The diversity of Europe’s experience during COVID-19 set the agenda for discussions at the 2020 Europe Liberty Forum Online, as questions of authoritarian government, freedom of the press, and public health have created new context for action. More than 125 advocates of liberty signed on to Atlas Network’s Zoom platform to share ideas and talk about the ways they are responding to the challenges of the lockdown. With a digitally rendered pastoral scene behind her, Atlas Network Board Chair Linda Whetstone warmly welcomed attendees and reminded the group of the advances that technology and freedom have made possible.
Three Atlas Network partners spoke of the challenges and opportunities that the pandemic has presented in the respective countries. Zoltán Kész of Free Market Foundation in Hungary pointed out that in times of crisis, people tend to have more confidence in their leadership—a serious problem for limited government advocates, particularly when increased government intervention threatens critical freedoms. Kész also noted that since there has been no lockdown in Hungary, the private sector continues to operate, and some taxes have been lowered. Svetla Kostadinova of Bulgaria’s Institute for Market Economics was clear that the real challenge is overcoming the incompetence of government, but that there is hope in ensuring that local authorities can create new opportunities for digital education and increased deregulation. Finally, Alexander Skouras of KEFiM in Greece was pleased with the development of e-government, which facilitates the country’s antiquated bureaucracy, but with a complete stop to tourism, current projections show that Greece’s GDP will contract by at least 10 percent—on top of an ongoing recession that has sent GP plummeting more than 25 percent in the last ten years.
