Stating the Obvious – Rebutting the Hungarian Government’s response to the Reasoned Proposal in the Article 7 procedure against Hungary

Amnesty International Hungary, Hungarian Helsinki Committee, Mérték Media Monitor, Háttér Society, Hungarian Civil Liberties Union and Tansparency International Hungary elaborated a joint NGO reaction paper to rebut the Hungarian government’s response to the Reasoned Proposal in the Article 7 procedure against Hungary.

The document, prepared by Hungarian non-governmental organisations (NGOs), is a reaction paper to the Hungarian Government’s updated Information Note to the General Affairs Council of the European Union on the Resolution on Hungary adopted by the European Parliament on 12 September 2018, submitted in the framework of the procedure under Article 7 TEU against Hungary.

The reaction paper collates the most significant false or misleading statements of the Government’s Information Note and rebuttals by civil society organisations thereto, along with pointing out the most important instances when the Hungarian Government failed to react to the concerns included in the EP resolution. It also contains the most important new developments in the area of rule of law and human rights in Hungary since the adoption of the Reasoned Proposal.

The reaction paper is available here in English: Stating the Obvious – Rebutting the Hungarian Government’s response to the Reasoned Proposal in the Article 7 procedure against Hungary

Share

Related articles

We will finally know how many people have been affected by the fraudulent registration of false addresses

It is the conviction of many that Fidesz owes its 2018 victory in the general elections (or at least the two-thirds majority) to the registering of false residential addresses. Although Kispalád (for example) has seen a 150% increase in its population in the last seven years and the press has uncovered several similar cases in the past few years, no one knows exactly how many false residential addresses have been registered with a fraudulent aim. We will never know the exact numbers, but a recent verdict of the Metropolitan Regional Court should provide some clarity. The competent State Secretariat of the Ministry of Interior is now obligated by a final judgement to release the requested data to the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU) and to Political Capital (PC). Let’s see what this is all about!

Read more »

Our Letter to Timmermans: Commission Must Act Against Hungary's Violations

Here is the letter of the Civil Liberties Union for Europe, co-signed by us and the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, to European Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans urging the EC to act to protect NGOs and the rule of law in Hungary.

Read more »

HCLU called OGP to investigate the situation in Hungary

Last fall, the Open Government Partnership (OGP) adopted a new policy to help re-establish an environment for government and civil society collaboration, safeguarding the Open Government Declaration and to mitigate reputational risks to OGP. Today, members of Hungarian civil society, including representatives of the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, Transparency International Hungary and K-Monitor, as well as Sunlight’s international policy manager, a former employee of K-Monitor, called on the OGP Steering Committee to take action under the new policy and launch a thorough investigation into the situation in Hungary, with a special attention to the deterioration of the space for civil society.

Read more »