constitutional amendment

Hungarian Parliament’s final session brings key amendments to the constitution, election act, and more

In the Hungarian parliament, Fidesz, the governing party with a two-thirds majority, has introduced several important changes to the lawmakers:

Hungarian Parliament vote on law establishing 2025 budget

MPs approved legislation for establishing the 2025 budget in a vote in parliament on Tuesday.

The law includes several measures in various fields and was approved by lawmakers with a vote of 134 for, 47 against and 8 abstentions.

The law removes the legal institution of special economic zones from the statutory regulation as of January 1. The competent local municipalities will once again perform local government and state administration tasks related to the areas.

The February date for the payment of the bonus thirteenth monthly pension has been raised to a statutory level.

The law imposes a HUF 1.2m annual threshold limit for subscriptions of baby bonds on Start accounts in a calendar year per person.

A provision that the government sector balance must be determined in such a way that its deficit does not exceed 3pc of GDP has been removed from the stability act. The new regulations state that the government sector balance must be decided in accordance with the Basic Law and European Union law.

The law authorises the government to decide on the alienation of state-owned properties next to national core network railway tracks in the national economic interest, or on the establishment of land use rights on them, or on the creation of undivided common ownerships.

It was also determined that business associations that develop and operate real estate that is part of the national core network railway track, in which the state’s direct or indirect share reaches 10pc, will be considered to be included in state property.

Amendments on higher education, family affairs, culture

Hungarian Parliament approved amendments to laws on higher education, family affairs and culture with 134 votes in support, 17 against and 39 abstentions.

In line with the amendments, married students who have children will be eligible for state scholarships until the age of 30, and tuition-paying students will be transferred to state scholarships if they get married and have children.

Students returning to Hungary after taking out a student loan abroad will have the option to repay their loan through the Hungarian student loan system.

Students raising children aged under 14 will be allowed to choose distance learning.

Several foundations operating universities will receive properties free of charge.

The state can operate museums in the future, the local council, or by non-profit economic organisations owned by the state or local council.

The Fudan Hungary University Foundation will change its name to Tudas-Ter Foundation, and it will be tasked with implementing a student quarter dormitory development program under the arrangements of university cooperation and to develop student welfare services.

read also: Hungarian MPs decide on important tax laws

Lawmakers tighten criminal code’s statute of limitations rules

Parliament voted unanimously to tighten the criminal code’s rules on the statute of limitations.

In line with the amendment approved with 190 votes in favour, zero tolerance will apply regardless of the age of the perpetrator, and the statute of limitations will be eliminated in cases of serious crimes punishable by life imprisonment.

Current regulations stipulate that the maximum prison sentence for perpetrators aged under 16 is 10 years, and for perpetrators aged between 16 and 18 years it is 15 years. Additionally, there is currently a statute of limitations in force in such cases, and the crimes lapse after 10 years or 15 years, respectively.

In line with the amendment approved by parliament, a statute of limitations will be applicable only in the case of crimes punishable by over 10 and 15 years in prison.

The new regulations will enter into force on January 1.

The governing party has redrawn the electoral map to suit itself

Parliament voted in favour of the amendment to the electoral law on Tuesday, with 134 votes in favour and 52 against, and no abstentions.

  • The ruling party has completely redrawn the previously known electoral districts:
    Budapest, which was the opposition’s stronghold, has been truncated from 18 to 16 constituencies, meaning that two fewer individual MPs from the capital will be able to enter Parliament. For the amendment, all constituencies in the capital will be redrawn based on Fidesz’s analysis.
  • The two extra single MPs will be allocated to Pest county, which will have 14 constituencies in 2026 instead of the current 12.
  • The constituencies of Fejér and Csongrád-Csanád counties have also been changed.
  • Under the new law, it will no longer be necessary to carry an address card with you to vote, but only an identity card, passport or driving licence will be required to prove your identity.
  • The rules on the bundling and storage of ballot papers are clarified.
  • The law also creates the possibility and obligation of an automatic recount of votes.

The head of the committee Imre Vejkey, of the co-ruling Christian Democrats, said during the debate about the proposal that changes in demographics had prompted the amendments to the constituency allocations. The opposition parties have sharply criticised the proposal, saying that the changes served the interests of the ruling parties.

read also: Hungarian Parliament again extends the state of emergency

Lawmakers adopt 14th constitutional amendment

Lawmakers adopted the 14th amendment to Hungary’s constitution, giving parliament room to elect the chief prosecutor from outside the prosecutorial system.

