13 European countries issue joint statement over Hungary's Coronavirus Act
The statement was published on the website of the Dutch government, and although Hungary is not mentioned by name, it is not difficult to figure out that the countries felt the need to speak up in relation to the new legislation the two thirds majority of the ruling coalition passed on Monday.
Although European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen did not single out or even mentioned Hungary, a statement she released on Tuesday was clearly aimed at Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's 'carte blanche' won in Parliament on Monday, by which his government can rule by decree, essentially without checks and balances for as long as the Fidesz-KDNP coalition wants.
Both civil rights groups in Hungary and international institutions expressed deep concerns about the bill, including officials from the Council of Europe, United Nations, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the Hungarian Helsinki Committee. The legislation also drew criticism from members of the European Parliament.
The joint statement is as follows:
In this unprecedented situation, it is legitimate that Member States adopt extraordinary measures to protect their citizens and overcome the crisis. We are however deeply concerned about the risk of violations of the principles of rule of law, democracy and fundamental rights arising from the adoption of certain emergency measures.
Emergency measures should be limited to what is strictly necessary, should be proportionate and temporary in nature, subject to regular scrutiny, and respect the aforementioned principles and international law obligations. They should not restrict the freedom of expression or the freedom of the press.
We need to jointly overcome this crisis and to jointly uphold our European principles and values on this path. We therefore support the European Commission initiative to monitor the emergency measures and their application to ensure the fundamental values of the Union are upheld, and invite the General Affairs Council to take up the matter when appropriate.
