Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee Review of Hungary
This submission from the Open Society Justice Initiative was presented to the 122nd Session of the Human Rights Committee, prior to its review of Hungary’s periodic report on compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
It addresses the impact of actual or pending Hungarian laws that restrict the functioning of civil society organizations (CSOs), in violation of the Covenant’s Article 22 requirements that such restrictions must pursue legitimate aims in a democratic society.
The relevant laws are Act LXXVI of 2017 on transparency of organizations receiving foreign funds, and three proposed laws on the social responsibility of organizations supporting “illegal migration,” on the immigration financing duty, and on immigration restraining orders, made public by the government in January 2018.
An unofficial translation of the proposed legislative package is included in the annex to the submission.
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The Open Society Justice Initiative is returning to the European Court of Human Rights to challenge Hungarian laws that criminalize and tax the work of independent civil society groups.
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The Venice Commission, Europe’s leading body of legal experts on democracy and the rule of law, has called on Hungary to repeal a 25 percent tax on NGOs working on migration issues.