Since the elections in 2010, the current governing party has
systematically undermined the rule of law in Hungary, seriously
disrupting the system of checks and balances. The adoption of the new
constitution without the consent of the opposition and the widely
criticized media regulation were followed by legislative steps weakening
independent institutions (e.g. the Constitutional Court, the judiciary
and the Ombudsman system) and violating human rights (e.g. the right to
fair trial) in mass numbers. These legislative steps were accompanied by
the early removal of leaders of independent institutions and the
“court-packing” of the Constitutional Court. As shown by the
international criticism e.g. on behalf of the European Union and the
Council of Europe, several rules adopted by the governing majority are
not in compliance with democratic values and international standards.
The series of governmental attacks against Hungarian NGOs, which
organizations operate by their nature as checks and critics of the state
power and fight for reinforcing the rule of law and ensuring the
protection of human rights, is another step in the process aimed at
establishing an “illiberal state”.
The Eötvös Károly Institute,
the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee
and Transparency International Hungary prepared the timeline of the
governmenttal attacks in English, which was disseminated, among others,
to MEPs with a view to the European Parliament hearing “Democracy, rule
of law and fundamental rights in Hungary” on 21 October 2014 in
Strasbourg.
The timeline can be downloaded here:
Timeline of governmental attacks against NGOs - long
Timeline of governmental attacks against NGOs - short
