Search

The article focuses on criticism of the Fidesz government in Hungary in 2011. It states that on the last day the Fidesz government was in charge of the European Union, negotiations were completed with Croatia. It mentions that U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called for freedom of the press, government transparency, and a commitment to judiciary independence in Hungary when she visited Budapest in June 2011. It comments on increased partisanship within Hungary's government.

The article looks at claims of the Hungarian opposition that Prime Minister Forenc Gyurcsany paid a bribe to the "Financial Times" to publish a favorable survey of his government. The opposition, Fidesz, placed advertisements claiming that the government had paid the "Financial Times" a bribe to secure favorable editorial copy. With an election likely to take place in April, and the Socialists narrowing Fidesz's lead in the polls, Fidesz leaders seem to think that they must snatch any opportunity to knock the government. Nobody seemed to grasp that their advertisement might also be libelling the "Financial Times" and its journalists, who have reacted angrily and demanded an apology and a retraction. The Hungarian International Press Association issued a statement condemning the advertisements as a slur on the integrity of both the "Financial Times" and its correspondents.