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P 161045Z JUN 09 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST
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INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHBW/AMEMBASSY BELGRADE 0018
RUEHSL/AMEMBASSY BRATISLAVA 1052
RUEHBM/AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST 1446
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BUDAPEST 000429 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/CE JAMIE LAMORE. PLEASE PASS TO JEFF 
HOVENIER AT THE NSC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV EUN HU
SUBJECT: HUNGARIAN EXTREMIST HEADED TO THE EUROPEAN 
PARLIAMENT 
 
REF: A. BUDAPEST 410 
     ¶B. BUDAPEST 362 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary.  Two days after the extreme-right Jobbik 
party's surprising success in the  European Parliamentary 
(EP) elections, lead candidate Krisztina Morvai provided 
further insight into her agenda at a breakfast with the 
international press corps.  Self-confident, sometimes 
arrogant and occasionally mocking in her responses, Morvai 
described herself as a lawyer and a "human rights 
activist(not your typical fascist or Nazi career." 
Anti-international business, anti-globalization, an EU 
skeptic and defender of "Hungary for Hungarians," Morvai's 
presentation highlighted her agenda in the EP and key Jobbik 
positions.  Dubbed "Nazi Barbi" in the Hungarian press, 
Morvai, a former Fulbright Scholar comfortable with both 
high-level discourse and the crudest anti-Semitic rhetoric, 
is clearly relishing her increasingly potent public profile. 
End summary. 
 
-------------------------------------- 
NOT YOUR TYPICAL FASCIST OR NAZI CAREER 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) In a June 9 meeting with the Budapest international 
press corps following the extreme-right Jobbik party's strong 
showing in the EP elections (ref A), Krisztina Morvai opened 
with a brief summary of her career.  Morvai, who will lead 
the three-member Jobbik EP delegation, emphasized her 
professional work in human rights advocacy, particularly her 
four years (2002-2006) as Hungary's representative to the 
United Nation's Committee on the Elimination of 
Discrimination against Women (CEDAW).  Calling herself a 
human rights and women's rights activist, Morvai ridiculed 
the foreign journalists present, commented that "she believes 
hers is not your typical fascist or Nazi career," referring 
to frequent press accusations about her. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Stating that she will never give up her work as a 
"fighter for human rights," Morvai proudly reminded the 
audience that she was the recipient of the Red Cross's 
Freddie Mercury prize for promoting AIDS awareness.  She also 
noted her efforts to create the Independent Lawyers Committee 
to provide legal aid to the victims of police brutality 
during political riots in Budapest in 2006, strongly 
criticizing the international community and, in particular, 
the European Union for remaining silent.  She said that every 
person should have immediately condemned the police response 
with the exception of those "who have a passionate love for 
dictatorships." 
 
¶4. (SBU) Morvai also underscored that she is not member of 
Jobbik even though she led the party list.  She made it clear 
that she has no intention of joining Jobbik in the future, 
preferring to remain a "civilian."  She explained an aversion 
to political parties in general, criticizing even Jobbik for 
not having any women in its eight-member party leadership 
council. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
&Passion and Justice8 headed to the European Parliament 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶5. (SBU) Condemning the EU as a "completely unjust, 
neo-liberal, bureaucratic and corrupt system," Morvai 
stressed that Jobbik gained three seats in the EP because 
they were emotionally very strong and remained dedicated to 
their goal despite the "nasty media reporting" of their 
objectives and actions.  She said that few Hungarians 
admitted publicly their intention to vote for the party due 
to their fear of losing their jobs, and thus the polls 
underestimated Jobbik support. 
 
------------------------------------ 
THE EUROPEAN UNION ) A FAILED SYSTEM 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶6. (SBU) Calling the European Union "a failed system which 
needs to be fundamentally changed by people with the right 
heart," Morvai said she is committed to cooperation with 
other Euro-skeptics in the EP to make their voices much 
 
BUDAPEST 00000429  002 OF 003 
 
 
stronger.  Morvai said that although she will probably speak 
in a more diplomatic way, she will not lose her passion for 
human rights, underlining her strong pledge for finding 
allies even among the other Hungarian MEPs (including 
Socialists) to fight jointly for the dignity of Hungarian 
people.  (Comment.  Morvai's reference to speaking in a more 
diplomatic way was in response to her shocking, crude 
comments on a website to a Hungarian-American who had 
strongly criticized her.  She suggested that the individual 
go play with his &Jewish circumcised XXXX (male anatomy) 
rather than wasting time trying to besmirch her."  End 
comment.) 
 
