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Several groups in Hungary that have connections to either George Soros or the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are behind a demonstration against the country’s judiciary that is scheduled for Saturday. This is according to an investigation by the Hungarian news portal Magyar Nemzet.
The Trump administration has already announced a freeze on funding and a massive reduction in USAID’s staffing to much fanfare. As a result of this publicity, USAID has come under fire from governments around the world – and Hungary’s government in particular – for having attempted to promote liberal causes abroad. USAID has been particularly active in supporting LGBTQ movements in other countries. Remix recently published a brief summary of USAID’s history.
A demonstration has been called in Budapest on Saturday to protest Hungary’s judiciary, based on the assertion that the country’s judges are no longer independent or impartial and are in fact beholden to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. This echoes attacks that have been launched against both Hungary and Poland in recent years from Brussels, where the European Union has repeatedly used the alleged political control over the judiciary in these countries as a pretext to justify condemnation and the withholding of funds that are due to them.
Saturday’s demonstration is being held by the Hungarian Association of Judges (MABIE), which calls itself “an independent civil society organization that strives to protect judicial independence; represent the interests of judges, court secretaries, and draftsmen; and strengthen their social esteem.” It is completely separate from the country’s judiciary and is purely an activist organization.
Viktor Orbán and his Fidesz party have been facing particularly stiff resistance over the past year from popular opposition figure Péter Magyar and his own party, Respect and Freedom, which performed well in last spring’s European parliamentary elections. The mission of the liberal NGOs and the Soros network in Hungary is now to prepare the way for Magyar to unseat Orbán in that country’s national elections next year. Conservative media in Hungary have reported that Magyar and his allies are planning a series of demonstrations and other actions this spring aimed at undermining Orbán’s support in the run-up to the election, similar to anti-government protests that have recently been seen in Serbia.
The Hungarian chapter of Amnesty International, one of the best-known NGOs supporting liberal causes around the world, is one of the groups calling for citizens to participate in the upcoming demonstration. Amnesty International is one of many NGOs that is tied to USAID. Since it first became active in Hungary in 1991, shortly after the fall of Communism, it has served as a conduit for hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for liberal causes. Among Amnesty International’s activities in Hungary in recent years have been attempts to strengthen the anti-government media.
Samantha Power, who was appointed the head of USAID by U.S. President Joe Biden in 2021 and continued in the role until she was fired by the incoming Trump administration on Jan. 20, stated last year that her organization was going to be collaborating with Amnesty International, the Helsinki Committee, and Budapest Pride on their activities in Hungary.
aHang (“TheVoice” in English), an NGO that has been particularly active in fostering opposition to the Orbán government, is also calling on its supporters to attend the demonstration. Hungary’s Office for the Protection of Sovereignty, a government institution, has identified aHang as an organization that has received funding and support from George Soros’ Open Society Foundations (OSF). aHang received support from Soros when it worked with the US embassy in Budapest in 2021 to launch a program for “Young Community Activists.” aHang has also supported Hungary’s left-liberal opposition parties and helped to build activist networks in the country.
The NGO itself is a subsidiary of a company called Magyarhang, which is owned by Tamás Varga and Máté Varga. It turns out that Máté Varga is also the president of the Civil College Foundation, another left-wing NGO in Hungary whose stated purpose is “adult education.” The Civil College Foundation has likewise received considerable support from OSF.
Yet another organization that is supporting Saturday’s demonstration is Szülői Hang, or the Parents’ Voice Community, which purports to be an advocacy group for parents and children. It has been critical of the Orbán government’s educational policies. While no connection to either USAID or George Soros is publicly known at present, it has received a number of awards from various European Union institutions.
The fact is that although USAID may be a thing of the past, both it and other organizations of its type have already done considerable damage to societies around the world by fostering groups that foist so-called “liberal values” onto countries whether they like or not – damage that may yet continue to have a negative impact for years to come.
По материалам: http://www.planet-today.com/2025/02/usaid-may-be-no-more-but-its-legacy.html