The amendment passed with 135 votes in favour and 53 against.

In their justification for the amendment, the authors of the bill said the amendment brings the regulation in line with the domestic practice, arguing that two of Hungary’s three chief prosecutors since the change of regime in 1989/90 had not been prosecutors before their election.

The amendment proposal submitted by parliament’s justice committee also makes reference to international examples, pointing out that many European countries do not require the chief prosecutor to have served as a prosecutor before fulfilling the role.

The amendment will enter into force on January 1, 2025. Chief Public Prosecutor Peter Polt’s mandate expires in 2028.

The amendment also raises the minimum age for judges from 30 to 35 years effective March 1, 2025. Also, as of January 1, 2026, judges will be allowed to remain on the bench until the age of 70.

Parlt adopts amendments to laws on digitalisation of documents

Parliament adopted amendments to laws pertaining to digital citizenship and the digitalisation of documents on Tuesday.

The new regulations, adopted with 135 votes in favour, 22 against and 33 abstentions, are designed to fine-tune regulations and to align them with European Union law.

Personal data are already available in an application. From February 2025, users will be able to download and forward the authenticated contents of many official documents.

With the exception of personal IDs, documents will only be issued in physical form upon specific request. ID cards will be issued free of charge, but people above 14 will have to pay for the issuance of physical documents in other cases. Pensioners will have discount prices.

By reducing the number of plastic and paper documents, the government is expecting to reduce plastic waste by 11.1 tonnes a year, and paper waste by 1.2 tonnes.

Lawmakers approve constitutional amendments in Hungary: presidential pardons, troop movements

Hungarian Parliament

In a Tuesday vote, lawmakers approved amendments to the constitution affecting presidential pardons, troop movements, and clearance for European Union credit.

The amendments were approved with a vote of 152 for and 1 against and with no abstentions.

The amendments allow the president to issue pardons without the countersignature of a government member while also prohibiting pardons for crimes against children as defined in the scope of a cardinal act.

They require a cardinal act for the movement and stationing of Hungarian troops abroad and for the stationing of foreign forces in Hungary.

The amendments also require a parliamentary resolution, supported by two-thirds of MPs, to clear any ad hoc government decision on Hungary’s participation in taking out joint European Union credit.

As we wrote today, Hungary’s parliament on Tuesday adopted changes aimed at increasing protection for children against sexual abuse, details HERE.

read also:

  • Hungarian President resigns after pardoning paedophile helper, details here
  • Reformed Bishop resigns after admitting he supported scandalous presidential pardon, details HERE

Opposition turns to top court on election law amendment

Justice Court Igazság Bíróság Legal Rights

The opposition Párbeszéd party has gathered enough signatures from MPs allowing it to turn to the Constitutional Court with the request that it review the Fidesz party’s amendment to the election law with regard to procedures and the local councils the ruling party submitted a few weeks ago, Párbeszéd’s group leader said on Sunday.

Tímea Szabó told an online press briefing that whereas various aspects of electronic administration were altered under the amendments, others fundamentally changed how local council elections are held.

One such is that local council by-elections cannot take place until scheduled municipal elections are held, she said.

Also, in settlements of more than 10,000 inhabitants, parties can only establish a list if their candidates are nominated in at least two-thirds of the individual districts, she added.

Szabó said these amendments were unconstitutional in various ways.

Already, she added, elections cannot be held due to “Fidesz restrictions” in 10 settlements and the rights of voters were being harmed.

Párbeszed to appeal to CCourt over ‘public hearings without audience’

The opposition Parbeszed-Greens party has said that it will turn to the Constitutional Court to appeal for scrapping a government decree that allows for public hearings to be held without an audience.

Párbeszed co-leader Bence Tordai told an online press conference on Monday that the government had used Hungary’s special legal order introduced earlier with regard to the war in Ukraine to overrun relevant regulations “and even the constitution itself” concerning “a matter totally unrelated to the war or its impacts”. He added that the government “had no authorisation” to do so.

The new institution is a “bad joke … legal nonsense”, Tordai said and insisted that local governments led by ruling Fidesz intended to put in practice public hearings that the public could not attend. The new mechanism “obviously violates fundamental democratic rights,” he said, adding that public hearings “are the second strongest instrument of participatory democracy after referenda”.

