He was Hungary's honorary consul for 19 years, he claims he was dismissed for criticizing the government

István Bán had been Hungary's honorary consul in the Estonian counties of Tartu, Jõgeva, Viljandi, Valga, and Võru since 2006, but on July 1, he posted on Facebook that he had lost his position on account of his support for Ukraine and his criticism of the current government. In his post, Bán writes that he had served in this position under six different governments. Commenting on his dismissal, he wrote:

"It wasn't because of my work or because of any violation of the rules. It was because I dared to express my opinion—publicly, using my own name. And when that happened, many remained silent.“

Bán published a social media post in which he had rewritten a quote from German pastor Martin Niemöller: ”First they silenced those who thought differently, but no one spoke up because it wasn't their turn. Then they took away the mandates from those who raised their voices, but everyone remained silent because they feared for their own.” He added that, in his opinion, this move was not just about him, but also about democracy, freedom, and fear. “And it's about how long we are willing to remain silent.”

Speaking to the Estonian newspaper Sakala, Bán said that he had always spoken his mind, regardless of the government in power. He added that the decision had been made and communicated to him by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He also said that he was informed of the decision through the Hungarian ambassador to Estonia, and that he was told that there would be no written justification provided regarding the decision.

Being an honorary consul is an unpaid, voluntary position, and the appointee's task is to promote cultural and economic relations between the two countries and, if necessary, assist with consular duties. Bán told Sakala that he feels he has the right to speak out if he does not like the current political government. He added that he is calm, as he has been consul for longer than the Fidesz-KDNP government has been in power, but added that he finds the situation ridiculous, as

“there are much bigger problems they should be dealing with instead of a single Hungarian in Estonia.”

Sakala contacted the Hungarian embassy, but they did not respond to the newspaper's questions. We have contacted the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and will update our article should they respond.