Reform or political takeover?
Researchers rally against the third major reform of the Hungarian Research Network
Amid geopolitical turmoil, the Hungarian government plans to reform the Hungarian Research Network (HUN-REN) comprehensively. This network encompasses research institutes across all major scientific fields, including ethnography and astronomy. While the initiators of the reform claim to have good intentions, the draft law suggests that Prime Minister Orbán aims to carry out a political takeover similar to the one he executed with the universities.
This is not the first reform during Orbán’s reign.
The first and most comprehensive reform occurred under the leadership of József Pálinkás. Professor Pálinkás is a physicist who specializes in nuclear particle collisions. He served as a minister in Orbán's first cabinet from 2001 to 2002. After 2010, he led the government's initiative to overhaul the outdated and overly compartmentalized research network.
The initiative was relatively successful. The network was historically associated with the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (Magyar Tudományos Akadémia, MTA). Pálinkás did not change this.
Research institutes were required to implement improved performance metrics. As a result, many senior scientists were either retired or moved to honorary positions to create opportunities for younger researchers. The network also became decentralized; while the MTA retained nominal control, the institutions gained greater independence.
There were issues to address. The lack of proper funding and personal conflicts led to some turmoil as researchers had to adapt to the new system. Pálinkás was not particularly popular, but once the dust settled, some parts of the network began to function more effectively. Others, however, were less fortunate due to insufficient funding and unwanted political interference. In my opinion, if every reform under Orbán had been only as successful as this one, Hungary would be much better off than it is now.
A principle of Orbán’s regime is that if something begins to work at least moderately well and the people involved gain a measure of safety, Orbán fucks it up for them.
I know. Pardon my French. But I must use the f-word to demonstrate that this is not “disruption” or “shaking things up. It happens because no one can feel their position is safe on principle. Feeling safe leads to self-conscience, confidence, and, at the end of the day, resistance.
Reform #2
Enter Miklós Maróth, a distinguished classical philologist. He took the lead and renamed the research network to the Loránd Eötvös Research Network (Eötvös Loránd Kutatóhálózat, ELKH. Loránd (Roland) Eötvös was a notable 19th-century scientist. ). This change also involved removing the prestigious “MTA” prefix from the names of the research institutes.
A new organizational structure was introduced to reduce the independence of the research institutions, which led to loud protests from the network and drew unwanted international attention. It became evident that Professor Maróth was not an effective manager, resulting in his quiet acquittal following this failed attempt. The research network was subsequently renamed from ELKH to HUN-REN, but it suffered from a lack of funding.
Reform #3
After a physicist and a philologist, it was time for (drum roll!!!) a neurobiologist. Professor Balázs Gulyás is also a decorated scientist. He is a professor at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and the Imperial College London.
Professor Gulyás ordered a thorough review of the network, which took place throughout the summer. My sources inform me that, although the review was initiated with good intentions and for a positive purpose, its execution was distinctly Central and Eastern European. Committees arrived, toured the premises, asked a few questions, and departed.
Professor Gulyás also sought assistance from various Hungarian and international scholars and leaders from prestigious research institutions to examine the issues facing the extensive Hungarian Research Network.
Long preparation but for overnight legislation
On November 7th, Professor Gulyás formally received a draft of legislation to overhaul this extensive network. According to an article on HUN-REN's website, Professor Gulyás is eager to meet the government's 7-day deadline to review the legislation.
Like his predecessors, he hopes this new framework will elevate Hungarian research and development, which has been underfunded, to a top-notch level once again. He seems to believe that the new model's authoritarian features are a manageable trade-off for the chance to implement a more modern financial and organizational structure.
Like his predecessors, he is correct in thinking that some resistance to these reforms comes from underperforming scientists, and an organization with ingrained nepotism like the Hungarian one could always benefit from objective performance metrics.
Yet he fails to comprehend that Orbán is not interested in performance. He is interested in control.
Professor Gulyás is not the first person to make this mistake; I believe he does not intend to cause any harm. Having conducted research in Sweden, Singapore, and the UK, he understands that the formula for successful scientific research is quite straightforward. The key components are solid funding, absolute academic freedom, and a careful balance between the security of tenure and the necessity to achieve measurable goals.
However, he fails to recognize that the HUN-REN will continue to be underfunded. Academic freedom has been in serious jeopardy for the past fourteen years and is likely to remain threatened in the foreseeable future. In other words, he does not understand how Orbán operates. I genuinely hope that calling this naiveté is correct, as the alternative suggests something far worse.
The return of the KEKVA
This recent reform establishes a new organizational network resembling the notorious KEKVA trust funds. KEKVA stands for Public Interest Trust Funds. (Közfeladatot Ellátó Közérdekű Vagyonkezelő Alapítvány)
A majority of Hungarian public universities were compelled to become KEKVA institutions. This change resulted in transferring all university assets—from campuses to chalkboards—into a trust fund. The boards and management of these trust funds were appointed from members of Orbán’s party chieftains, which meant total political control over KEKVA-owned universities.
This action contributed to the all-out clash between Hungary and the EU. KEKVA-owned universities were excluded from EU-funded programs and the Erasmus program, facilitating European student and scholar exchanges.
Orbán attempts to soften this violent takeover by implementing cosmetic changes to the legislation. A proposed draft law prohibits ministers and other high-ranking officials from holding leadership positions in a KEKVA. However, anyone with five minutes of experience in Hungarian politics knows this change merely replaces the Party leaders with their enforcers, leaving everything else unchanged.
After a "thorough review," the Hungarian research network received a draft legislation that appears to be primarily copy-pasted. If enacted, this legislation would transform the entire Hungarian Research Network into a single, giant KEKVA. Researchers throughout the network have expressed concerns, noting that the draft is being presented at hastily organized meetings. Management has informed researchers that accepting this change is the only way to secure future research funding, and they insist that this measure must be approved by the end of the year.
I heard this line from multiple sources: “We have 48 hours to say yes, or we lose funding.”
The draft is indeed a copy-paste. Here are some screenshots to prove it:
This one is from the draft legislation introducing cosmetic changes at KEKVA trust funds. It is a list of people (mayors, members of parliament, etc) to be excluded from KEKVA leadership:
This next one is from the draft legislation sent to the research network. The same rules for the “Giant Research KEKVA”:
The attentive observer may have noticed that the legislators removed an item from the list but failed to update the reference at the end of the text. This is not the only error present in the document. It appears that some junior clerk at the ministry was assigned the task of copy-pasting, likely overnight, and no one took the time to proofread the text. This is typical Hungarian overnight legislation.
Professor Gulyás speaks optimistically about the bright future of his cherished research network, while the henchmen of Orbán are eagerly poised to take control. In about a year, Professor Gulyás may find himself as yet another disillusioned academic, labeling Orbán as an authoritarian. Welcome to the club, Professor—Professor Pálinkás will be happy to show you around.
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Note that in Hungary, these research institutes, together with some university departments are traditionally the places to shelter smart people not liking the actual regime. Having done these changes, nobody will finance them and the research topics thought dangerous by the regime clerks.
"some resistance to these reforms comes from underperforming scientists, and an organization with ingrained nepotism like the Hungarian one could always benefit from objective performance metrics."
Although this is quite correct but I think because of the more and more toxic publish-or-perish system of science it is worth talking with a bit more nuance about objective performance metrics because often quantity is the go to way in measuring performance