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Hillary Clinton criticises Tory MEPs over failure to censure Hungary Hillary Clinton criticises Tory MEPs over failure to censure Hungary
(35 minutes later)
Hillary Clinton has criticised Conservative MEPs for refusing to vote for an EU censure of the widely-criticised Hungarian government, calling their approach “disheartening”. Hillary Clinton has delivered a stinging attack on the Conservative party for its MEPs’ failure to censure Hungary’s authoritarian leader Viktor Orbán.
Speaking at Oxford University, the former presidential nominee said: “It’s disheartening to watch conservatives in Brussels vote to shield Viktor Orbán from censure, including British Tories. They have come a long way since the days of Margaret Thatcher and Winston Churchill.” Delivering the keynote speech at a conference at the Bonavero Institute of Human Rights at the University of Oxford, marking the 70th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, she said the Tories had “come a long way from the party of Churchill or Thatcher”.
Clinton went on: “Let’s not be fooled by the masquerade that countries like Turkey and Hungary are still real democracies, just illiberal ones. Illiberal democracy is a contradiction in terms.” Last month, the Conservative group at the European parliament, voted against measures to censure Hungary over its policies to reduce judicial independence and boost control over the media, as well as concerns about corruption.
She said Hungary’s election was not enough to qualify it as a democracy, and called on the EU to resist alleged human rights violations. The group, which was almost alone among centre-right parties in opposing the motion, argued the plan was counterproductive and would strengthen Orbán domestically, but attracted criticism, including from the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Muslim Council of Britain.
She added: “[Democracy] also requires free expression and a free press, the rule of law and an independent judiciary. Without these things illiberal democracy is no democracy at all; it is just authoritarianism by another name. I hope the European Union will resist the backsliding we are seeing in the east.” The censure motion was passed at the European parliament by 448 votes to 197.
She said: “Our divisions even make us targets for foreign manipulation, which seeks to sow chaos and pit us against each other. New threats are upon us, especially at the intersection of technology and autocracy. In her address, on Tuesday, Clinton, expressed concern about attacks on human rights globally, and said countries such as Hungary and Turkey were not real democracies “just illiberal ones”.
“The whole world now knows that Putin is waging cyber-warfare and manipulating social media to influence elections, and referenda, and to polarise and cripple democracies across the west. It’s not just the United States. In Germany, France, Spain, Italy and the Baltic countries and beyond, Kremlin-backed hackers and propagandists have sought to inflame divisions and advance an extreme rightwing agenda.” She said: “I hope the EU and the people of Europe will resist the backsliding we are seeing in the east. It’s disheartening to watch Conservatives in Brussels vote to shield Viktor Orbán from censure, including British Tories.”
In a wide-ranging speechClinton compared the fragmentation in the world to that in the aftermath of the second world War, as she criticised Vladimir Putin, , Xi Jinping, and leaders in Poland, Egypt, the Philippines and her own country.
With respect to both European countries and the US, Clinton had strong words on immigration policies, calling for an end to the latter’s “cruel abuses at the border”.
She said: “Here in Europe, I add my voice to those warning about the risk of giving up on Schengen and the great benefits freedom of movement can deliver.”
Clinton said she was not talking about open borders but laws enforced fairly and with respect. In comments that could be interpreted as applying to the UK, given the part immigration played in the Brexit referendum campaign and the Windrush scandal, the former first lady said: “We can’t let fear or bias force us to give up the values that have made our democracies both great and good.
“Our goal should be to to build societies that are secure and welcoming, where everyone counts and everyone contributes - people who are newcomers to our lands and people who have lived in the same place for generations.”
Clinton, who stood unsuccessfully against Donald Trump in the last US presidential campaign, said such a goal was made harder by the the current US administration and the state of Europe. She described the US as being in crisis.
“There are no tanks in the street of Washington and New York but our democratic institutions and traditions are under threat on many fronts,” she said.
She described the alleged murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul last week as a “grave crime” if true.
Hillary ClintonHillary Clinton
ConservativesConservatives
Viktor OrbánViktor Orbán
HungaryHungary
EuropeEurope
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