When Orban said «EU should tell migrants not to come»

In september 2015 the Hungarian leader was seen as a provoker, but six months later the EU shared the same views on migration

 

Viktor Orban

  by Emanuele Bonini

Finally we discovered Viktor Orban was right. The Hungarian prime minister was the first political leader outside Brussels saying Europe should tell migrants «not to come», and after six months it really happened. It was September the 3rd, 2015, when Orban paid visit to the president of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz. In that occasion the Hungarian head of government travelled to the capital city of the EU to defend his idea offences... Sorry, to defend his idea of fences. He just announced the intention of closing the border as response to the migration flows. Few days after the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, friendly called Orban «dictator» making irony on Hungarian decision on migration issues. On March the 3rd, 2016, it was a EU leader to say migrants «not to come». The president fo the European Council, Donald Tusk, has broken the political line held by the EU institutions until that moment, sharing Orban's views and publicly recognising all the difficulties Europe has been having in dealing with the refugee crisis. «I want make an appeal to potential illegal economic migrants: don't come to Europe» stated Tusk in the occasion of his tour in the capital cities of the Western Balkans countries. This shows how Europe changed its mind meanwhile, or how is simply divided. Somebody else could talk about hypocrisy. And he would risk not to be so wrong.
Only six months ago EU leaders thought migration was not a problem. On the contrary, they believed it was a phenomenon easy to deal with. At that time the only problem for Europe was Orban and his personal idea of democracy and democratic values. Of course Orban still represent a problem for democracy - so for Europe, as well-  but now the Orban is not alone and, as a consequence, he is not the only problem. There is a migration issue turned become more than a problem, a real trouble in front of which the EU Member States are acting along the path open in Hungary and carried on all across Europe. When at EU level the common strategies are put in question, it is licit to think no step forward will be made. In fact, we are assisting Europe moving steps back. We can see in policies, in the removal of human rights, in the denial of the basic European values. We saw that in all the fences have been built up and down Europe. When Orban said «EU should tell migrants not to come» he was considered nothing but a provoker. Now he is a new cardinal point of a Europe more and more confused and lost.