The percentage of those who plan to emigrate decreased from 7 percent in 2011 to 5 percent in 2014.

According to Hungary’s Publicus Institute, 89 percent of Hungarians know at least one family member or friend who has moved abroad over the last five or ten years. From this group, 36 percent of the people cited the domestic political situation as the reason their friend or relative left the country. 52 percent cited economic reasons.

47% said that it was not possible to live off of one’s salary
29% cited the government and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán
23% cited the lack of sufficient workplaces
20% cited the bad economic situation
8% cited bad work environment
7% cited the fact that people`s work is not valued in Hungary
6% blamed the previous governments of the Hungarian Socialist Party
6% blamed the bad political atmosphere
4% cited corruption
2% state, politics in general

Publicus Institute strategic director András Pulai told ATV the reason people have very strong opinions on the issue of emigration is because “families are being torn apart” and people who have been friends for decades now find themselves at great distances from one another. In his opinion, the so-called national consultation on immigration currently under way is a cynical ploy to distract voters` attention from the fact that Hungarians are leaving the country in droves, especially single men in their twenties and thirties.

The same study revealed that only 23 percent of Hungarians consider immigration a problem, even after three months of being continuously bombarded with government anti-immigrant propaganda. By contrast, 57 percent of Hungarians consider emigration a problem.

Tellingly, 10% of Fidesz supporters held Orbán personally responsible for the fact that large numbers of Hungarians have left the country over the past five years.

Source: The Budapest Beacon

The Budapest Beacon is a media partner of XpatLoop.com