As we wrote today, leading parties draft laws to prevent Hungarian parties from receiving funding from abroad, details HERE.

New conspiracy theory spreading quickly: Hungary does not exist; it is an American firm

Conspiracy theory Hungary

A weird conspiracy theory is quickly spreading among Hungarians, which was noticed by the Hungarian police as well. Some people believe that Hungary does not exist, but it operates as a company incorporated in the United States.

As the recent covid pandemic has shown, misinformation and conspiracy theories regarding vaccines and mask-wearing can cause serious problems for a country that is not taking seriously the media education and the responsible use of the internet.

Now, a far less dangerous, but fairly incomprehensible conspiracy theory is spreading among Hungarians, which cites an American commercial code as their source of beliefs and self-proclaimed freedom from governmental institutions.

The basis of the UCC conspiracy theory

The beliefs of the grassroots groups are based on a US commercial code originally issued in 1952, the UCC – Uniform Commercial Code, which was made to harmonise the laws of sales and other commercial transactions across and with the United States.

They state that the UCC, the “Bible of International Trade,” applies to all commercial transactions worldwide, so with twisted logic, some conspiracy theorists say that this means that countries, such as Hungary, operate as a company registered in the United States.

It is not quite clear how the conspiracy theory, which shares many elements with the ‘One People’s Public Trust’, reached Hungary. The One People’s Public Trust (OPTT) believed that after the UCC1 filings on 25 December 2012, all world governments and corporations had been foreclosed, therefore people have free will and do whatever they wish to do.

Hungarian conspiracy theorists coupled this with the fact that the Hungarian constitution changed on 1 January 2012, changing the country’s name from “Hungarian Republic” to “Hungary”. According to a group of conspiracy theorists, the “Hungarian State Owners’ Association” (MATT), this meant that “262 members of the National Assembly created Hungary in a coup d’état, with the aim of usurping the institutions of the Hungarian State in order to erode the Hungarian Republic and become the sole ruler of the country through a process of legitimisation”.

It is hard to make an estimate of how many people are involved in this conspiracy theory because they do not form a coherent group, as pseudo law, strawman theory, new age and sovereign citizen elements are mixed with various other theories including anti-vaccine, flat earth, and religious beliefs.

Disobedience during a traffic stop, over legal matters

A common act of these groups is the use of “courtesy notices”, which originates from the previously mentioned OPTT group, citing UCC materials and “laws” in letters sent to public institutions, arguing that they do not fall under any legal system. Fun fact, the founder of the OPTT group, Heather Ann Tucci-Jarraf was sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison for conspiring to launder money.

Unlike some more aggressive sovereign citizen groups in the United States, who are considered by the FBI in the US as “domestic terrorist movements”, in Hungary, usually the groups wouldn’t hurt a fly.

However, recently the Hungarian police had to take notice of their activity, as some of them did not identify themselves when stopped by the police. Rather, they started to show fabricated identity cards and license plates, refusing to cooperate with the authorities. Some groups are selling these identity cards for – you guessed it – real money, making a profit from the poor souls that believe in these tales.

Former US President Donald Trump does not shy away from mixing some fiction to achieve political gains either, he recently talked during the Hungarian CPAC.

Hungarian Top Court: amendment of the Criminal Procedure Act is constitutional

Court Judge Sentence Rights Laws belgian people smuggler

A recent legislative amendment making it possible to raise corruption cases in court is in line with Hungary’s constitution, the Constitutional Court said in a ruling on Thursday.

The amendment proposal was submitted to parliament as part of a package of bills aimed at facilitating an agreement with the European Commission on EU funding for Hungary. Parliament initiated a preliminary constitutional review of the bill with a view to determining whether it was in line with the monopoly on the power to prosecute cemented in the constitution, the court said in its ruling.

The new provision in question amends the criminal proceedings law by establishing a new separate procedure for priority criminal offences relating to the exercise of public authority or the management of public assets.

The amendment gives the court the power to correct a decision by an investigative authority or prosecutor against opening or continuing criminal proceedings in the case of a priority offence concerning the exercise of public authority or the management of public assets.

