„Meanwhile, Mr. Orban has overseen passage of two media laws that will put Hungary in a league with Russia and Belarus on press freedom. One puts Fidesz in control of state television channels and all other public media outlets. The second, approved by parliament on Tuesday, creates a powerful Media Council with the authority to regulate newspapers, television, radio and the Internet. (...)
Hungary's private media have strongly protested. So have its democratic neighbors, who have compared Mr. Orban to Russia's Vladimir Putin. The foreign minister of Luxembourg had the sense to publicly question whether Hungary was suited to take over the rotating presidency Jan. 1. But some governments have kept quiet, preferring not to stir up yet another controversy in the crisis-plagued E.U.
That's the wrong approach. Europe cannot allow a member government to flout fundamental freedoms without consequence. Some ready leverage is available: Hungary is due to host a European Union summit meeting in Budapest in May, with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton expected to attend. Mr. Orban should be given a choice between curbing his concentration of power and amending the media laws - or suffering the humiliation of having the European Union and the United States move or boycott his summit.”