PARAHRAPH, WORDS AND MEANING
PARAGRAPH OF THE DAY –
Tightening grip: on Hungary PM’s re-election
Hungarian voters have handed Prime Minister Viktor Orbán a third term in office. In Sunday’s election, his right-wing Fidesz party and its Christian Democrat allies won around half the vote and two-thirds of the seats. This will give Mr. Orbán, who revels in his hyper-nationalist strongman image, the super-majority he needs to further tighten his grip on Hungary. The nationalist Jobbik party came in second with 20% of the vote, making it the principal opposition, with the Socialists getting 12% and the Green Party 7%. Though a high turnout of about 70% was expected to help the Opposition, the electoral process has been questionable. The technical administration of the elections was transparent and there was a wide range of candidates to choose from. But critics say the playing field was not fair, given media bias, a blurry line between party and government resources, and ‘intimidating and xenophobic rhetoric’. Over his previous terms Mr. Orbán had anointed himself as a spokesperson for ‘Christian Europe’, protecting it from what he sees as Islamisation — his campaign included posters of a stop sign superimposed on to an image of migrants walking across Europe. It is therefore not surprising that Fidesz performed strongly in small towns and rural areas, where Mr. Orbán’s anti-migrant message rang out the loudest. Over the last few years, as millions of migrants found their way to Europe, Mr. Orbán did not stop at just rhetoric. He refused to participate in the EU’s migrant resettlement plan and built a fence on Hungary’s boundary with Serbia and Croatia to keep them out. He has also portrayed Hungary as a country at risk from foreign agents and has been accused of anti-Semitism. In a move seen as a bid to contain Hungarian-born Jewish American philanthropist George Soros’s work, Mr. Orbán introduced new funding laws for NGOs and passed a bill that would impact Mr. Soros’s Central European University. This is in addition to imposing controls on the media and tampering with the judicial system. A third term for Fidesz has implications not just for Hungary but for all of Europe. It is likely to polarise Western and Central European countries, which are wary of Brussels and want to see a directional change for Europe, closing it to migrants. In the European Parliament, the Fidesz is part of the largest party, the European People’s Party, a grouping of mostly centre-right parties that includes Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats; Mr Orbán’s victory could change the dynamics in this group, pulling some or all within it further right. Brussels has greeted the results with caution. But not all of Europe is worried; far-right leaders in France and Germany were quick to congratulate Mr. Orbán and see in his victory a shot in the arm for their ideologies.
WORDS AND MEANING –
1) Turnout
Meaning: The number of people who vote in an election.
Example: Voter turnout was high.
2) Transparent
Meaning: (of an organization or its activities) open to public scrutiny.
Example: “if you had transparent government procurement, corruption would go away”
Synonyms: Frank, Open
3) Blurry
Meaning: Not clearly or distinctly visible or audible.
Example: “video projectors provided extremely blurry images”
Synonyms: Not Clear
4) Xenophobic
Meaning: Having or showing a dislike of or prejudice against people from other countries.
Example: “xenophobic attitudes”
Synonyms: Racist, Ethnocentric
5) Anointed
Meaning: To make someone king or queen, especially as part of a religious ceremony.
Example: In 751 Pepin was anointed king.
6) Superimposed
Meaning: Place or lay (one thing) over another, typically so that both are still evident.
Example: “the number will appear on the screen, superimposed on a flashing button”
7) Rang out
Meaning: When a sound rings out, it is loud and clear.
Example: A cry of warning rang out.
Synonyms: Noise, Clear
8) Rhetoric
Meaning: Speech or writing intended to be effective and influence people.
Example: I was swayed by her rhetoric into donating all my savings to the charity.
9) Resettlement
Meaning: The settlement of people in a different place.
Example: “Australia’s post-war resettlement of European refugees”
10) Portrayed
Meaning: Describe (someone or something) in a particular way.
Example: “the book portrayed him as a self-serving careerist”
Synonyms: Represent, Depict
11) Anti-Semitism
Meaning: The strong dislike or cruel and unfair treatment of Jewish people.
Example: Nazi anti-Semitism forced him to emigrate to the US.
Synonyms: Racial issues
12) Tampering
Meaning: Interfere with (something) in order to cause damage or make unauthorized alterations.
Example: “someone tampered with the brakes of my car”
Synonyms: Interfere, Meddle
13) Implications
Meaning: The action or state of being involved in something.
Example: “our implication in the problems”
Synonyms: Involvement, Connection
14) Polarise
Meaning: To cause something, especially something that contains different people or opinions, to divide into two completely opposing groups.
Example: The debate is becoming polarized and there seems to be no middle ground.
Synonyms: Separating, Dividing
15) Dynamics
Meaning: A force that stimulates change or progress within a system or process.
Example: “evaluation is part of the basic dynamic of the project”
16) Greeted
Meaning: Give a polite word of recognition or sign of welcome when meeting (someone).
Example: “some of the customers greeted the barman in Gaelic”
Synonyms: Address, Salute
Antonyms: Ignore
17) Far-right
Meaning: Belonging to or representing the views of the extreme right wing of a political party or group.
Example: “far right politicians”
18) Congratulate
Meaning: Praise (someone) for an achievement.
Example: “the operators are to be congratulated for the service that they provide”
Synonyms: Praise, Commend
Antonyms: Criticize
19) A shot in the arm
Meaning: Something that has a sudden and positive effect on something, providing encouragement and new activity.
Example: Fresh investment would provide the shot in the arm that this industry so badly needs.
20) Ideologies
Meaning: A set of beliefs or principles, especially one on which a political system, party, or organization is based.
Example: The people are caught between two opposing ideologies.
Synonyms: Ideas, Concepts