A motion for such legal remedy may be submitted by any natural or non-natural person, the court said. The amendment also guarantees the petitioner for legal remedy the opportunity to make a motion for prosecution, it added. The court said the new law had introduced a “specific procedural opportunity, hitherto unknown in the Hungarian legal system”.

It concluded that the introduction of “an additional element into the criminal procedure framework which secures direct protection for public assets” did not go against the principle of the monopoly on the power to prosecute. Parliament passed the amendment with 136 votes in favour, 7 against and 14 abstentions on 3 October.

Viktor Orbán Kötcse leader
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Jobbik proposes constitutional amendment and central bank law due to the weak forint

Opposition Jobbik proposes amending the constitution and the law on the central bank so as to protect the forint, deputy party leader Dániel Z Kárpát said on Tuesday.

Jobbik wants preserving the value of the national currency to be enshrined in the basic law as a government task, he told a press conference. Further, the party wants the central bank to be obliged by law to set an exchange rate target for the forint, he said.

The exchange rate of the euro against the forint was around 266 at the time of the change of government in 2010, he said. This year, the exchange rate shifted permanently above 400, which is reflected in prices and inflates Hungarians’ salaries and savings, he added.

Z Kárpát accused ruling Fidesz of purposely weakening the forint in the interest of export-oriented multinational companies.

He said Jobbik would submit the two amendments to parliament this week.

Euroisation euro forint
Read alsoWeak forint: euroisation to come in Hungary

Fidesz group leader submits 11th constitutional amendment proposal

Máté Kocsis, group leader of the ruling Fidesz party, submitted the 11th amendment proposal to Hungary’s Fundamental Law to parliament on Tuesday.

Under the amendment, the municipal elections would be held on the same day as the European parliamentary elections. The amendment would allow holding the municipal elections in either April, May, June or July of 2024 instead of October, when they would usually be held.

In the proposal’s justification, Kovács noted that holding this year’s general election and child protection referendum on the same day saved the budget more than 10 billion forints (EUR 25.1m).

The 11th amendment would also bring back the term used for the county as an administrative district before 1949.

The motion will require a two-thirds majority to pass.

As we wrote last month, Hungarian parliament approves 10th amendment to constitution.

mother is female and the #father is male
Read alsoHungarian lawmakers adopt 9th constitutional amendment: mother is female and the father is male

Hungarian parliament approves 10th amendment to constitution

parliament

The government has been given the power to declare a state of emergency in the case of an armed conflict, war, or humanitarian disaster in a neighbouring country, as parliament adopted the tenth amendment to the constitution on Tuesday.

The legislation was passed with 136 votes for and 36 against.

Under the amended constitution, from November 1, a special legal order can be introduced in the case of a state of war, emergency, or danger. A state of danger can be declared if “acts of war actually take place”. An armed conflict includes all armed clashes including a situation of civil war, while a humanitarian disaster could be any situation arising from a war or armed conflict, or from other reasons such as natural disasters causing a seriously difficult situation for masses of people.

According to the justification of the bill, a special legal order can only be introduced if developments in a neighbouring country seriously impact Hungary in humanitarian or economic terms or if there is a realistic likelihood that it could happen.

Parliament also adopted changes to the law on disaster management and related legislation. Under the changes, the government could suspend some laws or deviate from their stipulations to ensure the security of residents, their assets, as well as the stability of the national economy in a state of danger declared due to war in a neighbouring country.

Under the new legislation, the Constitutional Court, if requested, must review the government’s measures taken in a state of danger.

Banning Russian gas and oil imports would not help Ukraine, says Hungarian ruling parties

Budapest Parliament Hungary Danube

In an emergency the government needs to have the ability to act fast and effectively, that is why Hungary’s constitution needs to be amended, István Simicskó, group leader of the co-ruling Christian Democrats, has said referring to a bill before parliament.

Constitution amendment

In an interview published in daily Magyar Nemzet on Tuesday, Simicskó said a fast-changing world requires state agencies, services, and their coordination to respond to a new situation as fast as possible.

“There may be no days, weeks or months to consider before making a decision,”

he said.

“The government must be given the necessary room for manoeuvre to instruct state agencies and law-enforcement bodies and effectively ensure security in the country,”

he insisted, and mentioned, for example, the war in Ukraine and hundreds of thousands of refugees taking shelter in Hungary.

Banning Russian gas

Concerning the European Union’s sanctions against Russia, Simicskó said before taking such measures decision-makers should “carefully consider whom they would in fact harm”.

