People

Interests

Options

BATNA

Objective Criteria

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

·         EU accession

·         Accede in the first round

·         Accede as a full member

·         Decrease number of derogations

·         Achieve domestic consensus to eliminate the longest derogation request (land acquisition)

·         Maintain a positive country image abroad

·         Maintain positive EU image in Hungary

·         Accede within the current parliamentary cycle

·         Make EU accept amended Land Act

Domestic

·         Ask for Prime Minister’s support to speed up preparation for accession

·         Build coalition with other government agencies

·         Build consensus with legislators

·         Build consensus with political parties

·         Build consensus with interest groups

·         Fund the publication of impact studies by the academic community on the effects of delayed accession and population decrease

·         Continue to build public support for early EU accession

·         Status quo

Towards EU

·         Show proof of strong momentum for early accession

·         Take a cooperative attitude

·         Continue discussions with the Commission and consider their suggestions 

·         Status quo: maintain derogation request

·         Make our proposed amendment accepted as a temporary solution.

·         Hungarian Land Act

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

Prime Minister

·         EU accession

·         Accede within the current parliamentary cycle

·         Accelerate the legal harmonization process to maintain target date for accession

·         Get reelected

·         Maintain consensus within the government coalition

·         Leverage ministries to propose plans of alignment to decrease the number of derogations

·         Build consensus with party leaders

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Political elections May 2002

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

·         Popularity index

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

Ministry of Justice

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Accelerate the legal harmonization process to maintain target date for accession

·         Ensure constitutionality

·         Fight against illegality

·         Accede within the current parliamentary cycle

·         Support the bill

·         Ask for Prime Minister’s support to speed up legal harmonization

·         Build coalition with other ministries

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Hungarian Constitution

·         Current Hungarian legal framework

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

Ministry of Economics

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Continue growth of the economy

·         Attract investors

·         Promote trade with EU

·         Increase quality and output of agricultural production to raise competitiveness

·         Increase welfare

·         Secure employment / decrease unemployment

·         Accede within the current parliamentary cycle

·         Support the bill

·         Build coalition with other ministries

·         Provide Prime Minister with impact study on the anticipated effects of the bill

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Impact studies on the short, medium and long term effects of EU accession on employment, income, investment, agricultural production

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals

Ministry of Finance

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Enable the free flow of capital

·         Close the negotiating chapter with the EU on the free movement of capital

·         Attract investment

·         Accede within the current parliamentary cycle

·         Support the bill

·         Build coalition with other ministries

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Achievements in the field of liberalization of capital movements

·         OECD commitments

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Fight against pocket contracts and speculation

·         Favor family farms and business cooperatives

·         Favor Hungarian land in Hungarian hands

·         Regain the strong position of agriculture within the economy

·         Increase quality and output of agricultural production to raise competitiveness

·         Achieve rural development

·         Support the bill

·         Oppose the bill

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Data on current output level

·         Analysis on the percentage of land that could get into foreign ownership

·         Analysis on the percentage of land that could get into cooperative ownership

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals

·         January 1, 2002: target date for accession

Political parties

FIDESZ

(Center-right, strongest in government coalition: Alliance of Young Democrats)

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Keep target date for accession

·         Represent the interests of the middle (and higher) class urban population

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Support the Government

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

FKGP

(Right wing: Smallholders’ Party)

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Keep target date for accession

·         Represent the interests of (small but rather) medium farmers

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Support the Government, especially the party leader, Mr. Torgyan, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Current Land Act

·         Polish derogation request

·         Regulation of land ownership acquisition in EU member states

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

MDF

(Conservative: Hungarian Democratic Forum

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Keep target date for accession

·         Represent the interests of the middle class

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Support the Government

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Current Land Act

·         Regulation of land ownership acquisition in EU member states

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

MSZP

(Strongest in opposition, center-left: Hungarian Socialist Party)

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Keep target date for accession

·         Represent the interests of middle and lower class people

·         Allow agricultural cooperatives to buy land

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Build coalition with other parties in opposition

·         Build alliance with interest groups and the processing industry

·         Utilize the international contacts of Mr. Gyula Horn (former Prime Minister) and Mr. László Kovács (former Minister of Foreign Affairs) to leverage the Government from abroad

·         Support the bill

·         Status quo

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Current situation of agricultural production cooperatives

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

SZDSZ

(Liberal: Alliance of Free Democrats)

·         EU accession in the first round

·         Bring economic rationality into dealing with the land ownership issue

·         Allow corporate and minimal foreign ownership of land

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Build coalition with other parties in opposition

·         Build alliance with interest groups and the processing industry

·         Support the bill

·         Publish studies on population decrease

·         Status quo

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Studies forecasting the percentage of land that could get into foreign ownership in the short, medium and long run

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

MIEP

(Nationalistic: Hungarian Justice and Life Party)

·         Hungarian land should be preserved for the Hungarians

·         Avoid “selling out” our country

·         Increase membership

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Start a campaign among farmers in rural and isolated parts of the country to oppose the bill

·         Build coalition with small farmers

·         Start a media campaign

·         Status quo

·         Studies forecasting the (exaggerated) percentage of land that could get into foreign ownership in the short, medium and long run

·         Give examples on how the country has been “sold out” already

·         Political elections May 2002

·         Popularity index

Legislators (that have proposed amendments or have expressed opinion on the issue)

FIDESZ

(The FIDESZ fraction has 148 -- 38 % of -- votes.)

