FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM: FIDESZ PARTY CONGRESS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BUDAPEST 000823 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO NSC FOR ADAM STERLING E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/20/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL ECON HU SUBJECT: FROM A WHISPER TO A SCREAM: FIDESZ PARTY CONGRESS REELECTS ORBAN, PLEDGES CONTINUED OPPOSITION Classified By: P/E COUNSELOR ERIC V. GAUDIOSI; REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: FIDESZ president Viktor Orban was reelected by an overwhelming margin at a May 19 - 20 party convention where sweeping invective against the Gyurcsany government competed with substantive policy discussion. The party worked hard - and in large part successfully - to place itself in the broader context of the European conservative movement, highlighting its commitment to the trans-Atlantic relationship on key issues including energy security. On domestic policy, however, rhetoric from party leaders including Orban provided little new and less of substance. Orban's impassioned pledge that he will "never give up and never go away" may have moved the crowd for a moment, but we do not believe the convention will ultimately move the needle from its current rut. End Summary. CRITICISM: RAW TO WELL-DONE ¶2. (C) Hard-line MP Laszlo Kover's opening address set the tone for much of the convention, with harsh commentary comparing the Gyurcsany government's record to the Red Army's occupation of Hungary. "We have entrusted our housekeys to thieves who would steal even the bread from out mouths," Kover charged, "and the rule of law cannot exist under rule by Gyurcsany." With delegates abuzz over the resignations of several leading police officials (septel),Kover concluded that only a "New Majority," based on faith and led by FIDESZ, can overthrow the ruling "mafia." ¶3. (C) FIDESZ Parliametary faction leader Tibor Navracsics set a slightly less confrontational tone, highlighting the party's intention to focus on the themes of justice, quality of life, public services, and competitiveness. To do so, FIDESZ is likely to form a shadow cabinet under Navracsics' direction. His address also emphasized the inclusiveness of the "New Majority," remarking that "for too long we have defined the majority only as white men." ¶4. (C) The party's newly-elected vice-presidents were featured in short video clips and public remarks. Popular Debrecen mayor and MP Lajos Kosa was shown arriving at the convention on a motorcycle set to the strains of Steppenwolf's "Born to be Wild." He followed with extemporaneous remarks urging all Hungarians to "do more than curse the darkness" in the face of the "socialist consumer society." Denouncing the "tragi-comic opera" where "the citizens fear the police" and "the government rules by deception rather than democracy," Kosa argued that Hungary "has not reached Western standards" and concluded that "the left will never lead us out of 40 years in the wilderness." MP Ildiko Pelczne-Gall followed with a strident but stilted speech, describing the Gyurcsany government as a "moral cesspool" that must be "excommunicated." In an address one observer called "too intelligent," MP and Budapest District XII Mayor Istvan Pokorni took the high road, urging the party to consider "moderation and proportion" and "rise above the mud wrestling" in its actions and its statements. "It is not enough," Pokorni remarked, "to call the government 'communist' when the question is 'what would FIDESZ do?'" By doing so, he argued, FIDESZ could ensure "the unemployment we want - Gyurcsany's." By failing to put forth its policy alternatives, he concluded, the party will find that "only the ranks of the apathetic will win the supporters the government loses." MP and former Minister of Economy Mihalj Varga described Gyurcsany's tenure as "chaos without consequence," Charging that the government has systematically eroded Hungary's democratic institutions while mismanaging its economy. "Let Gyurcsany answer that in his blog," he challenged, reminding the audience that "Hungary has survived worse and will survive this government too." STEERING TOWARD THE EUROPEAN MAINSTREAM? ¶5. (C) Though neither Croatian PM Sanader nor former Israeli PM Netanyahu attended (as had been rumored in the weeks leading up to the event),the conference was noteworthy in its conscious focus on international issues. With addresses by both European Peoples Party President Wilfred Maertens and EPP Parliamentary faction leader Joseph Daul, FIDESZ was at pains to emphasize their place in the broader European conservative movement. Both Maertens and Daul hammered the themes of energy security and immigration, looking forward to a European body politic anchored by "Sarkozy in France, Merkel in Germany, and Orban in Hungary." (Note: In a BUDAPEST 00000823 002 OF 002 departure from past practice, FIDESZ staff paid close attention to the diplomatic representatives in attendance, arranging a private audience with Orban and ensuring high-level escort by selected MPs throughout the proceedings. The party has also been particularly effusive in its praise for the embassy's non-partisan approach of late. End Note.) ¶6. (C) Representatives of the Hungarian communities in Slovakia and Serbia made brief remarks, emphasizing their solidarity and their support for a common European future but steering clear of the controversial issue of citizenship for ethnic Hungarian abroad. WHO DIED? ¶7. (C) The mood outside the convention hall, meanwhile, was far less enthusiastic. Composed overwhelmingly of men in their 40s and 50s, the delegates were a somber lot. Conversation was desultory, and vendors hawking nationalist trinkets did slow business despite the beautiful spring weather. Younger FIDESZ staff commented on the irony of the party sharing the convention site with a baby fashion show and a morticians' convention, and one observer described the downbeat crowd as an "al fresco funeral." THE CLOSER ¶8. (C) Orban took the stage after the announcement of his unopposed reelection as party president. Describing FIDESZ as "Hungary's the last hope" in the face of a government that believes in "an invisible hand ... that picks your pocket." Railing against the atmosphere of "lies, hypocrisy, and betrayal," he warned that "things can always get worse." The solution to this "humiliation," he continued, is "not just a new policy but a new system" of "Mutual Responsibility" between the government and its citizens. Taking aim at familiar targets, Orban called on Hungarians must reject a "cut-rate nation" based on "immigration and speculation." They must "give up giving up" and continue the "labor of honor" to demand the restoration of Hungary's traditional strength and traditional values. ¶9. (C) The party's ultimate goal should be the establishment of "plebian politics" committed to people - not privilege. The party's proximate objective should be to "build the strongest FIDESZ ever to defeat the weakest MSZP ever" in the next elections. A referendum in the fall can serve as a "wake-up call," but Gyurcsany's removal alone is not enough because "MSZP politicians are all the same." Concluding that he had "never dreamed Hungary would be so weak so long after 1989," Orban vowed the he would "never accept this" and "will never go away." NOT WORSE ... BUT BETTER? ¶10. (C) Comment: Orban's closing words will give little comfort to many in the government ... or to some in his own party. With more daring party staff commenting in private that "Gyurcsany will not give up either" and criticizing Orban for "always being ready to win the last election," there is some sense that even his unopposed campaign and his overwhelming reelection cannot fully paper over differences within the party. In his private comments to the diplomatic corps, Orban emphasized that the party's goal is to demonstrate its "readiness to be part of the changes that will come in Hungary." The party's obvious efforts to highlight its European credentials helped in this regard, as did the efforts of moderates to press for a focus on policy alternatives. That said, the majority of the rhetoric from party leaders including Orban was often vague and always backward-looking, focusing on resentment rather than renewal. Political analyst Zoltan Kiszelly observed that Orban's speech - while less vitriolic than his remarks in the fall - will win few new converts and no new coalition partners and thus "failed both in terms of politics and policy." Although his remarks played well with the party faithful and coincided with a rough weekend for a government plagued by a series of scandals in the law enforcement community (septel),it is difficult to see how the convention will give FIDESZ the momentum it needs to move beyond the current atmosphere of trench warfare. End Comment. LARSON