Banning Russian gas and oil imports would not help Ukraine, it could not force Russia to stop its military operations, while Europe will have to buy energy at significantly higher prices,

he said. “To put it simply, the EU will punish itself rather than Russia through this ill-advised embargo policy,” he insisted.

As we wrote earlier, a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on last Monday concluded without a decision being passed regarding a planned embargo of Russian oil, the Hungarian foreign minister said, details here.

Constitutional amendment about freedom to take responsible action, says minister

Hungary’s tenth constitutional amendment “is about preparing for extraordinary challenges in extraordinary times and the freedom to take responsible action”, Justice Minister Judit Varga told lawmakers on Tuesday.

The amendment proposal, submitted to parliament last week, would expand the government’s mandate to declare a state of emergency in the cases of war or humanitarian catastrophes in neighbouring countries.

Addressing a debate on the draft amendment, Varga said the belief that physical conflicts were a thing of the past had been proven untrue, as war was now part of the history of 21st century Europe.

Not only has the Russia-Ukraine war in Hungary’s neighbourhood created a humanitarian crisis not seen since the second world war, but it has also changed Europe’s economic outlook,

Varga said. In order to address these challenges and protect against their harmful effects, Hungary must ensure that it can give quick and effective national responses, the minister said. “This is the purpose of the constitutional amendment.”

Varga said this also meant that “in the spirit of responsible foresight” and in the interest of the security of the current and future generations,

Hungary must prepare its legal system to be able to handle hitherto unthinkable situations.

Read all news about the constitutional amendment

Speaker: some voices suggested the new constitution could be written in Brussels

Speaker László Kövér

Hungary is facing the erosion of parliamentary norms as a new generation of parliamentarians seem unwilling to adhere to house rules, Speaker of Parliament László Kövér said in an interview broadcast on public radio on Sunday.

Put to him that the opposition had accused him of being overly “strict” with opposition lawmakers, Kövér said the new generation of MPs entering parliament “do not have a sense of the moral responsibility or the dignity” of the chamber.

Citing the inauguration session of the new parliament as an example, when opposition politicians left the chamber after the oath-taking ceremony, Kövér said:

“These young people are not quite aware of the weighty significance of receiving a mandate to represent people in parliament.”

Recalling that when he entered parliament as an opposition lawmaker in 1990, “we also took a creative approach to house regulations sometimes”, Kövér said the younger generation had “upended not only unwritten rules that more or less everyone respected, but is also unwilling to heed written regulations.”

He insisted the opposition had been “infected” with the thought that, if they won the election, they would only need a simple majority rather than two-thirds to “ditch the Fundamental Law”.

“There were even voices suggesting that the new constitution could be written in Brussels

and then rammed through parliament without legislative procedure, by a referendum of some kind,” he said. Others expected “crowds protesting on the streets” to force a replacement of the constitution, he insisted.

“We face the erosion of centuries-old parliamentary norms.

The question is not whether I am strict or not, but how these people and ideas have made it inside Parliament in the first place,” he said.

Regarding the ruling Fidesz-Christian Democrat (KDNP) alliance’s achievements, which won a fourth consecutive term this year, Kövér said multiple mandates to govern with a two-thirds majority had enabled it to implement “constitutional corrections amounting to a second regime change, using the experiences of the period since 1990.”

“The legislative process that started in 2010 was basically completed in the past cycle,”

he said. “Although it still needs tweaking — such as expanding the definition of the state of emergency in view of the war — that process was a historic feat, and it was an honour to sign those laws as speaker,” Kövér said.

The new Parliament is formed in Hungary
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More power for the Orbán cabinet? Minister submits 10th constitutional amendment proposal

Justice Minister Judit Varga said on Facebook on Tuesday that she had submitted the 10th amendment proposal to the Fundamental Law to parliament.

“The Russian-Ukrainian war has resulted in a humanitarian situation not seen since the Second World War and has also changed the economic outlook in Europe,” she said in an English-language post. “In order to meet and counter these challenges, our country must ensure the capacity to develop an effective and rapid national response,” she added.

The constitutional amendment proposal published on the parliament website on Tuesday expands the government’s mandate to declare a state of emergency to cases of war or humanitarian catastrophes in neighbouring countries.

