14th Annual Conference on 'The Individual vs. the State' at Central European University, Budapest May 12-13, 2006

The Lobby Act adopted by the Hungarian Parliament the 23rd of February (by simple majority of MPs present) contains several discriminatory regulations towards civil non-profit organisations. The Parliament ignored the protest of the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union and another twenty-one civil organisations against the draft Lobby Act. The bill of the lobbying activity was accepted without any amendments relating to the participation of non-profit civil organisations in lobbying activity.

The Capital Court of Appeal has made a decision on 20 April about the lawsuit of Energy Club and National Atomic Energy Agency’s Nuclear Safety Directorate (NAEA-NSD) in the second instance court. The judiciary overruled the judgement of the first instance court and ordered to initiate a new proceeding. In the lawsuit HCLU represents the suitor. The appeal does not lie against this decision which is, though favourable, still does not result the access to the demanded data.

HCLU was disappointing to learn that the police have put off the demonstration of the Amnesty International without prohibitive order and legitimate base. The demonstration was announced in time – as the law of assembly requires.

The Metropolitan Court did not deliver its decision on appeal today in the lawsuit between Energy Club and the National Atomic Energy Agency’s Nuclear Safety Directorate (NAEA-NSD). The public still does not have access to the information on the expert opinions on the damage reduction process of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant.

On March 3rd the Central District Court of Pest reached the verdict in the Centrum Group case. The “squatters” were represented by Levente Baltay, lawyer at Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU).