Once celebrated as a rising democracy in Eastern Europe after the Soviet Era, Hungary has taken a swing towards autocracy. Prime Minister Viktor Orban, elected in 2010, has shaped this transformation. With the goal to create what he calls an “illiberal democracy”, he has made a series of decisions to redesign the government to increase his own power and create a more authoritarian regime. He  changed the electoral laws to favor his own reelection, ran on a firmly anti-immigration campaign antagonizing Muslims, and passed media legislation to appoint his own candidates as the main media regulators.

Most recently, Hungary has been in the news for what the opposition has deemed a ‘slave law’. This law benefits corporations by increasing the overtime hours they can demand from their employees from 250 hours per year to 400, and payment for this overtime can be delayed as much as 3 years. Proponents of the law have argued  its necessity due to the labor shortage in Hungary, largely caused by the flow of skilled workers to other nations and Orban’s fierce dedication to anti-immigration policies.

However, this law is undoubtedly unpopular. According to a poll by the Republikon Institute, 63 percent of Orban’s supporters and 95 percent of his critics are not in favor of the new law. Even in subzero temperatures, citizens opposing it turned out in the thousands in Budapest. Citizens are protesting not simply because of the law, but in opposition of Orban’s entire government. In the words of one steelworker and father of five, they were protesting because “Orban destroys families and lives”. Similarly, leader of a union of industrial workers and miners Ferenc Rabi argued that “Parliament doesn’t listen to us”, so these protests were the only way to make their voices heard.

Yet because the media is controlled by the government and Orban loyalists, many Hungarians aren’t aware of the protests. Some pro-Orban sources have argued that American-Hungarian philanthropist George Soros– often the scapegoat used by far-right groups– has orchestrated the opposition, but there is no evidence to support this claim. Some sources, meanwhile, avoid giving extra attention to the protests by not covering them at all.

Orban’s style of leadership is concerning to those that champion free democracy, but it’s not unique; it’s part of a wider global trend of the rise of nationalism and the far-right. In countries such as Italy, Sweden, Germany, and France alike, the far-right has experienced a boost in popularity. This trend made 2018 a dark year for democracy, and the oppression at hand does not seem to be on the decline.