At present, Hungary’s constitution allows the government to declare a state of emergency, or “state of danger” as it is referred to in the Fundamental Law, “in the event of a natural disaster or industrial accident endangering life and property, or in order to mitigate the consequences thereof”.

The amendment would insert “in the event of armed conflict, war or humanitarian catastrophe in a neigbouring country” into the article.

Gergely Gulyás, the prime minister’s chief of staff, had said at a regular press briefing two weeks earlier that the government would submit the amendment proposal.

 

Could the Hungarian constitution be “annulled with the stroke of a pen”?

Hungary’s constitution can only be changed by observing current regulations, the head of the Constitutional Court said in an interview on public radio on Sunday, in connection with a declaration by the prime ministerial candidate of Hungary’s joint opposition of his intention to overturn Hungary’s constitution should he assume power in the 2022 general election.

Tamás Sulyok on Tuesday published an open letter in response to growing political “perceptions” that Hungary’s fundamental law could be “annulled with the stroke of a pen” and the court dissolved in the event of a change of government after the election next spring.

The contents of the constitution can be up for debate, but the amendments can be implemented only according to current legislation, he said. “The alternative of constitutional order is uncertainty, a coup, and a political situation never before seen in Hungary,” he said.

read also: Opposition to annul the Constitution at the stroke of a pen?

Since the fall of communism in 1990, a political consensus formed among Hungarian political forces to comply with the constitution “in any event”, Sulyok said. “No one has ever doubted that laws can be amended … [but] only using constitutional means,” he said.

In an interview to Kossuth Rádió on Sunday, Sulyok noted that this had been the “first time the head of the Constitutional Court felt the need to publish an open letter to representatives of other branches of power on the matter.”

read also: Opposition launches referendum signature drive in provincial cities

He also stated that constitutional judges cannot be removed from office. The operation of European constitutional courts is based on the principle that their decisions are “binding for everyone” and that constitutional judges cannot be removed from office during their tenure, he said.

The prime ministerial candidate of Hungary’s joint opposition, Péter Márki-Zay, had mooted the idea of holding a referendum on whether to retain the current constitution or to draw up a new one.

márki-zay atv
Read alsoHungarian Opposition PM candidate’s popularity declining? – Survey

Opposition to annul the Constitution at the stroke of a pen?

The chief public prosecutor and all other prosecutors will fulfil their obligations stemming from Hungary’s constitution and other rules of law under all circumstances, the public prosecutor’s office said in reaction to the open letter Tamás Sulyok, the president of Hungary’s Constitutional Court, published on Tuesday.
 
Sulyok asked Hungary’s head of state, the prime minister and speaker of parliament to ensure that the various branches of power should take effective measures and provide appropriate guarantees for the long-term operations of the Constitutional Court, a basic pillar of democracy governed by the rule of law, in line with the constitutional order.
 
The prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday Péter Polt, its head, and the prosecutors’ offices “will protect constitutional order, as well as the citizens’ rights and security” in cooperation with the Constitutional Court and other constitutional organisations.
 
 
Sulyok published the letter in response to
 
growing political “perceptions” that Hungary’s consitution could be “annulled at the stroke of a pen” and the court dissolved in the event of a change of government after next spring’s general election.
 
The views voiced by certain political parties and supported by the intellectual spheres that sympathise with them can be considered “direct and serious attacks on the rule of law and democracy, and are completely unacceptable in a democracy governed by the rule of law”, he wrote.
 
“The Constitutional Court exercises constitutional control over all branches of power but the legislative and executive branches are obliged to ensure its sound functioning together,”
 
Sulyok wrote.
Judit Varga
Read alsoJustice Min: ‘we have the right to refuse to live’ with immigration

International conference marks 10th anniversary of Hungarian constitution

International conference marks 10th anniversary of constitution

Hungary’s fundamental law is “not just a document but a charter that establishes an alliance linking the past and future, spanning the history of our thousand-year-old statehood,” Justice Minister Judit Varga said at an international conference marking the 10th anniversary of Hungary’s constitution on Tuesday.

Addressing the conference Ten Years of Hungary’s Constitution – roots, values, and sovereignty, the minister said the values therein “must not be questioned in our globalist world”.

She said that is why it was important to take stock from time to time “and remind ourselves where we came from, and also set a course for where you want to get to”.