¶7. (SBU) Stating that Hungary is treated as a "second class 
member" of the European Union, Morvai said her number one 
objective in the EP is "the protection of the Hungarian 
agricultural land," which will be open for sale to foreigners 
beginning in 2011.  Morvai vehemently condemned the 
governmental politics that led to diminished markets for 
Hungarian products and the disappearance of family owned 
farms.  She stressed that  "Hungarian land needs to remain in 
Hungarian hands as we don't want to become a second 
Palestine," sarcastically adding that "you are welcome to 
publish this statement in the headlines of tomorrow's papers, 
I don't care." (Comment.  At the end of the session Morvai 
quoted Simon Peres, You Tube comments in which he made 
reference to the success of Israeli international 
investments, including "Israel buying up Hungary."  In 
connection with the anti-Semitic comments and the public 
denial of the Holocaust associated with the extreme-right, 
Morvai stated that while violence needs to be prevented, the 
freedom of expression needs to be protected.  She argued that 
only dialogue as opposed to silence can decrease social 
tensions.  End comment.) 
 
--------------------------------- 
THE ROMA'S NEW CHIEF EP ADVOCATE? 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) Continuing to outline her EP agenda, Morvai stated 
that she will strongly fight for Roma rights, especially "the 
right to a proper education for Roma children despite their 
parents, reluctance to ensure it."  While ironically denying 
holding any nostalgia for the Communist era, she acknowledged 
that the past regime did manage to defend and educate poor 
children.  She passionately emphasized the need for strong 
state protection for Roma women against trafficking rings and 
for Roma families against usury.   Morvai underlined the 
importance that the Roma must have legitimate representatives 
who can speak on their behalf as opposed to the current Roma 
politicians.  She stressed that a dialogue has to be started 
with the Roma community, asking them how "they see their 
future and how they see the future of their children?" 
 
------------------------ 
AND THE TRIANON QUESTION 
------------------------ 
 
¶9. (SBU) In response to a question from the Serbian Embassy's 
Deputy Chief of Mission with regard to ethnic Hungarians 
living beyond the borders, Morvai stated she wants to 
organize an international conference on the Trianon Treaty, 
framing the issue as "a human rights rather than a political 
question."  Claiming that the discussion on autonomy and 
self-determination is included in all the major human rights 
conventions, Morvai stressed that this issue needs to be 
shifted to a group of experts who can start working out a 
plan for autonomy based on the principles of human rights. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
HUNGARY - A THIRD WORLD COUNTRY IN EUROPE 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) Repeatedly comparing Hungary to a third world 
country in terms of the lack of protection for workers, 
rights, human dignity for Hungarians, and crime prevention, 
Morvai said Hungary is like some Latin America countries 
where "a small group of rich people can buy their own 
physical security but the rest of the nation doesn't matter 
for them."  Morvai stressed her strong belief that the state 
has an obligation to protect vulnerable people and this is 
 
BUDAPEST 00000429  003 OF 003 
 
 
why Jobbik wants to build a stronger state and fight against 
crime.  In this regard, Morvai said that "the only problem 
with Magyar Garda (MG) is that it is not strong enough," 
confessing great happiness over its creation.  Continuing, 
she said that the MG has to be much stronger in order to 
successfully protect Hungarians from the State's suppression. 
 
 
---------------------- 
HUNGARY FOR HUNGARIANS 
---------------------- 
 
¶11. (SBU) Responding to a question from the press, Morvai 
explained that the Jobbik's slogan "Hungary for Hungarians" 
includes even those minority groups "who have been living in 
Hungary for a long time" (i.e. the Roma).  However, she 
emphasized that the slogan excludes the multinational 
companies that take all the profit out from the country. 
Morvai claimed that the multinational companies should not be 
given special privileges, rather they need to bear the same 
burdens as local, Hungarian owned small and medium sized 
enterprises if they want to do business in Hungary.  Hungary, 
she said, should not be owned by global capital but the 
Hungarians, capturing her sentiment with the phrase "we need 
to move from globalization to localization." 
 
¶12. (SBU) Comment.  Self-confident and charismatic, Morvai 
definitely made a strong impression on the members of the 
international Press Corps ) although not always a favorable 
one.  Highly critical of the national and the international 
media, she had no qualms in telling one journalist that her 
"idiotic question" comparing Jobbik and the WWII era, 
Nazi-oriented Arrow Cross party only reflected the fear of 
the entire international media supporting global capital. 
Morvai suggested that the journalist should rather "go to 
Israel and ask what the difference is between Israel and the 
Nazis." 
 
¶13. (SBU) Comment continued.  With excellent English and 
strong speaking skills, Morvai, citing the outspoken American 
critic of corporate globalization, Dave Korten, as her 
ideological model, conveyed a message filled with 
contradictions.  Interestingly, during her presentation, Mr. 
Zsolt Varkonyi, Jobbik's Foreign Policy Advisor, (ref B) who 
accompanied her to the breakfast, often provided quiet 
guidance prior to Morvai answering a question.  Although 
Jobbik has developed some connections with the British 
National Party, it remains to be seen just how effective 
Morvai and the other two Jobbik representatives will be 
during their five year EP term.  It is clear, however, that 
the far-right has found a capable figurehead who cannot be 
easily categorized and should not be underestimated. 
Levine