Venice Commission examines Hungary’s sovereignty protection law
The Venice Commission said on Tuesday that it had examined Hungary’s law on sovereignty protection, focusing on provisions related to foreign election financing and the establishment and activities of the sovereignty protection office.
The advisory body to the Council of Europe said in a statement that the legal basis of the office as the protector of constitutional identity was questionable.
It said it was usual for state institutions to guarantee fundamental rights through the courts and law enforcement agencies, and the sovereignty protection office must not interfere with the constitutional powers of the courts and those agencies, adding that there was no evident need for such an office.
Moreover, guarantees under the law for the office’s independence were insufficient, it said, noting that the government was responsible for appointing and dismissing its top officials. Further, the office’s powers were “extremely broad and vaguely defined”, with the risk that the office could interfere in the lives of private individuals.
The body argued that the arrangements may also stifle free and democratic debate in Hungary.
It also referred to restrictions on the foreign financing of political parties, arguing that whereas restrictive measures were in line with international standards in principle,
the law’s provisions extended beyond electoral campaigns to cover political activity in a broader sense and campaigns for social change. “The reason and need for such a broad approach have not been substantiated by the Hungarian authorities,” the body said.
The part of the law expanding a ban on accepting foreign financing was compatible with international standards, it said, only on condition that the provisions were amended to provide for certain exceptions of the new restrictions and for more precise definitions.
The body recommended repealing the parts of the law concerning the establishment of the sovereignty protection office and, among other things, recommended a more nuanced definition of the concept of “foreign support”, as well as a more precise definition of the prohibited activities and their foreign financing in the new provisions of the election law.
read also:
- CoE calls on Hungary to improve assistance to human trafficking victims
- Hungary to host CoE’s Cultural Routes Annual Advisory Forum, details HERE
please make a donation here
Hot news
Steven Bartlett at SIBF 2024: From business success to fatherhood dreams
Ukrainian county inhabited by Hungarians, Transcarpathia, under Russian attack!
Hungary’s universities break through in 2024 Shanghai Rankings—Which ones are top 200?
Slovak PM Fico may sacrifice his good relations with PM Orbán to keep his governing coalition
Orbán cabinet: Hungary can receive 6.61 billion euros from the EU in 2025
Experience the magic of Zagreb’s Christmas market with a special train from Hungary!
7 Comments
None of Venice Commission’s business. It is time to stop interference and leave the EU.
Yeah, yeah, anything to protect a Western country from being turned into a nondescript, post-national, post-democratic globalist-socialist statelet is deemed “questionable”… – by the unaccountable globalist-socialist apparatchiks. Go fry an egg, fam!
@mariavontheresa – you know you are proposing economic suicide for Hungary, right?
https://economy-finance.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2023-05/HU_SWD_2023_617_en.pdf
Of course, you can decide not to read and just have theories and opinions devoid of facts and data.
TLDR:
Hungary is an open economy, highly integrated into the single market and relying heavily on EU sources (27.3% of value added is sourced from the rest of the EU compared to an EU average of 19.7%).
Also – most of those manufacturing plants our Politicians love to bang on about all export, barrier free, to the EU. So they will find a place elsewhere, if Hungary decides to exit the EU. Not forgetting we are an EU TAKER, not a Contributor, so who will send us the free money to pay teachers, doctors, our health system, infrastructure, etc.?
Again and in summary, building a great big tariff, regulatory and ideological wall between our economically not so significant country and its biggest market is … Economic suicide.
It may be difficult for a while. I, unlike you an avid student of history, believe in the people of Hungary. It will take a while to disengage western industries, especially in the tech sector.
There are many things in favor of Hungary, educated work force, sufficient food supply, thriving tourism, and friendly relations with China and Russia.
Ethnic Hungarians friendly towards Hungary surround the country from Romania to Slovakia.
The last thing the EU wants is China’s presence in Central Europe.
I played the scenario on my “chess board” many times, it always comes to a draw. Hungary must declare neutrality.
Fazit: The “western industries” are mainly German automotives … Who WILL leave in droves if there is no unfettered access to the EU common market. Our big competitors are Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and to a lesser extent due to the distance, Romania. They will be predators in a “Leave” scenario – not “Friends”. Ask any Brit how Brexit is going for them…
Older article but still indicative how, again, I believe you are proposing not “just” economic self harm but suicide:
https://centraleuropeantimes.com/2021/06/will-hungarys-automotive-industry-adjust-to-future-challenges/
The Asian manufacturers are suppliers to industry in Hungary and the EU. The reason they are in Hungary is because Hungary is cost-effective, offers great grants and incentives, can arrange Politicians on speed dial (if you’re big enough) and, most importantly, market access to the EU common market (not exposed to tariffs, restrictions for finished product or components).
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10308-020-00592-1
The dig on “history” – let’s both include more historical facts and data. I am up for it!
Protection of sovereignty equals less EU power over the internal affairs of the country.
EUP is now debating that 15-year-old cars should not be fixed because in EU countries some people dispose of their vehicle in unaccepted fashion. Why is this happening. Did EU put on extra cost of disposing cars?
If the Marxists and climate Nazis are returned with Von der Leyen, the next mandate will specify how many times a Hungarian person can take a breath, how many glasses of water can a person drink. That is worse dictatorship than any endured in history.
Russia has a free rein to interfere in the EUP elections according to the Venice Commission. According to the Venice Commission, foreign interference just opens dialogue. So Russia, China and North Korea the EU Parliamentary election needs your interference to open dialogue.