Hungarian opposition proposes amending law to prevent foreign funding in election campaigns

A lawmaker of opposition Jobbik has proposed amending the law on associations in order to prevent foreign funding being funnelled into election campaigns through Hungarian NGOs.

Zoltán Sas told a press conference that in public poistions, politicians’ main task is to represent Hungarian interests and “this can only be done free of external influence”. Politicians accepting foreign funding is “in itself a national security concern”, but also affects their political credibility, Sas said. He said he expected the amendment of the law to increase the transparency and purity of politics in Hungary while reducing foreign influence.

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He also said that the current law on regulating foreign political influence is not sufficient because whereas parties are banned from accepting donations from beyond the borders, there is no such restriction for NGOs pursuing political activities. The aim is not to prevent NGOs from getting funding from abroad but to ensure that such monies are not channeled to parties and politicians.

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Source: MTI