by Ökotárs Foundation
As we reported in our last roundup, on 13 May, a controversial draft law titled “On the Transparency of Public Life” was introduced in the Hungarian parliament. The proposal threatened to dismantle critical civil society, independent media, and even private businesses. Disguised as a transparency and sovereignty measure, the bill would allow the government to blacklist organisations receiving foreign funding, including from the EU, if their activities are deemed to oppose government-defined constitutional values. Organisations on the blacklist would face crippling restrictions: blocked access to foreign income, major obstacles to receiving domestic funding, and potential dissolution. The proposal is built on Hungary’s existing “sovereignty protection” framework, which represents a dangerous escalation in democratic backsliding and is subject to the proceedings brought by the European Commission to the European Court of Justice for the infringement of EU law.
The bill was widely condemned as yet another major attack on civil society and independent media. It sparked mass protests, opposition from the Hungarian Bar Association, the Hungarian Association of Judges, and the Hungarian Trade Union Confederation, while the Hungarian Advertising Association warned against its effect on media space, and the EU also criticised the bill. It was not even particularly popular within Fidesz, the ruling party to which the MP who introduced the bill belongs. Despite this, parliamentary debate continued until 4 June, when a surprise announcement postponed the vote until after the summer. Later, a government official suggested the bill may be dropped altogether.
In parallel, legal and procedural uncertainty surrounded the 30th annual Pride march in Budapest. A planned LGBTIQ+ rights demonstration on 1 June was banned by using the speedy amendment of the assembly law, allegedly to protect children’s right to healthy development, but then reinstated by the High Court. The amendments also allow for the use of real-time facial recognition to identify protesters, in glaring violation of the prohibition in the EU Artificial Intelligence Act.
The government also banned the 28 June Pride march — a decision that was blocked by the court on 11 June, but ultimately upheld by a final court ruling on 20 June. In response, Budapest’s mayor pledged to host Pride as a city event without needing police approval, leading to threats of legal consequences from the Minister of Justice. Despite this, Pride 2025 took place on 28 June, with strong international support, including from 70+ MEPs and multiple embassies, with estimates of up to 200,000 people attending and evolving it into an anti-government demonstration. It is now considered Hungary’s largest Pride event ever.