Watchdog

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whose right-wing nationalist government has been targeted by corruption accusations and criticized for backsliding on the rule of law, on December 21 accused the European Union of "Hungarophobia" and pointed the finger at the scandal-ridden European Parliament, calling for its dissolution.

In his annual international news conference -- one of the rare occasions when he faces the foreign media -- Orban said the corruption scandal currently engulfing the bloc's legislature had cast doubts over its credibility, and he said he supports dissolving the body in its current form.

One of the European Parliament's vice presidents earlier this month was charged in connection with allegations of bribery by soccer World Cup host Qatar.

"The swamp should be drained," Orban said, using a phrase first coined by former U.S. President Donald Trump, a close Orban ally.

“The Hungarians would like for the European Parliament to be dissolved in its current form," Orban said.

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Orban and his ruling Fidesz party reacted angrily in September after the European Parliament ruled that Hungary was no longer a "full democracy."

Speaking at the news conference, Orban reiterated his calls to curtail the European Parliament's power and have EU members' governments appoint lawmakers rather than allow their election by direct vote, as is the current procedure.

Under Orban, who has been in power continuously since 2010 after a first stint in 1998-2002, EU member Hungary has seen an accelerated slide toward authoritarianism and widespread corruption.

The European Commission, the 27-member bloc's executive body, has recommended freezing 13 billion euros ($13.8 billion) in funds earmarked for Hungary as it calls for anti-graft reforms, but it accepted a compromise this month, reducing the amount of blocked funding in exchange for Budapest dropping its objections on aid for Ukraine and a global minimum corporate tax.

"We were able to agree with the EU, which was an exceptional performance by us as we had to fight against Hungarophobia in a world dominated by liberalism," Orban said, taking aim at the bloc's rule-of-law process as "a serious nail in the EU's coffin."

"It should be pulled out. What the EU is doing today is a few rule-of-law people trying to impose their will on a few countries," Orban said.

Orban is widely considered Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest EU ally and has repeatedly claimed that sanctions prompted by Moscow's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine have caused more damage to European economies than to Russia.

“If it were up to us, there would not be a sanctions policy,” Orban said.

However, he again tried to play both sides, stating that he would not stand in the way of the bloc passing fresh punitive measures.

With reporting by AP and AFP

When Yekaterina Korneicheva’s daughter was detained in the Russian city of Perm on December 9 for holding an anti-war sign, Korneicheva was not far away.

“We were always together,” she told RFE/RL’s Idel.Realities. “I saw how the police approached her. I photographed the license plate of their car so that later I could figure out where they took her. The officer did not speak to me. He showed his document to my daughter and asked for her passport. Then he told her she was violating the law and asked her to get into the car.”

Korneicheva knew the drill well. The 49-year-old art teacher was detained herself for holding a one-person anti-war protest outside the regional legislature on November 28. She was later fined 30,000 rubles ($425) for her act of conscience.

Since Russia’s massive invasion of Ukraine on February 24, the government has used hastily passed laws on “discrediting the armed forces,” as well as older legislation on so-called “foreign agents” and “extremism,” to crack down on any dissent against the war. Although most Russians appear to support President Vladimir Putin’s policies, thousands across the country have been detained for expressing anti-war views. Many of them have been fined, while some -- including, this month, opposition politician Ilya Yashin -- have been sentenced to long prison terms.

“I told the judge that I do not want my children to die,” Korneicheva said. “I meant, of course, my students, since I am a teacher…. That is why I stood outside the legislature with a sign telling lawmakers to ‘Stop The War.’”

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Korneicheva left her job at the Perm Petroleum College two years ago because, as she put it, “of management objections to her social media posts.” She has been unemployed and battling health issues since then, living together with her daughter, Alisa Korneicheva.

“Now I understand that the kids I taught are being sent [to the war],” Yekaterina said. “They are dying there. I love my children. I put part of my soul into each one of them. For me, this is tragic…. They are all my children.”

Shortly after her mother’s detention, Alisa was also compelled to protest the war, which both women had opposed since the beginning.

“I tried to talk her out of it,” Yekaterina recalled. “After my experience, I told her not to go…. But my daughter responded: ‘You know, Mama, you aren’t the only one with a conscience. I am your daughter, and I am also against the war.’”

“I’m proud of my daughter,” Yekaterina added.

'Lesson Of Conscience'

Alisa, who works as a clerk in a toy store, said she was inspired by her mother. While the parents of her friends stayed home, her mother overcame her fear and protested.

“It was a lesson of conscience,” Alisa said. “I decided that I also could not remain silent.”

On December 9, Alisa stood in front of a local department store with a sign reading “No War.” Her protest lasted half an hour.

Although both women wanted to speak out against the war from the beginning, they hesitated.

“It was really, really scary,” Yekaterina said. “You know what kind of country we live in. Any action can provoke aggression from the authorities….”

Locals reacted variously to Alisa’s protest, the pair said. One woman accused her of being paid to speak out. Another brought her a cup of hot tea and hamburger.

“One young man approached her and said that he and his family oppose protests,” Yekaterina recalled. “‘We are all going to die anyway,’ he said. A young man about 19 years old! And he says: ‘We are all going to die anyway’! How can you react to that?”

Life has gotten harder for the family since the war began, the women said. Prices for food, energy, and communal services have gone up. But they are quick to keep things in perspective.

“Yes, you can say that we are worse off,” Alisa said. “But over there, cities are being destroyed and that is an incomparable tragedy. It has made my mother sick. She is so distraught.”

Yekaterina said they will not be putting up a New Year’s tree this year.

“We don’t feel like celebrating under these circumstances,” she said. “We still have the tiny hope that things will get better. But it is very small, practically invisible. But it is still there.”

RFE/RL feature writer Robert Coalson contributed to this report.