Introduction
ORBÁN WITHDRAWS FROM ICC DURING NETANYAHU’S VISIT TO HUNGARY
On 3rd April 2025, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced Hungary’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC). This announcement was made shortly after the arrival of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a state visit to Hungary. The ICC has issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu over alleged war crimes in Gaza, which obliges ICC member states, including Hungary, to detain him. Orbán, however, refused to comply and initiated Hungary’s withdrawal from the Court, accusing it of abandoning impartiality and becoming a political instrument. As the withdrawal will only take effect one year after the ICC is formally notified of the decision, an ICC spokesperson reiterated that “Hungary remains under an obligation to cooperate” with the court.
EU MEMBER STATES CIRCUMVENT ORBÁN’S BLOCKAGE OF EU AID FOR UKRAINE
At the EU summit on 6th March 2025, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán blocked a joint EU effort to further support Ukraine. The summit had been convened following Donald Trump’s announcement that the US would cease support for Ukraine. Due to Hungary’s persistent obstruction of European Council statements on Ukraine, the Council adopted a new strategy: issuing a separate declaration without requiring unanimity. Traditionally, all 27 EU members must agree on such statements, but this latest move signals a shift, reducing Hungary’s ability to block EU policy.
HUNGARY LABELLED MOST CORRUPT COUNTRY IN EUROPE AS INVESTIGATION TARGETS TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL
Transparency International has once again (for the third time in a row) ranked Hungary as the most corrupt country in Europe, according to its latest Corruption Perception Index, giving it a score of 41 out of 100—a 14-point decline since 2012. Pro-government media and the government’s international spokesperson dismissed the ranking as “hypocritical,” accusing it of serving “globalist interests” and calling it a “joke.” These claims align with Orbán’s broader anti-Western rhetoric, which seeks to discredit NGOs and portray them as foreign agents. The Sovereignty Protection Office, an agency established to investigate and suppress critical media and NGOs, has labelled the index a “classic disinformation tool.” In June 2024, it launched an investigation into Transparency International, aiming to silence the organisation (see more under the heading Association).
Association
HUNGARY AMENDS DUAL NATIONALITY LAW, PERMITTING EXPULSION OF THOSE DEEMED AS THREATS
On 9th March 2025, Máté Kocsis, parliamentary group leader of Fidesz, Hungary’s ruling party, announced a proposed constitutional amendment in a Facebook post. The amendment allows for the expulsion of dual nationals deemed threats to national sovereignty, public order, territorial integrity, or national security. In the post Kocsis seemed to directly threaten that the law could be used against government-critical NGOs and journalists viewed by the ruling party as representing foreign interests.
He wrote: “In recent years, foreign powers and speculators have been interfering in our country’s internal affairs with increasing brazenness and on an ever-wider scale, even in our electoral processes. At the same time, they’ve been actively working to discredit Hungary across Europe.
They’ve done this through fake civil organisations, bought-off politicians, and media outlets that claim to be independent. The funders behind these efforts are trying to push their own financial, economic, ideological, and political agendas through these influence campaigns.
To push back against this—following the American model—we’re introducing several new regulations, one of which will even be enshrined in the Constitution.
Hungary’s sovereignty is not a game!”
On 14th April 2025, Hungary's parliament passed a constitutional amendment allowing the suspension of citizenship for dual nationals deemed threats to national security. Critics, including legal scholars, have called the measure unprecedented and incompatible with fundamental rights.
FOREIGN FUNDING INVESTIGATIONS USED TO SILENCE CRITICAL VOICES
On 7th February 2025, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán declared his intention to criminalise the acceptance of US financial support. He also demanded full transparency regarding the allocation of such funds and threatened legal action against organisations receiving them, as he suspects them of ‘influencing Hungarian politics’. Shortly after, on 21st February 2025, Hungary’s Sovereignty Protection Office, which is widely viewed as a government propaganda tool, launched an investigation into the activities of USAID, the United States Agency for International Development.
The authorities claim that USAID serves the interests of the US Democratic Party and is part of a broader strategy to exert political influence in Hungary. These allegations are linked to long-standing conspiracies involving George Soros and international organisations associated with him. Orbán has previously described USAID as a “dark conspiracy” and thanked former US President Donald Trump for halting its funding.
ORBAN CALLS CRITICS ‘STINK BUGS’ AND ANNOUNCES ‘EASTER CLEANING’ ON NATIONAL DAY
During a speech on 15th March 2025, Hungary’s national holiday commemorating the 1848 revolution against Habsburg rule, Prime Minister Orbán declared an upcoming “Easter cleaning”, stating: “the stink bugs have overwintered [...] They've been here too long, they've been through too much, they've got money from too many places.” It was clear that he was referring to journalists, lawyers, politicians, non-governmental organisations and activists who oppose his government, as he went on to say: “We will dismantle the financial machine that has bought politicians, judges, journalists, pseudo-NGOs and political activists with corrupt dollars. We will eliminate the entire shadow army.” Orban claimed that the groups he named bore a “scarlet letter” and that a “special place in hell” awaited them.
Hungarian news outlet Telex compared this dehumanising rhetoric to historical examples, including Nazi propaganda against Jews, the language used during the Rwandan Genocide, and current Russian narratives targeting Ukrainians. Such hostile speech signals further restrictions targeting Hungary’s shrinking civic space.
Assembly
NEWLY ADOPTED CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT RESTRICTS FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY
On 18th March 2025, Hungary introduced new measures under its ‘child protection’ legislation, amending the law on assembly to prohibit the organisation of or attendance at events that breach the country’s child protection laws. Hungary’s ‘child protection’ laws ban the display or promotion of homosexuality to minors under 18, punishable by a fine of 200,000 forints (around 500 EUR).
The new legislation also permits the use of facial recognition technology to identify attendees at assemblies. Although recognising all participants in large demonstrations is practically impossible, the surveillance primarily serves as a deterrent. Besides demonstrations, the law also permits its use for a whole range of other types of offences, like traffic violations. In effect, this law reflects the government’s stated intention to prohibit the annual LGBTQI+ Pride festival, which Prime Minister Orbán had signalled on 28th February.
The bill passed in parliament with 136 votes in favour—from Fidesz and the Christian Democrats—and 27 votes against from the opposition. In protest, Momentum party MPs lit rainbow-coloured smoke candles inside the chamber. As a result, they were collectively fined 80 million forints (approximately 20,000 EUR) and suspended from parliament for several days.
On 14th April 2025, parliament also passed a constitutional amendment allowing the government to ban public events organised by the LGBTQI+ community. In addition, the amendment includes a clause stating that the Constitution only recognises two genders, male and female, further restricting the rights of transgender people.
Opposition leader Dávid Bedő of Momentum, along with five party members, attempted to disrupt the vote using air horns. They were suspended from parliament and stripped of immunity. Bedő was fined 24 million forints (almost 60,000 EUR) and stated that his colleagues received similar fines.
According to Máté Szabó, Director of Programmes at the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union (HCLU), even with constitutional amendments, fundamental human rights such as freedom of assembly and freedom of expression may not be restricted without specific legal justification. Szabó argued that the amendment does not provide a sufficient basis to ban Pride, noting that any restriction of fundamental rights must be necessary, proportionate, and serve a legitimate aim.
PROTESTS ERUPT IN RESPONSE TO PRIDE BAN
On 18th March 2025, thousands of protesters gathered in Budapest to oppose the government’s moves to restrict freedom of assembly and ban the annual Pride march. Demonstrators assembled outside parliament and later blocked Margaret Bridge in defiance of police orders. On 25th March, 2,000 people blocked Erzsébet Bridge. Despite a police ban and an order to disperse, demonstrators went ahead with the blockade. Additional protests took place on 1st April and 8th April, with bridges in central Budapest blocked again.
On 12th April, over 10,000 people joined a protest in Budapest organised by the satirical Two-Tailed Dog Party (MKKP). Participants wore grey clothes and waved grey flags to mock the government’s homogenising agenda, intending to “show what sameness looks like,” according to one organiser.
On 14th April, just before parliament passed the constitutional amendment banning Pride, opposition politicians and protesters chained themselves together outside the parliament’s parking entrance to block MPs from entering. Police physically removed them.
Despite the legislation, Pride organisers have announced that the march will go ahead in June. Several EU lawmakers have already pledged to attend.
In response to the growing protests, Prime Minister Orbán announced plans for a new law prohibiting traffic blockades during demonstrations, arguing that the rights to assembly and expression “cannot override the rights of commuters”.
PROTESTS FOR JUDICIAL INDEPENDENCE
On 22nd February 2025, thousands of Hungarian judges and supporters marched in Budapest demanding judicial independence, freedom of expression for judges, and fair pay. The protest was in response to a government deal with three main judicial bodies tying salary increases to sweeping reforms necessary to unlock frozen EU funds. Critics claim the National Judicial Council was coerced into the agreement. One protester, judge Rita Kiszely, stated: “Our first cause is to protect judicial independence. We’re not saying it has been eliminated, but there are signs it is under threat.”
Zsolt Bayer, far-right columnist and co-founder of the ruling Fidesz party, immediately suggested that the judges who took part in the protest should be registered in a database so that in the event of future unfavourable court rulings, any pro-government actor could file a motion of bias and demand a judge who did not take part in the protest.
