Ireland will join the case against the repression of the civil society of Hungary – The Irish Times

Ireland must launch your support behind a case in the European Court of Justice (ECJ) looking to penalize Hungary For a new controversial law used to attack civil society organizations.

Prime Minister of the extreme right of Hungary Viktor Orban He has supervised an offensive against civil society groups and independent media during his 14 years of power in the State of Central Europe, while eroding the rights of minorities such as the LGBT+community.

The European Commission, the EU executive arm led by Ursula von der Leyen, has assumed a legal challenge to the EU courts against a new law of “sovereignty” introduced into Hungary. The law established an agency, the Office of Sovereignty Protection, to investigate the organizations that operate in Hungary with the support of funds from abroad, whom the Orban government said that it could be seeking to influence the elections.

The sovereignty office last June opened an investigation into International Transparency Hungary, a branch of the international network based in Budapest that tracks the perception of corruption in public institutions. International transparency previously labeled the most corrupt state in the European Union two consecutive years.

The new law was criticized by Amnesty International and other human rights groups as an additional attempt by the Orban Government of tightening civil society in Hungary.

The Commission presented a legal challenge in the Court of Justice of Europe (ECJ) at the end of last year that sought to prove that sovereignty legislation violates EU’s law, which would open Hungary to important financial fines.

In a relatively rare movement, the government has indicated that Ireland plans to join the case of the TEC in support of the Commission. Tánaiste and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Simon Harris, said there seemed to be a “significant number” of other EU states that plan to formally support the commission in the legal battle.

“Ireland normally does not intervene in such infringement procedures … However, Ireland has constantly raised our concerns about the Hungarian Sovereignty Protection Law and its negative impact on the space of civil society in Hungary,” said Harris.

In a statement, Fine Gael’s leader said the EU Commission had detailed “significant legal concerns” with Hungarian law. “These concerns are also shared by Ireland and reported our decision to intervene on this occasion.”

Around 20 billion euros in EU funds reserved for Hungary are being retained by the commission due to serious concerns about the way in which the Orban government has eroded rights and undermined the rule of law in the country.

Ireland joined a case of commission taken to the Court of Justice of Europe against Hungary two years ago challenging a law that prohibited the representation of homosexuals in the content aimed at persons under 18.