“We can finally live in peace in Hungary” – a woman out of two million French emigrants
A man who moved permanently to Russia and a woman who emigrated to Hungary with her family told the French online newspaper Boulevard Voltaire about what motivated their choice. The two interviewees see France as “uninhabitable” as “the population has changed” and their living conditions have become increasingly precarious and opaque.
In recent years, many Frenchmen have decided to emigrate from the country, he says in his video on Boulevard Voltaire (BV). According to data from the French legislature in 2018 — read in the caption of the video — by that time, slightly less than two million French had left the country permanently.
For emigrants, the countries of Eastern Europe are the most popular host states: according to the data of the National Assembly, five of the seven states that can be chosen as a new home by the French are located in this region, the newspaper reports. The BV gave this article the title, “Do we have to emigrate east?” (A literal translation of the title means exile – ed.)
The French went to the following countries in large numbers: Russia, Poland – and Hungary as well. These states seem to have a serious appeal to the French, who have satisfied France and are looking for a new, livable culture. It is believed that France is becoming increasingly dangerous. They appreciate it more and more cheaply, the living conditions there are livable – writes BV.
To better understand the reason for their decision, we asked two French emigrants to Eastern Europe to subtitle the videos containing the interviews, which, in addition to the background music, show beautiful, tidy cities in the given Central and Eastern European region, including several recordings from Budapest. The shots show calm and order, cityscapes with well-dressed passers-by and small children. One of the recordings also shows the Hungarian head of government, or a mass demonstration, optionally an English inscription is raised high, according to which “Hungary protects Europe”.
The safety of children was already at stake
The man speaking as “Kublai” in the video moved to Russia ten years ago. The lady, who declared herself “Loeticia”, emigrated with her family, permanently, to Hungary.
Asked why they left France, Kublai answers: in the 2000s and 2010s, he was still very young, but he did not feel happy in his homeland. “Public safety was getting worse and the population was starting to change.” In answer to that question, Loeticia states: ‘The situation in France is opaque’. He says they lived in Nîmes and their high school children were increasingly affected by the depressing, dangerous environment, they left their studies and they saw no guarantee that the children would continue their lives under normal conditions. The two interviewees all see their old homeland as “uninhabitable”.
Why was this country chosen? Kublai says: among his ancestors were Russians, and in addition, quite a few French people live in the country. At first he looked around carefully, toured the country, and reached Vladivostok. He liked Russia more and more, quickly starting to learn the language and look for a job, and then he got stuck there.
He loves a France where he is no more
“I have known this country for a long time and it has gripped me how safe it is to live here,” Loeticia says of Hungary. “Whether you live in a small settlement or in Budapest, we can live in orderly conditions, we can live undisturbed and calm.” Loeticia sees the values of the Hungarians as important: according to him, “here, but even in Poland, there are still the basic values that France has long lost. We always repeat in France that Europe is Europe, ”he adds, continuing: except that Hungary has remained European.
Asked if he wants to return to France, Loetitia says: “We haven’t been in France in two years. They call my friends regularly, for example, to go and have Christmas with them, but I don’t feel like it, I don’t want to go home ”.
Kublai puts it this way: he has lived in Russia for ten years and is not short of anything, and for his older relationships he “compensates for having my wife here”. He adds that he really likes a France where he no longer has one. The beauty, language, landscapes, special buildings and traditions of his homeland are unique – explains the young man.
“But waiting for a government to finally take the issue of country borders and tackle migration seriously, and also to make the country regain its identity that it had until the 1960s and 1970s, is completely unrealistic. I don’t see much solution, ”he says.