More than 320 NGOs write to EC about draft legislation threatening to silence independent voices in Hungary

More than 320 NGOs from across the continent have called on the European Commission to take immediate action against a draft law that they say threatens independent media, NGOs, and the rule of law, according to a letter published by the Civil Liberties Union for Europe (Liberties).

In the letter sent on Thursday, the signatories urge Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, to initiate interim measures through the Court of Justice of the European Union to prevent the implementation of the draft law entitled “On the transparency of public life.”

“If adopted, the bill would provide the Hungarian government with the tools to silence the remaining independent voices in the country ahead of the 2026 parliamentary elections,” the letter reads. According to the organization, the bill violates EU law on several points, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights, and the rights to freedom of expression and the protection of privacy.

In their joint statement, they call on Ursula von der Leyen and Michael McGrath, the Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection, to immediately request the European Court of Justice to adopt interim measures in the currently ongoing infringement proceedings which were initiated due to the law on the “protection of national sovereignty.” They also call on them to publicly urge the Hungarian government to withdraw the draft law. If this does not happen, they suggest that infringement proceedings be initiated.

On Tuesday, the Hungarian Parliament held a general debate on the draft law, which is expected to be adopted during the week of 10 June and which is likely to affect the general public as well as a wide range of civil society organizations in Hungary, potentially making their funding very difficult and effectively stigmatizing them. Several editorial offices that are likely to be affected by it, as well as editorial offices from twenty-two other countries have protested it, and the European Parliament also held an urgently scheduled debate on it on Wednesday. However, Fidesz representatives claim that those who are protesting the bill have misunderstood the whole thing and that no one who is not guilty of serving foreign interests has anything to fear. We previously explained why the bill, which is supposedly intended to increase transparency, is in fact a threat to democratic public discourse in Hungary.