Gulyás: Ruling parties ‘the only heir to freedom’ in Hungary

The stakes in next year’s general election are especially high because Hungary’s ruling parties are “the only heir to freedom” in the country and the only ones with “unquestionable democratic convictions”, the prime minister’s chief of staff said on Tuesday.

European Union leaders from the western part of the bloc have been fortunate enough to be able to speak about the importance of freedom and democracy in democratic countries their whole lives, Gergely Gulyás said at an international conference marking the 10th anniversary of Hungary’s constitution. Hungary’s leaders, on the other hand — including the prime minister, the president and the speaker of parliament — all emphasised the importance of the rule of law while living under a dictatorship, he added.

In the 1980s, Hungary’s current leaders stood up for freedom and democracy while facing physical oppression and risking personal existential ruin, Gulyás said.

“This is an obvious difference in the commitment to democracy between western and central Europe,” he said. “Our commitment to the rule of law is not an empty platitude … but is based on true conviction.”

Gulyás said he was proud of the fundamental law, which responded to “social questions of the modern age”. Hungary was the last country in the region to adopt a post-communist constitution, but the delay also offered an opportunity to “reflect on the legal developments, as well as the social and political changes of the two decades that had passed,” he said. Hungary’s constitution, he added, followed the example of the EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights, and the two documents bore much resemblance.

Concerning the political situation in Hungary, Gulyás said the government’s opponents had “extremely weak democratic convictions and no democratic traditions at all”.

Stipulations in the constitution preventing an excessive public debt “in themselves are a reason for them not to like the government … the public debt having dramatically increased under their rule,”

he added.

The opposition now includes officials that “used to trample on the right to assembly, and apply physical violence against those expressing disagreement within legal bounds”, Gulyás said.

The constitution also stipulates that Hungary has the right to self-determination with regard to its citizens.

“Since the opposition is for migration, that constitutes a barrier to their endeavours,”

Gulyás said.

The minister said that the government also had a conflict with the European Union: “according to the Hungarian constitution, a father is a man and a mother woman, while the European Parliament has passed a decision under which men could give birth.”

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Hungarian footballer Gulácsi speaks up for rainbow families

gulácsi leipzig

Back at the end of 2020, the Hungarian government passed a law in which they defined family roles. They stated that a mother is a woman, and a father is a man. This has stirred up Hungarian public opinion, and a new initiative was born.

The new movement became the “A Család az család”, meaning that family is family [without reservation]. Several people have joined the movement, opposition politicians promoted the idea as well, and it seems that the latest to join the campaign is the Hungarian-born footballer Péter Gulácsi. He is currently playing at RB Leipzig as a goalkeeper. A few days back, on the 23rd of February, he shared his opinion on Facebook and supported “rainbow families”. You can read more about the amendment that was passed at the end of 2020 HERE.

https://www.facebook.com/petergulacsiofficial/photos/a.1608869082533480/3739074489512918/?type=3

The post says the following:

Family is family, this could not be a question.

I have been living abroad for more than 14 years now. In both my private life and in professional sports, I have met various people who had different nationalities, cultures, religion, life philosophy or whatever else. The more time people spend abroad or among different people, the more they will realise that the fact that not everyone is the same. This makes the world more diverse, and the most important things in life are love, acceptance, and tolerance towards others.

Every person has the right to equality, and every child has the right to grow up in a happy family, be it small or large, consist of any genders, colour of skin or type of religion.

I stand by the rainbow families.

Speak up against hate. We should be more accepting and open.

According to Index, this is the first time a selected sportsperson publicly takes a position on such a sensitive current social topic.

Family Család Egyenlőség Equality
Péter Gulácsi and his family
Source: facebook.com/petergulacsiofficial

In Hungary, the post went mostly unnoticed, but in some cases, it sprang an argument. The Hungarian opposition politician Katalin Cseh also shared the footballer’s post and reacted happily about Péter Gulácsi taking a position on such a topic.

https://twitter.com/katka_cseh/status/1364285559695368200?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1364285559695368200%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Findex.hu%2Fsport%2Ffutball%2F2021%2F02%2F24%2Fgulacsi-peter-bejegyzese-a-kulfoldi-sajtoban-is-tema%2F

The international media, however, reacted much more positively. Index reported that his football club’s Facebook page proudly shared the post in their feed, and several German newspapers have written about his commitment, such as the Spiegel and the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Even politicians were involved, as Terry Reintke and Daniel Freund said that what Péter did was a brave decision and that speaking up in this matter is important.

