Magyar urges Slovak PM Fico to suspend Beneš Decrees ahead of Hungarian elections

Péter Magyar, leader of Hungary’s Tisza Party, has called on Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico to temporarily suspend the Beneš Decrees until Hungary’s parliamentary election in April, arguing that laws based on collective guilt have no place in the legal system of any European Union member state.

In a Facebook post addressed directly to Fico, Magyar wrote that decrees declaring the collective guilt of Hungarians and Germans cannot form the basis of law in the EU. He added that this issue would be the starting point of their “first conversation in Budapest after a change of government in Hungary.”

Fico: Beneš Decrees are untouchable

Magyar’s proposal came in response to remarks by Fico at a press conference, where the Slovak prime minister said he would not become involved in Hungary’s election campaign and declared the Beneš Decrees “untouchable.”

“The Beneš Decrees are inseparable and integral parts of the legal order of the Slovak Republic,” Fico said, according to Paraméter. He argued that the decrees are part of the post–World War II settlement and compared questioning them to the denial of the Holocaust, which is also punishable under Slovak law.

Fico added that if Slovakia and Hungary hold different views on such matters, the issue should be referred to the European Commission.

Read also: Thousands protest in Budapest outside Slovak Embassy – photos, videos

Orbán’s chief advisor, Katalin Szili, has turned to the European Commission

At the press conference, Fico mentioned that Katalin Szili, chief advisor to PM Orbán, had written a letter to the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, asking the EU body to investigate the amendment to the Slovak Criminal Code.

I fully respect the fact that Viktor Orbán‘s government has turned to the European Commission. They are asking whether such legislation is in line with EU law. We will await the European Commission’s decision,

Fico responded to the developments.

Background: post-war collective punishment

After World War II, the Czechoslovak state introduced the Beneš Decrees, applying the principle of collective guilt to ethnic Hungarians and Germans. As a result, many were stripped of citizenship, property, and homes. Although widely considered incompatible with modern human rights standards, the decrees remain formally embedded in the Czech and Slovak constitutional orders.

The issue resurfaced recently after land owned by ethnic Hungarians in Slovakia was confiscated during motorway construction projects, with authorities citing the Beneš Decrees as the legal basis.

Magyar criticises Orbán government’s cautious approach

Magyar argued that good neighbourly relations are in the interest of both Hungary and Slovakia and suggested that the remaining 88 days until Hungary’s election should be used to repeal both the Beneš Decrees and Slovakia’s so-called “silence law.”

“I apologise to our Hungarian compatriots in Upper Hungary (Felvidék) for Viktor Orbán’s cowardice and avoidance,” Magyar wrote, directly criticising Viktor Orbán.

The Hungarian government has historically handled the issue cautiously. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó previously said the topic should only be raised when there is a realistic chance of resolving it.

Slovak criminal law amendment fuels controversy

Tensions escalated further after Slovak President Peter Pellegrini signed an amendment to the criminal code late last year that makes it punishable to publicly deny or question the post-war settlement—effectively criminalising criticism of the Beneš Decrees.

Orbán said at the time that Hungary was holding “clarifying discussions” with the Slovak government and would decide later whether further steps were necessary.

Diplomatic and political fallout

Magyar has taken a harder stance, stating that Hungary should expel the Slovak ambassador in protest. He also attended a demonstration outside the Slovak embassy in Budapest and sent an open letter to Fico.

President Pellegrini criticised Magyar for referring to Slovakia as “Upper Hungary” (Felvidék), calling the term offensive and unhelpful in easing tensions. Magyar responded by repeating the term in his reply.

A growing regional issue

The Beneš Decrees have once again become a sensitive flashpoint in Hungarian–Slovak relations, intersecting historical grievances, minority rights, and contemporary politics. With elections approaching in Hungary and legal pressure increasing in Slovakia, the dispute is likely to remain high on the regional agenda.

Read also: Will the Orbán-Fico alliance crumble over Slovakia’s fresh assault on Hungarian rights?