Péter Techet for the Neue Zürcher Zeitung on the Beneš Decrees in Slovak politics and in the Hungarian election campaign

Péter Techet wrote an op-ed for the Neue Zürcher Zeitung about the continued use of the Beneš Decrees, the criminalisation of criticism of those decrees in Slovakia, and the striking fact that Viktor Orbán hardly criticises his ally Robert Fico at all. This stands in clear contrast to Orbán’s challenger, Péter Magyar, who has used the opportunity to point out the contradictions in Orbán’s version of “sovereigntism”.

For Orbán, this is not really about the interests of the Hungarian minorities. At most, they matter to him as a potential pool of voters (although most Hungarians in Slovakia do not even have the right to vote in Hungary). What matters to him instead is the idea of a fragmented Europe made up of ethnically homogeneous nation-states. The Beneš Decrees, which were designed to achieve ethnic homogenisation, fit well into this worldview. This also explains why Orbán supported the Romanian nationalist George Simion in last year’s presidential election — and why he has been so reluctant to criticise Fico.

The article can be read here.