02/07/2024 – 21:50
European Commission notifies Budapest for violating the bloc's democratic values. New legislation aims to restrict financing of opposition electoral campaigns ahead of crucial elections in the country and the EU. European Union (EU) authorities reported this Wednesday (07/02) that they have initiated formal proceedings against Hungary, after the government of ultra-right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban to approve the so-called Defense of National Sovereignty Law.
The government in Budapest says the new law aims to restrict external influence in the country. Critics, however, point out that the legislation was created with the aim of silencing the opposition and blocking the financing of political campaigns, months before Hungarian municipal elections and a crucial vote for the European Parliament in June.
A spokeswoman for the European Commission says that the strict monitoring, enforcement and penalization regime provided for in the law could “seriously harm democracy in Hungary”. The legislation, approved last year, criminalizes external financing of electoral campaigns and creates the Department of Sovereignty Protection, an agency with broad investigative powers.
The EU Executive sent a formal notification to Hungary, reporting violations of the European bloc's regulations. This measure, called the infringement procedure, gives Budapest two months to respond to Brussels.
If the response is not considered satisfactory by the Commission, the matter may be decided by the EU Court of Justice. Before that, however, there may be new notifications and other deadlines to be imposed on Budapest.
Collision course with Brussels
The case is likely to further inflame tensions between the EU and Hungary, after Brussels suspended the transfer of 22 billion euros (R$117 billion) in financing to Budapest due to concerns about preserving the rule of law in the country.
Hungary often repeats allegations that the EU and other countries, especially the United States, support Hungarian opposition groups with the aim of influencing voters. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in December that the new law is “inconsistent with our shared values of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law.”
Orban's party, Fidesz, claims that the law will prevent “electoral tricks”, after accusing opposition parties of receiving funds from a US-based NGO ahead of the 2022 elections.
A spokesperson for the Hungarian government stated in a post on the social network X that Brussels decided to “attack” the Defense of Sovereignty Law because it was “created to restrict foreign influence” in the country. He states that the strengthening of the legislation was approved by 98% of the population in a national consultation. However, only 1.5 million of the 8 million voters participated in the vote.
Since 2015, the Hungarian government has been using these questionnaires, supported by massive advertising campaigns, to give legitimacy to its policies and oppose the European Union.
rc (AFP, DPA)
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