“The Government regards the infringement proceedings with relation to Hungary’s legislation on foreign-funded non-governmental organisations as unfounded, and it stated this on Tuesday in its letter of response to the European Commission”, The Ministry of Justice’s Parliamentary State Secretary Pál Völner said at a press conference in Budapest on 5 December 2017.
According to the Hungarian regulations, non-governmental organisations that receive more than 7.2 million forints (EUR 23 000) in foreign funding in a given year must report the fact, in addition to which the identity and registered address of individuals who provide funding equivalent to 500 thousand forints or more must also be reported.
The State Secretary underlined the fact that the EC’s claim is unfounded, and that the Hungarian legislation does not contravene either EU or international law.
Mr. Völner pointed out that the EC has set Hungary’s shorter than usual deadlines to respond with relation to the infringement proceedings concerning the NGO Act, the migrant quota and the CEU.
“The President of the Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker and the body’s Vice President Frans Timmermans have met with businessman George Soros in Brussels. Furthermore, the Vice President informed András Fekete-Győr, one of the leaders of ‘a small party that may be regarded as anarchist’, Momentum, with relation to the proceedings, and this contravenes EU law in view of the fact that the EC negotiates with the governments of member states, and not with other participants of the domestic political arena”, he added.
In reply to a question, the State Secretary said claims that according to plan the foreign-funded press will be classified as agents in line with the Russian model were untrue and that the Hungarian Government was not following a Russian model, but a Western model.
“The Hungarian Government has not transgressed the existing frameworks, but certain EU officials have overstepped their available powers, and the influence that a billionaire speculator is practicing on the EU is dangerous”, the State Secretary said refereeing to George Soros.