After the third two-thirds mandate won by the governing party Fidesz, the Hungarian government adopted amendments to various laws, including the Fundmental Law. The amendements – the government argues – intend to tackle illegal migration, while the real intention is making operations overly burdensome for those who don’t share the government’s opinion on migration. Besides the changes to the Fundamental Law and the Penal Code under the name “Stop Soros” (analysed here), the government also adopted a new specal tax, under the name immigration special tax. It is nothing but a severe restriction of the freedom of speech: those that are supporting immigration in a professional way (doing so in an organized framework, as a calling, while using money from supporters) can, from now on, only do so if paying a special, 25% tax. The new “Stop Soros” provision to the Penal Code threatens human rights’ defenders and lobbyists with prison, while this regulation creates an existential threat for organizations active on immigation. The reality is that the immigration special tax puts limitations on the freedom of speech and on the work of NGOs. The new legislation was adopted by the Parliament, signed by the President of Hungary and came into force on the 25th of August.

The seven-year-old Fundamental Law of Hungary has been amended for the seventh time. Any amendment of the Fundamental Law should theoretically be based on a broad political consensus because a constitution does not reflect the majority’s will, but instead provides a legal framework for a government gaining majority via any democratic election to implement their political commitments. An ideal constitution provides for the possibility to govern according to different ideologies and defines the clear limits of governance that shall not be transgressed.

The Hungarian Government introduced a draft Bill (T/707.) on the right to assembly, to replace the current law which has been in effect since 1989. The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union is of the view that the entire Bill should have been withdrawn and the current Act III of 1989 on the Right to Assembly should be modified where necessary. Executive summaries and a longer version of the analysis below were sent to all MPs as well as political parties with parliamentary presence before the Bill reached committee stage and second reading in Parliament. However, the Parliament enacted the new law on the right to assembly on July 20th, 2018.

We have won no less than three cases recently concerning data of public interest. The Centre for Budapest Transport (CBT) and the Hungarian Medical Chamber (HMC) was ordered to release the requested information to our clients free of charge, while MoD ARZENÁL Co., involved in the sales of military devices, has been ordered to reveal the conditions under which they had sold disarmed combat helicopters withdrawn from operation. In all three cases, the decision of the court made it easier to access data of public interest.

Gabi is about to get a divorce. After a heated argument, her partner calls an ambulance. He tells the paramedics that Gabi is threatening to commit suicide and he is worried about her. They see that Gabi is very tense, nervous and her whole body is trembling. The more she denies it, the more suspicious she becomes to the emergency personnal.

The Hungarian Government has taken yet to another level its seemingly endless attack against