Hungary's fiercely anti-migrant Prime Minister Viktor Orban shows little humility, and is opening a Pandora's box of problems for an already shaky European Union.

Key points: Viktor Orban has now put forward the harshest anti-migration measures in Europe

Viktor Orban has now put forward the harshest anti-migration measures in Europe He is pressuring the EU to scrap its mandatory refugee quotas

He is pressuring the EU to scrap its mandatory refugee quotas But a former finance minister says Mr Orban's migrant policies are "not acceptable"

After he spent nearly $47 million on advertising, stoking security fears and promoting a "no" vote at a recent referendum on accepting a refugee quota handed out by the EU, only one-third of the country's 10 million people turned out to vote.

It was, by any measure, an embarrassment. By not reaching over 50 per cent of voters, the referendum was declared legally invalid.

Undaunted, the charismatic strongman is claiming a mandate to change the country's constitution. He argued that 98 per cent of those who voted rejected the EU's plan.

"The Government considers it only proper, honest and a necessary step to put into law the will of the people," Mr Orban said.

Political commentators are stunned by the bravado.

"On the domestic front, he managed to turn the anti-migration referendum failure into a success," political analyst Robert Laszlo said.

The Orban argument has sparked jokes.

In one, the Prime Minister asks for a beer in a pub. When he receives a partially filled glass he complains: "My glass is not even half full."

The bartender replied, "Yes, but it's 98 per cent beer."

Orban pressuring EU to scrap mandatory refugee quotas

But Mr Orban is deadly serious. The populist right-winger, who admires US presidential candidate Donald Trump, has now put forward the harshest anti-migration measures in Europe.

He claimed the new rules would "protect" his "Christian nation".

The constitutional amendment includes a ban on "settling a foreign population" in Hungary, making it impossible to participate in the EU's quota system.

A Budapest mayor linked to the ruling Fidesz party ordered a cross be erected to show Hungary is a "Christian" nation. ( Supplied: Stefan Bos )

Mr Orban has called the mainly Muslim refugees and other migrants entering Europe a "poison" that his nation "won't swallow".

With the far-right Jobbik party, he would have the necessary two-thirds majority and the changes could be rushed through Parliament within weeks.

However Jobbik is now horsetrading. In return for its support, it is demanding a ban on all forms of migration, including a controversial Government bonds program for wealthy foreigners.

"Neither poor terrorists, nor rich terrorists should be allowed to come here," extremist party leader Gabor Vona said.

Rather than accept these terms, Mr Orban is pressuring the EU to scrap its mandatory refugee quotas, thus removing his need to change Hungary's constitution.

Though accepting billions of euros in aid from the EU, Mr Orban condemns European values.

He is not threatening to leave the 28-nation bloc, but presents a direct challenge to its powers and stability.

As 1.5 million refugees streamed into Europe last year, with hundreds of thousands coursing through Hungary, Mr Orban set the EU agenda on migration.

He erected 175 kilometres of razor wire along the southern border, and deployed security forces with guard dogs to greet them.

It shifted EU debate from how to manage the refugees to how to stop them.

'We must say no to the migrants now'

The town of Bicske briefly made news when a train crowded with asylum seekers was suddenly stopped, leading to a standoff with Hungarian police. ( Supplied: Stefan Bos )

Other former Soviet countries struggling with the transition to democracy share similar views. With Poland, Slovakia and Czech Republic, an anti-immigration Eastern bloc is forming within the EU, and Mr Orban is at the helm.

His political clout is growing, challenging German Chancellor Angela Merkel's dominance in European politics.

It is a far cry from the young liberal firebrand leading a mass rally in 1989, who fearlessly demanded the withdrawal of Soviet troops, and helped tear down the "iron curtain".

Following his political instincts and the post-Soviet mood, Mr Orban turned to the Right. Now the silver-haired leader names Turkey and Russia as models on which to build an "illiberal democracy".

Since the 2014 election, and dogged by allegations of kleptocracy, centralising power and muting independent media, the 53-year-old has skilfully tapped into public concerns about Muslim migration.

"Europe should recognise that without nations it has no heart, and without Christianity it has no soul," the married father-of-five said. He warned the mainly-Muslim migrants could radically change societies.

Hungarian politicians will vote on an anti-migrant constitutional amendment inside Hungary's Neo-Gothic-style Parliament building. ( Supplied: Stefan Bos )

Many Hungarians agree, with recent surveys showing a sizable majority do not feel obligated to help asylum seekers.

"We must say 'no' to the migrants now, because they threaten our future," said sculptor Zoltan Varga, speaking near a busy Budapest train station.

Mr Varga voted "No" in the referendum. In practical terms he acknowledged the EU quota meant resettling only about 1,300 refugees in Hungary.

He spoke after a Muslim woman quickly walked past.

"If we say 'yes' to them, we get perhaps a few thousand now. But what will happen in the future?"

Mr Varga agreed the hard-line Government campaign linked migrants to terrorism.

"I would like to get from Syria, for example, the Catholic people to come here," he said, expressing a widely-held opinion.

"Because Christians think similarly to Hungarians."

A refugee family at Budapest's Keleti (East) railway station waits for permission to continue their journey to more welcoming Western nations. ( Supplied: Stefan Bos )

'We're scared and confused'

There are only about 3,000 asylum seekers remaining in Hungary, spread across the country in half-empty refugee camps like in Bicske, an hour's drive from Budapest. It hosts refugees behind a security gate.

Guards watch them closely, though at times they can leave the camp. The demoralised refugees feel unwelcome.

An asylum seeker from Cameroon complained that the court determining his refugee status was stacked against him.

"The judge didn't ask for a translator and my lawyer came 10 minutes late," said the young man, too frightened to give his name.

"I wasn't given even one minute when the judge invited me to speak."

With anti-migrant constitutional change in the wind, he feared his life would get worse.

"People are afraid. We're scared and confused," he said.

A female refugee said Government support was meagre.

"We receive about 22 euro ($31) a week for food. It's a very difficult situation," she said.

Orban's policies 'not acceptable': Former minister

Liberal Hungarians are horrified at the resurrection of racism in the country.

As they prepare to commemorate the 60th anniversary of Hungary's 1956 Uprising against Soviet domination, they remember the crushing Soviet troops and how Europe embraced desperate exiles.

Lajos Bokros, a former finance minister who leads the Movement for a Modern Hungary party, said Mr Orban's migrant policies were "not acceptable".

Movement for Modern Hungary leader and former finance minister Lajos Bokros urges more compassion towards refugees. ( Supplied: Stefan Bos )

"More than 200,000 Hungarians were welcomed in the West in 1956 on the basis of solidarity and dignity," he said.

"The anti-migrant measures are destroying the international standing of Hungary, because it is based on Government-orchestrated xenophobia."

As he taps into sentiments of lost glory, Mr Orban's rejection of liberal values risks stirring deep and dangerous grievances.

Hungary has a choice, said Mr Bokros, who urged compassion.

However, Mr Orban wants to limit migration saying, "Hungarians have the right to choose with whom they want to live".

The leader's rhetoric comes at a time of growing eurosceptism, and his critics fear that Mr Orban's strong and simple messages may tear up the EU itself.