Victor Orbán gains more power during the corona crisis

On March 11, Hungary announced a formal state of emergency in the country, giving the government the power to govern by decree without consulting Parliament for 15 days. Today, Parliament chose to abolish the 15-day limit and give the government the opportunity to govern by decree indefinitely as long as there is an emergency.

As long as the emergency prevails, the government has the right to disregard existing legislation and no elections will be held.

At the same time, the opportunity was introduced to punish individuals, both private individuals and journalists, who publish false news about the corona virus with up to five years in prison. Even those who violate quarantine rules can be sentenced to prison.

The new legislation has drawn criticism from the Hungarian opposition as well as a number of human rights groups and international organizations, including the Council of Europe, the UN and the OSCE, writes Politico Europe.

Several Swedish EU parliamentarians have also spoken out.

“When the rest of Europe comes together to get us through this crisis together ... populist Viktor Orbán chooses to take this opportunity and call for even more power. It is a splendid scandal, ”writes Swedish Abir Al-Sahlani (C) in a statement.

- The proposal presented is completely crazy. Covid-19 should never be used to impose dictatorship, says colleague Evin Incir (S).

Didier Reynders, Commissioner responsible for the rule of law in the Member States, tweeted on Monday that the European Commission is following different countries' actions in relation to human rights.

"This applies in particular to the laws that were voted in Hungary today on emergency and new penalties for disseminating information"

The Budapest government defends the measures, stressing that Parliament still has the power to decide when the emergency should end. Justice Minister Judit Varga accuses critics of responding "hysterically".

“The measures taken by Hungary are necessary, proportionate and limited to combating the pandemic. Those who express unfounded concern about democracy and the rule of law in Hungary are fighting an enemy of pretense, ”writes Varga in a debate post on the Politico Europe news site.

Hungary, with a population of about 10 million, has so far been mildly affected by the virus outbreak, with more than 400 cases of infection and 15 deaths.