The US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington on Tuesday joined a growing chorus of criticism of Hungary's decision to give a prestigious award to a journalist known for his anti-Roma and anti-Jewish statements.
Last week, the Hungarian government granted the Order of Merit to Zsolt Bayer. The award is intended to recognize individuals who demonstrate excellence in service to the country and “the promotion of universal human values.”
In a press release, the USHMM noted that Bayer has a long record of racist speech and has written highly provocative anti-Semitic and anti-Roma articles in the Hungarian media. He once referred to Jews as “stinking excrement” and called Roma “animals” that “should not be allowed to exist.”
The museum's statement went on to say: "Governments have a responsibility to combat hate speech that invites violence. This is especially true for countries like Hungary where systematic persecution and mass murder were carried out during the Holocaust with the active complicity of the Hungarian state. If Hungary’s Order of Merit truly recognizes 'the promotion of universal human values,' then Hungarian Prime Minister and Fidesz party leader Viktor Orban and President Janos Ader have no choice but to rescind Zsolt Bayer’s award immediately. "
Bayer was one of several Hungarian citizens handed an Order of Merit of the Knight’s Cross by President Janos Ader on Thursday, to mark one of Hungary’s national days.
By late on Monday, according to Hungarian media, some 44 previous recipients of the decoration including well-known scientists, artists and academics, had declared they were returning their own awards in protest, among them the president of the Federation of Hungarian Jewish Communities, András Heisler.
In 2013 the 'Magyar Hirlap' newspaper, where Bayer is a columnist, was fined around 250,000 forints ($1,000) by Hungary’s media regulator for publishing Bayer’s anti-Roma comments.
Bayer’s award was given for his work with a body representing victims of communism, Prime Minister Orban’s office said in a statement, adding that there were no plans to withdraw the honor. Bayer was also decorated however for his “exemplary journalistic activity”, according to the government’s official gazette, 'Magyar Kozlony'.
Bayer himself said he didn’t understand why other recipients were giving up their awards and that his quotes were misinterpreted and taken out of context. “I don’t really get how people can be so shut off in their own closed, narrow, sad worlds,” he told a television news program in reaction to the protests.
