"I do not agree with our country's strengthening feudal relationship with China," Patrik, a 22-year-old student who declined to give his full name, said at the protest in the Hungarian capital. Demonstrators marched through the streets of Budapest in protest against plans to build a Chinese university in the city. (Photo by=EPA) |
[Asia News = Reporter Reakkana] BUDAPEST: On Saturday (Jun 6), Thousands of Hungarians, some of them holding banners declaring "Treason", protested against a Chinese university's plans to open a campus in Budapest, Reuters reported.
The government signed an agreement with Shanghai-based Fudan University in April on building the campus at a site in Budapest where a dormitory village for Hungarian students had previously been planned. The government has said Fudan is a world-class institution and the campus would "allow students to learn from the best." MTI news agency quoted Tamas Schanda, a deputy government minister, as saying Saturday's protest was unnecessary and dismissing "political hysteria" based on unfounded gossip and media reports.
Liberal opponents of nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban accuse him of cozying up to China and fear the campus could undercut the quality of higher education and help Beijing increase its influence in Hungary and the European Union. He added funds should be used "to improve our own universities instead of building a Chinese one." Opposition politicians and economists have criticized what they say will be the high costs of the project and a lack of transparency. Budapest's mayor opposes the plan. Beijing said this week "a few Hungarian politicians" were trying to grab attention and obstruct cooperation between China and Hungary.