Orbán talks sovereignty but bows to Russia and China, denying fundamental freedoms

The EPP Group calls for the Hungarian people to freely elect their next government—without intimidation, repression, or attacks on their fundamental rights. In today's plenary debate, EPP Group MEPs from Hungary and across Europe denounce Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government for undermining the core democratic freedoms that every EU citizen should enjoy.

"The actions of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán reveal the cracks in an authoritarian facade that grows more brittle by the day. These laws are not about protecting children or sovereignty—they are about silencing critics and controlling public space," says Zoltán Tarr MEP, head of the Hungarian delegation in the EPP Group and a leader of the Hungarian opposition to the Orbán regime. "The Orbán government now has the legal tools to shut down any demonstration it dislikes—under the vague pretext of 'protecting children'. This is not child protection. It is political censorship."

Tarr stresses that the recent measures—such as banning Pride events and granting sweeping powers for facial recognition surveillance—are not isolated actions targeting minorities. They represent a broader attack on freedom of assembly and opinion that threatens all Hungarians.

"Orbán’s tactics are simple: stoke division, suppress dissent, and distract from his government’s economic failure and corruption," Tarr adds. "The Hungarian people deserve the right to freely choose their own government — without intimidation, without repression, and with full access to their rights."

"In Poland, we’ve seen what happens when governments rewrite the rules to weaken the opposition and restrict public debate," warns Michał Wawrykiewicz MEP. He is known in Poland for his fight for free courts and against the authoritarianism of the previous Polish government. "Orbán claims to defend Hungarian sovereignty, yet his government imports surveillance technology from Beijing and recycles propaganda lifted directly from the Kremlin playbook."

"Let’s be clear: you cannot defend patriotic values by adopting Moscow’s tactics or Chinese tools of control. True sovereignty and patriotism begin with free citizens and strong democratic institutions," Wawrykiewicz stresses.

The EPP Group stands with all Hungarian citizens who want a democratic, free, and European future—rooted in the rule of law; not governed by fear.