EU lawmakers vote for rule of law action against Hungary

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union lawmakers have voted for launching action against Hungary over allegations that Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government is breaching the bloc's fundamental values.

The European Parliament's Civil Liberties Committee voted Monday for a report that recommends triggering an "Article 7 procedure" amid concerns about judicial independence, media freedoms and the harsh treatment of migrants in Hungary. The full assembly must still endorse the move for it to happen.

The procedure could result in Hungary losing EU voting rights, although this is unlikely because Poland, which is also facing Article 7 action launched by the EU's executive Commission, would probably veto it.

The Commission says it is also scrutinizing laws passed in Hungary last week allowing jail sentences for people convicted of aiding asylum seekers, and which ban homelessness. </s> The European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee voted Monday for launching action against Hungary over allegations that Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government is breaching the EU’s fundamental values. The committee voted Monday for a report that recommends triggering an “Article 7 procedure” amid concerns about judicial independence, media freedoms and the harsh treatment of migrants in Hungary, AP said. The full assembly must still endorse the move for it to happen. The procedure could result in Hungary losing EU voting rights. However, this is unlikely because Poland, which is also facing Article 7 action launched by the EU’s executive Commission, would probably veto it. </s> The European Parliament on Wednesday voted in favor of kick-starting disciplinary action against Hungary that could see some of the central European nation's voting rights restricted for failing to abide by European Union core values.

Lawmakers in Strasbourg voted 448 to 197 in favor of triggering the hitherto dormant Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union, which could punish Prime Minister Viktor Orban's nationalist government should the decision be adopted by EU leaders at the Council. </s> The EU Parliament has voted in favor of triggering Article 7, which would allow punitive measures against Hungary over its migration policies and "media suppression." Budapest fired back, calling the vote "petty revenge."An official probe launched by the European Parliament claimed earlier that the government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban poses "a systemic threat to democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights"in the country. Hungarian officials were accused of clamping down on courts and the press, as well as mistreating migrants and ethnic minorities.The EU parliament's decision is, however, not the final step.But to do that the Council has to vote unanimously and hear Hungary's arguments first.Wednesday's vote will lead to "an enormous backlash" within the EU, MEP David Coburn from the UK Independence Party (UKIP) told RT. He noted that Orban is a popular figure at home and abroad, and his position will garner support in Britain, France, and the Czech Republic among other places.Coburn, whose party voted in support of Hungary, argues that the MEPs didn't treat Orban fairly."Quite frankly, it was a Stalinist show trial. It was appalling.Former UKIP leader, Nigel Farage also weighed in.Orban for his part said before the vote that his country won't bow to "blackmailing" by the EU and vowed to continue his policies.he warned.He and his government have been long-time critics of any EU attempts to force Hungary into accepting migrants.It's the second time in the history of the European Union, when its parliament greenlights triggering the Article 7 proceeding against one of its 'misbehaving' members.Warsaw condemned the move as "politically motivated," advocating its rights to exercise own sovereignty. Back then, Hungary was quick to rescue, promising to veto the decision of the European Council. </s> The lawmakers voted 448-197 in favor of a report recommending the launch of a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's European Union voting rights.

BRUSSELS — European Union lawmakers voted on Wednesday to launch action against the Hungarian government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban for allegedly undermining the bloc's democratic values and rule of law. Hungary called the vote fraudulent and vowed to challenge it.

The lawmakers voted 448-197 in favor of a report recommending the launch of a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's European Union voting rights.

It is the first time in EU history that the European Parliament had initiated and approved such a motion, which needed a two-thirds majority to pass and was approved by 69.4 percent of the lawmakers.

For years, Orban had been able to deflect much of the international condemnation thrown his way. Critics say that Hungary's electoral system is disproportionate; media freedoms and judicial independence are dwindling; asylum-seekers and refugees are mistreated and there are limits placed on non-governmental organizations.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, echoing Orban's longtime position, called the Wednesday's vote "petty revenge" against Hungary for its tough anti-migration policies.

"This decision condemning Hungary and the Hungarian people was made because we Hungarians have demonstrated that migration in not a necessary process and that migration can be stopped," Szijjarto told reporters in Budapest.

He also claimed that the vote involved "massive fraud" since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

There were 48 abstentions, so the 448 in favor exceeded the two-thirds needed only because it was based on 645 votes. If the abstentions were counted into the final tally, there would have been a total 693 votes, so the 448 in favor wouldn't have reached two-thirds.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

But Judith Sargentini, who presented the report prepared by the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, welcomed the outcome.

"Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash," Sargentini said. "The Hungarian people deserve better. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties."

