of LGBT activists and supporters marched in the parade. Picture: AP/Anna Szilagyi

My political awakening coincided with the systemic changes that unfolded following the collapse of communism in Hungary in 1989. I was both fascinated and overjoyed by my country’s rapid democratisation. 

As a teenager, I persuaded my family to drive me to the Austrian border to see history in the making: the dismantling of the Iron Curtain, which allowed East German refugees to head for the West. Reading many new publications and attending rallies for newly established democratic political parties, I was swept up by the atmosphere of unbounded hope for our future.