A pro-government columnist agrees with the Prime Minister that the West betrayed Hungary in 1956, while a liberal author believes Mr Orbán would have been better advised to dwell at more at length on the role of the Soviet Union in crushing the revolution. READ MORE
Opposition-leaning weeklies excoriate the Prime Minister’s latest remarks comparing the war in Ukraine to the Russian invasion of Hungary in 1956. A pro-government commentator advises Hungarians to draw strength from the example of the revolution in facing today’s hardships. READ MORE
A pro-government pundit describes the appeal launched by the ‘shadow prime minister’ of the Democratic Coalition as an expression of ‘communist impudence’. READ MORE
In their speeches on October 23, both Prime Minister Orbán and the leaders of the opposition claimed that they are the true heirs of the 1956 freedom fighters. READ MORE
Pro-government film producer Gábor Kálomista’s new thriller on the street clashes and brutal police clampdown before and on the anniversary of the 1956 revolution in 2006 is proving a great success among the pro-government public. 15 years after the controversial events took place with Ferenc Gyurcsány as Prime Minister, remembering those days has been one of the main themes of this year’s celebration of the anniversary on the government side. (For the 2006 riots, see e.g., BudaPost, September 5, 2011.) READ MORE
On the 65th anniversary of the 1956 revolution, a left-wing commentator and his right-wing counterpart draw diametrically opposing lessons for the present from the history of the popular uprising. READ MORE
Articles on the 64th anniversary of the revolution tend to reflect the well-known polarisation of public opinion on cultural and political issues. READ MORE
Sporadic references of the revolution appear on media outlets one day before the anniversary – a national holiday, with no newspapers published. READ MORE
A left-wing commentator accuses Prime Minister Orbán of turning his back on the ideals of the 1956 revolution. A pro-government columnist finds such accusations absurd. READ MORE
A left-wing columnist interprets the removal of Imre Nagy’s monument from the immediate vicinity of Kossuth Square as the completion of Viktor Orbán’s ideological turn and his betrayal of his 1989 democratic vision. A conservative historian welcomes the decision, claiming that Imre Nagy was a nationalist communist rather than a hero of democracy. READ MORE