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Featured image: Péter Gulácsi’s Facebook profile

UN: Hungary’s 9th constitutional amendment goes against fundamental human rights

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The UN regularly speaks out in cases when the policy and decisions of the government of a member state go against the fundamental principles of human rights. The UN accused the Hungarian government of violating those rights at least 13 times in the last two years.

The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organisation that aims to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonising the actions of governments.

The United Nations has been highly critical of the Hungarian government’s support of the 9th amendment, which discriminates against sexual minorities in Hungary. This is not the first time that the UN opposes the acts of the Hungarian government, 444.hu writes.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has accused the Hungarian government of infringement 13 times in the last two years. The latest being in December 2020 when Hungarian lawmakers suggested and eventually adopted the 9th constitutional amendment, and made sure that the constitution says that a mother is female and the father is male.

The OHCHR is the leading UN entity on human rights. They represent the world’s commitment to the promotion and protection of the full range of human rights and freedoms set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The mentioned 9th constitutional amendment also ensured that the constitution recognises a family as the marriage between a man and a woman, and that heterosexual married couples are basically the only ones eligible to adopt. Before the amendment was passed, five councillors of the UN had warned Orbán’s government in a joined letter that these planned modifications go against fundamental human rights, as these

  • restrict the definition of family to a relationship between opposite sexes
  • exclude same-intercourse couples from adoption, and
  • claim that the only ‘right way” to raise a child is through “Christian culture” with respect to the child’s sex at birth.

Writers of this letter asked the Prime Minister to withdraw the amendment in order not to commit infringement. However, the government passed the amendment on the same. The government’s reaction to the UN’s letter was outrageous.

The Hungarian government claimed the right to define what a family is, and they said the amendment simply contained the “biological truth” by stating that the mother is female and the father is male, and this is in no way restrictive of the rights of any social group.

UN members find the government’s response “deeply disturbing,” as it is twisting the system of international law. They believe that no one should define what a family is, and this social institution should not be restricted arbitrarily.

“We find it worrying that the Hungarian legal system narrows the institution of family and marriage to heterosexual couples, as it further aggravates the stigma of families that differ from this and gives room for discrimination against same-sex couples.”

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Hungarian lawmakers adopt 9th constitutional amendment: mother is female and the father is male

mother is female and the #father is male

Lawmakers on Tuesday adopted the 9th amendment to Hungary’s constitution, stipulating that a mother is a woman and a father a man.

The government-sponsored amendment passed with 134 votes in favour, 45 against and there were five abstentions.

The fundamental law now protects a child’s right to identify with their gender at birth and an upbringing based on Hungary’s constitutional identity and Christian culture.

The explanatory text states that western ideology is changing in a way that necessitates guaranteeing the child’s right to self-identity in line with their gender at birth in order to protect the child from mental or biological intervention affecting their physical and mental wellbeing.

Raising children according to Hungary’s “constitutional identity and Christian culture” gives new generations the chance to learn about Hungarian identity and to protect its sovereignty as well as the national role of Christianity,

it added.

Meanwhile, the ninth constitutional amendment also stipulates that raising revenue and spending is the business of the state. A related cardinal law affects the rules governing public trusts performing public tasks.

The independence from the government of public foundations that carry out public tasks such as certain education institutions is also constitutionally protected as a result of the amendment.

The establishment, operation and dissolution of foundations is to be governed by a cardinal law requiring a two-thirds majority. This increases legal certainty as a political consensus is needed to amend them, according to the explanatory text.

Also six constitutional types of special legal order which have defined a state of emergency is to be narrowed down to three: a state of war, a state of emergency, and a state of danger.

A two-thirds majority will be required to declare a state of emergency, which may be brought about if attempt is made to overthrow the constitutional order or launch a coup d’etat, or if any illegal act that endangers the security of life or property on a mass scale is made.

This special legal order can be imposed for thirty days and extended by parliament for a further thirty days if the given situation warrants it.

The new text tightens up the definition for a state of danger so that one can only be declared in the event of a “disaster or industrial accident that endangers the safety of life and property”.

This also requires a two-thirds parliamentary majority and can last up to thirty days.

The constitutional amendment will enter into force the day after it is promulgated. The rules related to the special legal order will enter force in July 2023.

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