Hungarian doubt. (Hungarian officials are urging people to vote yes on the Nov 16, 1997, referendum on joining NATO; they fear low voter turnout could hurt the yes vote)(Brief Article)

Economist (US), The, November, 1997

THE Hungarian government has been doing its damnedest to make people vote Yes on November 16th in a referendum on whether their country should join NATO. Reassuring characters singing NATO's praises have been written into Hungary's leading television soap opera and a popular children's programme; a CD-ROM featuring a jolly game called Natopoly has been dished out to all secondary schools and public libraries; television and newspapers have been awash with pro-NATO documentaries and articles purporting to be the work of independent journalists but obviously sponsored by the government.

Yet the government has not had things all its own way. The main stick with which opponents of NATO membership have been beating the government is the cost of joining. On this, the...

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