Freedom Fight in Hungary Continues: Forcing Out University Against EU Laws
On October 5, 2020, the European Court of Justice ruled that Hungary’s law on foreign universities operating within Hungary breaches EU law. The 2017 law is designed to specifically target the Central European University (CEU), founded by the Hungarian-American philanthropist and investor George Soros. The law requires foreign universities to be accredited in Hungary and also have a campus in the country of origin. CEU offers diplomas accepted both in Hungary and the United States but has a campus only in Budapest and not in the US, where it is accredited. CEU has now moved most of its courses to Vienna, Austria, due to the legal challenges. The law is seen as a direct attack from the country’s nationalist government and Prime Minister Viktor Orban on George Soros, who does not comply with Hungary’s anti-migration views.
Recent years have been characterized by Orban’s government largely clamping down on academic freedom, independent media, and human rights. In spring 2020, Hungary’s parliament passed a law that ended legal recognition of transgender and intersex individuals and made it impossible to legally change one’s gender. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, the Hungarian government has tried to wield unlimited emergency powers, leaving the opposition in fear of the government’s authoritarian rule. The use of emergency powers has now ended, but Hungary’s authoritarian tendencies are still alarming. In May 2017, Soros’ Open Society Foundations had to move from Hungary to Germany, following the decision by the Hungarian government to tighten its laws against foreign-funded NGOs.
It has been debated whether Hungary’s adherence to EU laws should be linked to receiving EU funds. It would greatly benefit Hungary’s economy, as it is one of the net beneficiary member states of EU funds, but Hungary is still fighting. It has faced threats from the EU but so far has been able to use voting rules with Poland, another democracy in crisis, to defend each other in EU institutions and thus dodge significant consequences. Hungary is planning to establish a new institute to assess how the rule of law is upheld in the union and prevent supposedly unfair treatment.
The EU is facing major challenges already due to the pandemic, the $2.1 trillion coronavirus rescue package, and ongoing Brexit negotiations. The emergence of illiberal leaders manipulating weak democracies is a concerning trend that should be taken seriously. The world is watching as the EU considers whether it ought to pursue more stringent measures to maintain free societies within the union, and whether it is ready to take real action beyond mere threats when member states do not commit to the rule of law and breach human rights.