European Parliament says Hungary is no longer a 'full democracy'
Issued on: 15/09/2022 -
Hungary is no longer a "full democracy" and the EU needs to do everything to bring it back into line with European values, the European Parliament said Thursday.
MEPs voted 433 in favour, 123 against, to now describe Hungary -- ruled by populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who maintains close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin -- "a hybrid regime of electoral autocracy" in "serious breach" of EU democratic norms.
The vote was largely symbolic and does not change the course of EU decision making, which requires unanimity of all 27 member states -- including Hungary -- to adopt major issues, such as sanctions on Russia.
With their vote, the EU lawmakers roundly adopted a parliamentary report that said Hungary has been backsliding on democratic and fundamental rights since 2018 through the "deliberate and systematic efforts of the Hungarian government".
The report said lack of action by EU institutions, including the commission which is tasked as "guardian" of the EU treaties enshrining democratic standards, had exacerbated the degradation.
While EU countries are treading a careful line around Hungary because of the need to win its assent on major decisions, diplomats privately are frustrated with Orban's cosy relationship with the Kremlin and his blocking of further sanctions on Moscow.
The commission has likewise been careful to avoid overt criticism, but unease over Hungary's swerve away from rule of law, particularly in failing to curb corruption, is becoming more evident.
Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday, in her State of the European Union address to the European Parliament, that the EU "must fight for our democracies".
She said her EU executive would work to protect the member states "from the external threats they face, and from the vices that corrode them from within," notably calling out corruption although not naming Hungary directly.
She pledged legislative action to step up the fight against corruption, including against "illicit enrichment, trafficking in influence and abuse of power".
Her EU justice commissioner, Didier Reynders, told MEPs in a debate on rule of law breaches in Hungary that the commission "shares a large number of concerns expressed by the European Parliament" regarding Budapest.
The European Parliament in 2018 launched a procedure against the risk Hungary posed to European democratic values.
In theory, the mechanism can lead to Hungary losing its right to vote in the Council of the EU, where member states adopt decisions affecting the bloc.
(AFP)
European Parliament says Hungary no longer a democracy, but ‘electoral autocracy’
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Parliament condemned "the deliberate and systematic efforts of the Hungarian government to undermine European values". Members of the European Parliament voted for a document that recognizes that Hungary can no longer be considered a democracy. This decision was supported by 433 votes. Another 123 MEPs voted against the declaration, and 28 abstained.
The statement said that the lack of decisive action by the EU contributed to the emergence of a "hybrid regime of electoral autocracy" in Hungary. MEPs specify that elections are taking place in this country, but there is no respect for democratic norms and standards.
Read also: Foreign Minister Kuleba criticizes Hungary’s stance regarding Ukraine
“The conclusions of this report are clear and irrevocable: Hungary is not a democracy. It was more important than ever for Parliament to take this position, given the alarming pace of backsliding on the rule of law in Hungary,” said Parliamentary Rapporteur on the situation in Hungary, Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield.
MEPs call on the European Commission to make full use of all the tools at its disposal and, in particular, the regulation of funding for Hungary.
Read also: Ukraine demands that Hungary urgently correct anti-Ukrainian content in school textbook
Earlier media reported that the European Commission intends to recommend cutting the funding to the Hungarian government amid fears of large-scale corruption in the country.
Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
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