a hand raised in the air, with the symbol of the teachers' protest: an exclamation mark in a circle.

The key to countering the Orbán regime is hard work, not a miracle

Since April 2010, when Orbán's government was first given the constitutional mandate to govern by a democratic election, countless large-scale demonstrations against them have taken place in Budapest. Yet the regime is still in place. Moreover, in April 2022, it received a constitutional majority for the fourth consecutive time. This ostensible contradiction needs to be understood if a viable alternative with a chance of victory is to emerge in the increasingly autocratic state of Hungary.

By Andrea Szabó

Political developments

Feminists, Islam, and The Middle Ages: Czech Literature in the Context of Culture Wars

Essay

The current clashes over values are reflected even in works of Czech literature and capture the imagination of both living classics and the incoming generation of writers. Although ideological arguments primarily follow the liberal-conservative dividing line, the realm of literature also is familiar, especially inside the liberal opinion camp, with an inwardly oriented critique, or exaggerated narratives with highly ambivalent meanings.

By Stefan Segi

A brief analysis of the German federal election 2021

Analysis

Germany has voted. The SPD, Greens and FDP come out of the elections as the winners, but take a very different view of the results – depending on their expectations and the pressure they feel upon them to act. By and large, the trend towards a party system in which no single party dominates continues. Constituency seats played a very particular role in these elections. This brief analysis provides an overview of the initial results, with a more comprehensive, empirical analysis to follow in the next few days.

By Stefanie John

The Horrifying Right to One’s Own Context: Seven Rules of Culture Warfare

Essay

The conflicts dividing contemporary society do not necessarily reflect the right–left dichotomy. This transformation of the political map is linked to a transitional situation in which the feuding parties’ very identities are subject to change. The invasion of politics into the personal and the moral spheres of life enables virtually anybody to take their own part in culture wars.

By Ondřej Slačálek

Political developments »

Europe

Europe »

Focus on Hungary

The Heinrich Böll Foundation has been compiling a dossier containing articles on the situation in Hungary since the right-wing government came to power in April 2010. The dossier is understood as forum for critical voices from Hungary. Their contributions reflect the socio-political changes in Hungary referring to current trends as well as long-term developments. (Teaser-Foto: Gabriella Csoszo) Zsófia Deák, Editor of the dossier (zsofia.deak@cz.boell.org)

Gender Democracy

Shadow Report Women and Czech Society – Beijing +25

The year 2020 marks 25 years since the 4th UN World Conference on Women in Beijing. This conference was a turning point: The Beijing Platform for Action, which defined twelve critical areas for the status of women and recommended steps to improve them.

Nest of Czech Feminism - 30 years of Gender Studies

Summary

The non-profit organization Gender Studies is celebrating an incredible 30 years of existence and reflects on what has changed in Czech society from a gender perspective.

By Pavla Frýdlová and Kateřina Jonášová

LGBTIQ Roma – an invisible minority?

Report

Organisation ARA ART has recently produced an report on the position of the LGBTIQ Roma with respect to multiple or intersectional discrimination.

By Lucie Fremlova and Andrea Bučková

Gender Democracy »

Publications

The Roma LGBTIQ Minority and its Status in Selected EU Countries (CZ, SK, HU)

The present analytical report on the situation of LGBTIQ Roma is part of the project Roma LGBTIQ go visible: supporting activities for Roma LGBTIQ minority, implemented by ARA ART in conjunction with Quo Vadis and Diverse Youth Network, and funded by the European Union’s Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first systematic research study of its kind within the European Union that provides not just theoretical, but also practical insight into multiple/intersectional discrimination with respect to the situation of LGBTIQ Roma from the perspective of public authorities and CSOs working in the field.

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Current Populism in Europe

Publication

The book Current Populism in Europe: Gender-Backlash and Counter-strategies aims at exploring populism from various new conceptual, empirical and methodological perspectives.

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Political integration of Hungarian students, 2019

After a four-year absence, the Active Youth (Aktív Fiatalok) Research Group has returned with a new survey about the political attitudes of higher education students in Hungary. The significance of this year’s findings relies on the fact that the political views of the majority of students sampled in this most recent survey – including some born as recently as 2000 – were formed during consecutive terms of prime minister Viktor Orbán and his government, considered by many political scientists and commentators to be a hybrid regime.

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Democracy

In many countries around the world people are protesting against injustice, abuse of power, dire living conditions, and they are campaigning for higher standards. In the process new forms of citizens’ participation in political and administrative processes are evolving. We support all attempts to achieve greater democratisation and participation.