On 23rd March, hundreds gathered outside the Budapest Metropolitan Court at a protest organised by the Res Iudicata judges’ association. They responded to Orbán’s 15th March speech, in which he labelled critical voices, including judges, as “bugs” and accused them of being “bought with corrupt dollars”. The demonstrators wanted to call attention to deteriorating public trust in the judiciary, arguing that judicial independence is essential to the rule of law. Anna Madarasi, a Res Iudicata board member, said: “If we don’t stand up for ourselves and our independence, how can people trust us to protect their rights?”
PROTESTERS DEMAND RELEASE OF DOCTORS DETAINED FOR PERFORMING GENDER REASSIGNMENT SURGERIES
On 22nd March 2025, around 70 protesters gathered outside the Kecskemét Police Station demanding the release of two doctors from Kiskunhalas arrested in January for performing gender confirmation surgeries on paying customers outside their regular working hours. According to 444.hu, after the Hungarian government banned transgender legal recognition through amendments passed in 2023, the two doctors arrested were almost the only ones in the country who carried out gender reassignment surgery and provided access to essential hormone treatments.
The event’s organisers—Dr Flóris Balta, Kata Gömbicz, and Nikolett Bernadett Hollósy—described the doctors as heroes and insisted the operations were legal under Hungarian law. The arrests have disrupted care for their patients, who now lack access to hormone therapy and must seek treatment abroad. Fear of legal repercussions is also deterring other doctors from performing similar procedures, leaving patients without options.
OPPOSITION PARTY MEMBERS FINED FOR PROTESTING AGAINST ORBÁN’S POLICIES
On 14th March 2025, three Momentum MPs and two party activists protested in front of Hungary’s public media headquarters, blocking Prime Minister Orbán’s path. All five were fined 84,500 forints (around 200 EUR) each for the demonstration.
POLICE PROHIBIT ANNUAL MARIJUANA DEMONSTRATION
The Two-Tailed Dog Party (MKKP), which has long advocated for the legalisation of marijuana with protests held every year on 20th April (‘420’), faced a police ban on this year’s event. Authorities cited a constitutional amendment prohibiting the “production, use, distribution, and promotion of drugs”. Under the government’s interpretation, even public discussion of the topic constitutes an illegal act.
THOUSANDS RALLY IN PROTEST AGAINST ORBAN GOVERNMENT
On Hungary’s National Day, 15th March 2025, the holiday commemorating the anniversary of Hungary’s failed 1848 revolution and the same day Prime Minister Orbán labelled government critics as “stink bugs”, opposition leader Péter Magyar held a mass rally in Budapest. An estimated 50,000 people attended.
Magyar’s conservative opposition party, Tisza, currently leads in most polls. In an interview with DW, Magyar said: “One of our main aims is to reunite the nation, to stop the propaganda, to stop the hate speech, and to speak about the reality, the conditions, the state of play of our country.”
Expression
SOVEREIGNTY PROTECTION OFFICE TARGETS EASTERN FRONTIER INITIATIVE
On 23rd February 2025, Hungary’s Sovereignty Protection Office launched a smear campaign against the Eastern Frontier Initiative (TEFI), a network of independent publishers across Central and Eastern Europe. The Office alleged that TEFI is not committed to independent journalism but aims to “exert direct political pressure” and manipulate public opinion. It also accused TEFI of acting as a European propaganda tool to promote the EU’s war strategy.
TEFI members rejected these accusations, condemning the campaign as a direct attack on independent media in Hungary.
ORBÁN SHIFTS FOREIGN FUNDING ACCUSATIONS FROM THE US TO UKRAINE
On 4th February 2025, following a meeting of Parliament's National Security Committee, Máté Kocsis, leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group, accused several independent Hungarian media outlets—Telex, Direkt36, 444, and HVG—of receiving funding from Ukraine to orchestrate a smear campaign against Prime Minister Orbán. He claimed the Ukrainian government was attempting to discredit Orbán through its alleged influence on the press.
JOURNALISTS REMOVED FROM ORBÁN’S ANNUAL PRESS CONFERENCE
On 30th January 2025, two journalists from Telex were removed by police while attempting to question Prime Minister Orbán at the opening of a new film studio. The journalists had refused to remain in a cordoned-off area that would have prevented them from interacting with the Prime Minister. As a result, their press accreditation was revoked, and they were taken to a police station, where infringement proceedings were initiated against them.
CRITICAL JOURNALISM BARRED FROM OFFICIAL STATE CEREMONY
On 15th March 2025, Hungary’s National Day, Telex and other independent media outlets were denied access to the official state ceremony. Authorities cited “lack of space” as the reason and restricted reporting to areas outside the security cordons. Pro-government media outlets, however, were granted full access.