Bence Rétvári, Minister of State for Public Administration and Justice announced the European Commission requests information on the church legislation from the Hungarian authorities, and this information request was not initiated by the Commission but by a group of Hungarian opposition Members of Parliament.

It is not the European Commission that raised concerns regarding the church legislation but three Hungarian socialist European Parliament Members, Csaba Tabajdi, Kinga Göncz and Zita Gurmai, together with a few other Members of Parliament who sent a written request to the Commission. It was in the wake of this request that the European Commission announced it would contact the Hungarian authorities in connection with the legislation.

Hungarian socialist EP members claimed that the law was contrary to a Directive prohibiting discrimination in employment passed more than ten years ago; in other words, the socialists only succeeded in finding a directive, the type of legal rule in the EU that identifies the broadest framework, in opposition to the Hungarian legislation.

It is remarkable that while the socialists refused to attend the parliamentary debate on the Constitution, in the European Parliament they actively seek to find fault with the laws of Hungary week after week.

The Minister of State stressed the Venice Commission viewed the Hungarian law in a positive light in a number of respects. The Commission established that the church legislation serves, on the whole, as a liberal and generous framework for the freedom of religion; the right to the freedom of religion has not in any way been curtailed in Hungary and is available to all. In areas where the EU has decision-making powers, the Hungarian legal rule in question is fully harmonised with EU law, while in all other areas, the Member States are free to decide on the regulatory framework they favour.

The Hungarian People’s Party Group of the European Parliament, too, has issued a statement on the case today; in their opinion, the EP delegation of the socialists levelled accusations against Hungary repeatedly before the European Commission, this time, in connection with the country’s church legislation. László Surján, Vice-President of the European Parliament responsible for church relations remarked on the case, „It is regrettable that, instead of dealing with Hungary’s real problems, the socialists provoke an anti-church atmosphere and attempt to turn the European Commission against the Hungarian Government once again”.

The measure adopted by the European Commission in the case is part of an automatic mechanism. The Commission is obliged ex officio to ascertain whether a legal rule is in harmony with EU law and to make a statement if requested by Members of the European Parliament.

Parliament passed the new church legislation on 30 December 2011. The new law reinforced freedom of religion in Hungary. The overly generous conditions of the establishment of churches in the past twenty years gave rise to the mass abuse of this fundamental right which manifested itself in both the unlawful utilisation of state aid reserved for churches and in the registration of organisations not actually engaged in religious activities as churches. The new legislation put an end to this situation and tied the state recognition of churches to the decision of Parliament. Consequently, according to the rules of one of Europe’s most generous church laws, the State currently recognises 32 churches which cover more than 98 per cent of believers in Hungary. You may find further details on the church law at en/ministry-of-public-administration-and-justice/news/thirty-two-churches-recognised-by-parliament-to-date

(Ministry of Public Administration and Justice)