The past few weeks have been full of the word “pseudo-NGO”. The government and leaders of the governing party have declared organisations critical of them “pseudo-NGOs”. According to more moderate views, they should be much more transparent than they are now, while according to more radical views, they should be completely eliminated. Those who do not agree with these politicians have retorted that it is in fact the foundations, associations and other professional platforms close to the government who are the real pseudo-NGOs. It is well-settled what it means to be an NGO. The definition of a pseudo-NGO, on the other hand, has not been fully explained. This expression is used in various contexts in the current debate. Let’s look at the typology of pseudo-NGOs!

Members of the Civil Liberties Committee will discuss the fundamental rights situation in Hungary with Justice Minister László Trócsányi and civil society representatives on Monday afternoon. Read the full speech of HCLU's Executive director, Stefánia Kapronczay.

The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU) initiated an actio popularis lawsuit based on the Equal Treatment Act of Hungary (ETA) against the Heves County Police Department following racially motivated events in the village of Gyöngyöspata (Heves County, Hungary) in the spring of 2011. In its judgment of 8 February 2017, the Supreme Court of Hungary (the Kúria) ruled that the failure to protect the Roma from racist harassment amounted to harassment under the ETA.

“My son was placed in a hospital ward of about 10 square metres in size, with four cribs in it, all of them occupied. Consequently, mothers had only chairs left to sit on. My partner’s idea was putting a foam rubber mat under the crib and sleeping there, huddled up. A couple of other mothers followed her lead.

What does the government want? Fidesz's vice-president, Szilárd Németh, along with MPs of the governing parties, launched a verbal attack against several civil organizations that receive part of their funding from foreign donors.

The Hungarian government has been promising to close down / merge institutions belonging under the governance of ministries and this plan has finally been realized. Why did it happen and why is it such a problem? What were the responsibilities of these institutions so far and what will happen to their previous tasks now? Let us explain.