Reporters Without Borders calls Viktor Orbán a “predator of press freedom” – POLITICO

Reporters Without Borders called Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán a “predator of press freedom” for muzzling the country’s media.
The NGO, known by its French acronym RSF, released a list of 37 heads of state and government on Monday who it said “embodied in a particularly drastic manner the ruthless repression of press freedom”. Orbán is the only EU leader on the list.
Since coming to power in 2010, the Hungarian Prime Minister, known as RSF, and his ruling party, Fidesz, have “put the Hungarian media landscape under their control” since coming to power in 2010, with businessmen government supporters who took control of the media and targeted independent media.
Besides Orbán, RSF’s list of “predators” this year includes new additions such as Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam. Other figures remain on the list from the previous version in 2016, such as Chinese President Xi Jinping, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
“New names have been added in all regions of the world. Their methods of repression are different, but serve the same purpose: to prevent critical reporting at all costs,” said RSF director Christian Mihr, adding that it is “frightening that those responsible often go unpunished despite brutal crimes.” .