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The European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) sent a five-member delegation to Budapest for three days to assess the “state of EU values” in Hungary.
During a Wednesday press conference following meetings with local authorities, civil society, the media, the judiciary, the government, and members of the Hungarian Parliament, Dutch Green MEP Tineke Strik stated that the Budapest Pride could become the “first victim” of Hungarian regulations restricting the right to assembly. She added that
the delegation is calling for urgent measures to allow the Court of Justice of the European Union to issue interim measures that would enable the Pride march to take place lawfully and peacefully.
Social Democrat (S&D) MEP Krzysztof Śmiszek highlighted concerns about equality before the law, especially for the LGBTQ+ community. He said members fear the new assembly law will further restrict their rights, noting past issues like the ban on legal gender recognition. Strik said that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s plans to restrict civil society activities—especially the right to peaceful assembly—pose a threat to freedom of expression and the core values of the European Union.
However, Tamás Lánczi, head of the Sovereignty Protection Office, stated after his meeting with the delegation from LIBE that
a politically motivated process is underway against the sovereignty protection law and Hungary.
As the Sovereignty Protection Office’s Facebook post stated:
Before the meeting, the head of the delegation refused to allow video or audio recordings, thereby preventing Hungarian and European citizens from receiving an accurate and reliable account of the discussions.
“During the meeting, it became clear why the public was excluded: a politically motivated procedure is underway against the sovereignty protection law and Hungary,” the statement said. The delegation members repeated accusations made by political pressure groups funded by USAID and the Brussels committee, and refused to provide any substantive answers to the questions or points raised by the head of the Office.
The Office described the actions of the supposedly fact-finding committee as hypocritical, pointing out that the European Commission has already launched infringement proceedings against Hungary — a move supported by the European Parliament as well. Furthermore, the statement claimed that
the members of the committee clearly display partisan political bias, for example, one member spoke at a party event in Budapest just a few months ago, yet now poses as an impartial fact-finder.
“This visit confirms that a coordinated political intervention is being carried out against Hungary. The Sovereignty Protection Office will not give in to political pressure and will continue its work uncovering foreign interference,” the statement concluded.
Via MTI; Featured picture: MTI/Kocsis Zoltán