Son of Soros under fire as foundations retreat from Europe

He survived the Nazis, made a fortune on Wall Street and became one of the most steadfast backers of democracy and human rights in the eastern bloc. But there are now fears about the commitment of the billionaire philanthropist George Soros, 93, to his homelands, as his donor network announced it will curb its activities across the EU from 2024.

- Philip Oltermann

Several beneficiaries of Soros's Open Society Foundations (OSF), chaired since the start of this year by his son Alex, told the Observer they would struggle without its support amid an authoritarian rollback.

"When the Open Society Foundations left Budapest under severe political pressure in 2018, they said they would lose their physical presence but not their focus on the region," said Márta Pardavi, co-chair of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a Budapest human rights NGO supported by the foundations.

But she added: "Has there really been such a positive shift in Europe over the last five years that that promise has become less relevant?"

In a July email to staff, the OSF management announced a "radical redesign". "Ultimately, the new approved strategic direction provides for withdrawal and termination of large parts of our current work within the European Union, shifting our focus and allocation of resources to other parts of the world," it said.

While 40% of the charity's global staff will be laid off, cuts will be severest in Europe, with the 180 headcount at its Berlin headquarters cut by 80%.