·         Maintain government preference for family farms

·         Allow those to own land that are active in agriculture and are dependent on their farm income

·         Discourage speculation

·         Maintain current derogation request

·         Amend the Land Act by  including provisions on qualification, settlement and “dependence on farm income” requirements

·         Cooperate with other party legislators

·         Status quo

·         European farm model

·         Coalition majority of votes in the Parliament: 213 (55 percent) out of 386 seats

FKGP

(The FKGP fraction has 48 -- 13 % of -- votes.)

·         Maintain government preference for family farms

·         Discover and discourage pocket contracts

·         Keep land in Hungarian ownership

·         Include qualification, farm dependence and settlement requirement in the land ownership provisions of the Act.

·         Maintain current derogation request

·         Amend the Land Act by including provisions on qualification, settlement and “dependence on farm income” requirements

·         Cooperate with other party legislators for political reasons

·         Status quo

·         European farm model

·         Coalition majority of votes in the Parliament: 213 (55 percent) out of 386 seats

MDF

(The MDF fraction has 17 -- 4 % of -- votes.)

·         Discover and discourage pocket contracts

·         Keep Hungarian ownership of land

·         Establish a European farm model

·         Majority of votes in the Parliament: 213 (55 percent) out of 386 seats

·         Maintain current derogation request

·         Cooperate with the other two parties in the coalition government

·         Support the amendment of current law by including provisions on qualification, settlement and “dependence on farm income” requirements

·         Status quo

·         Coalition majority of votes in the Parliament: 213 (55 percent) out of 386 seats

·         Assist with votes the proposals of the other two coalition party members with votes

MSZP

(The MSZP fraction has 134 -- 35 % of -- votes.)

·         Support the functioning of agricultural production cooperatives

·         Allow those to own land that are active in agriculture and are dependent on their farm income

·         Motivate long-term investments, like inland drainage and country planning

·         Withdraw derogation request

·         Support the amendment of legislators on the government coalition

·         Find the common elements between government and opposition positions and try to propose jointly a different amendment

·         Status quo

·         Wait until next elections

Show evidence of

·         Fragmentation of land

·         Financial hardship of cooperatives

·         Role of cooperatives in domestic agricultural production, and employment

·         High occurrence of speculation

·         Family farms and their tax avoidance practices, etc.

SZDSZ

(The SZDSZ fraction has 24 -- 6 % of -- votes.)

·         Do not allow significant number of foreigners to acquire Hungarian land

·         Allow land ownership for domestic legal entities

·         Include provisions on settlement

·         Withdraw derogation request

·         Support the amendment of legislators on the government coalition

·         Find the common elements between government and opposition positions and try to propose jointly a different amendment

·         Status quo

·         Wait until next elections

Show evidence of

·         Fragmentation of land

·         Financial hardship of cooperatives

·         Role of cooperatives in domestic agricultural production, and employment

·         Role of other businesses in agriculture

·         The percentage of land that could become foreign

·         High occurrence of speculation

·         Family farms and their tax avoidance practices, etc.

Agricultural interest groups

MAGOSZ

(Representing farmers and business cooperatives

·         EU accession as soon as possible and as full member

·         Maintain current provisions of the Land Act

·         Increase membership

·         Lobby FKGP and FIDESZ to oppose change in the ownership provisions of the Land Act

·         Status quo

·         Status quo

·         Preference for family farms in the EU

·         Preference for business cooperatives in the EU

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals

MOSZ

(Represents interests of agricultural cooperatives and corporate entities.)

·         Allow domestic entities to acquire land

·         Gain support for cooperatives

·         Increase membership

·         Continue to work with MSZP and SZDSZ

·         Build coalition with other (smaller) interest groups

·         Build coalition with processing industry

·         Continue to build coalition with domestic and international cooperatives / cooperative alliances

·         Go on strike

·         Go on strike

·         Prepare for next elections

·         Role of cooperatives in export production

·         Social role of cooperatives

·         Role of agricultural corporate entities in the economy

Processing Industry

·         Eliminate separation between land and plant located on the land

·         Fight for the right to own land instead of leasing it

·         Lobby legislators on both the government and the opposition side

·         Build coalition with cooperatives

·         Continue to rent the land

·         Sell the plant

·         Show importance of land for business

·         Danish example (land with plant built on it has one price)

Hungarian landowners

(1.5 million)

·         EU accession

·         Increase in land prices

·         Reasonable legal purchase offers

·         Achieve land consolidation

·         Join forces maybe on a regional basis

·         Raise awareness among one another

·         Jointly lobby their legislators

·         Sell land at current prices (maybe to foreigners through pocket contract)

·         Keep land anticipating changes in legislation due to EU accession

·         GDP per capita

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals

European Union

·         Accept only candidates that are well prepared for accession

·         Prepare well the internal structure of the EU for accession

·         Maintain security

·         Maintain good political relations with each applicant country

·         Safeguard EU citizens

·         Safeguard the interests of each EU Member State

·         Maintain proper functioning of the Single Market, in particular, by safeguarding the four basic freedoms

·         Allow only temporary derogations with plans of alignment

·         Accept Hungary's proposed amendment of the Land Act

·         Reject Hungary’s proposed amendment of the Land Act

·         Accept Hungary’s derogation request on land ownership

·         Reject Hungary’s derogation request on land ownership

·         Accept Hungary’s derogation request on land ownership

·         Reject Hungary’s derogation request on land ownership

·         Accept Hungary’s new amendment proposal as compliant with Community law.

·         Accept Hungary’s proposal as a temporary solution.

·         Community law

·         Europe Agreement

·         Precedent cases (Case law)

·         Land ownership legislation of EU member states

·         EU White Paper on Enlargement

·         Negotiations during previous enlargements

·         OECD commitments

·         Land prices in the EU

·         Capital endowment of EU nationals