Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto hits back after BCC reporter Emily Maitlis suggested his government is xenophobic and authoritarian.
“There is a sense of erosion of the rule of law. This is no longer democracy. It is creeping authoritarianism,” Maitlis said. “This isn’t actually about immigration, is it? It’s about xenophobia.”
“You echo lies on this television,” Szijjarto responded. “I don’t think it’s fair. You are unbalanced, you are one-sided. You look only at the opinion of those who are frustrated because they lost the election.”
“What we don’t want is a massive illegal influx coming from the south to us. We want to keep Hungary a Hungarian country,” Szijjarto added. “And we don’t think multiculturalism is by definition good. I understand that the liberal mainstream doesn’t like our laws. But it is the Hungarian voters whose expectations we have to fulfill.”
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