"This is a historic result for Hungarian citizens and for European citizens everywhere, that the European Parliament has voted by a large majority to stand up for the values we all hold dear," Sargentini said.

Several non-governmental organizations targeted by the Orban government with restrictive rules — including a special tax on activities considered as promoting immigration and the criminalization of the aiding of asylum-seekers and refugees — also hailed the vote's outcome.

"We welcome the European Parliament's decision to defend the rule of law and confront the Hungarian government's attempts to shut down civil society and independent voices in the media and academia," said Heather Grabbe, director of the Open Society European Policy Institute. "MEPs across the political spectrum have taken a historic stand in defending the EU's democratic values and the rights of its citizens."

Grabbe's organization is part of the Open Society Foundations set up by Hungarian-American billionaire and philanthropist George Soros, an ideological opponent of Orban and blamed by the Hungarian leader, along with the NGOs Soros supports, for promoting mass immigration into Europe. Soros has repeatedly denied the allegations.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, which offers legal aid to asylum seekers and refugees and has been a frequent target of Orban's criticism, said that the EU vote "has made it clear that illiberal democracy is against the core values of the European Union."

The move saw some members of the European People's Party bloc — of which Orban's Fidesz movement is a member — vote against their ally in Budapest.

Even EPP leader Mandred Weber, who earlier was supportive of Orban and is seeking to become the European Commission president next year, said he had voted for triggering Article 7.

"I have always been in favor of building bridges and I want to continue to do so, but yesterday (Tuesday) I didn't see any readiness from the Hungarian PM to make a move towards his EU partners and address our concerns," Manfred tweeted.

While Weber had called on Orban to show a willingness to compromise on some of the most high-profile issues — like an agreement being delayed by the Hungarian government for the Central European University, founded by Soros, to remain in Budapest and recent laws criminalizing the work of civic groups working with asylum-seekers and refugees — Orban remained steadfast that his policies wouldn't change.

"I have nothing to compromise about since the questions they objected to were decided by the Hungarian people," Orban said Tuesday in Strasbourg, France, after the debate in the European Parliament on the report on Hungary. "There is nothing to talk about."

Orban, who was re-elected in April to his third consecutive term in office, fourth overall also said Tuesday that he expected lawmakers to approve the motion with the support of some EPP lawmakers.

"The order has arrived from Berlin and they will vote accordingly," Orban said, in reference to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose governing Christian Democratic Union is the largest party in the EPP.

Orban has insisted that all of the criticism against his government is based on Hungary's tough anti-immigration policies, which include fences built in 2015 on Hungary's southern borders with Serbian and Croatia to divert the flow of migrants and very restrictive asylum rules. </s> STRASBOURG — The European Parliament passed a motion on Wednesday declaring that Hungary is at risk of breaching the EU’s core values, triggering a disciplinary process that could exacerbate deep divisions within the bloc.

The assembly approved the motion with 448 votes in favor to initiate the so-called Article 7 process for the first time, citing concerns about judicial independence, corruption, freedom of expression, academic freedom, the rights of minorities and migrants, and other issues. A total of 197 members of the European Parliament opposed the motion and 48 abstained.

The vote reflects a divide within the EU, between those who stress that it is a community of liberal values, and leaders such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has championed the idea of “illiberal democracy.” Broadly speaking, major Western European governments such as France and Germany along with the European Commission are in the former camp while governments in Central and Eastern Europe are in the latter.

The Commission initiated Article 7 proceedings against Poland last year, citing concerns about government influence over the judiciary and other rule-of-law issues.

The Article 7 process can lead to a member country being stripped of its right to vote in the Council of the European Union. Things are unlikely to get that far with either Poland or Hungary, however, as it would require the unanimous approval of other member countries — and multiple EU governments do not want to take that step.

Orbán has clashed repeatedly with Brussels in recent years, most notably over his hard-line rejection of Muslim refugees and migrants. But he has also faced criticism for crackdowns on Budapest’s Central European University and NGOs, and for a more general “Stop Brussels” anti-European Commission campaign he mounted last year.

The vote increases the pressure on leaders of the European People’s Party, the center-right bloc that makes up the largest group in the Parliament, to suspend or expel Orbán’s Fidesz party from their ranks. More liberal parties in the group have pushed to have Fidesz removed but Manfred Weber, the EPP leader in the Parliament, has indicated he does not want to heed their calls.

Shortly before the vote, Weber tweeted that he would back the motion but the EPP group “wants to keep the dialogue and continue bringing Europe together. The dialogue should begin, not end, in the upcoming weeks and months.”

But he also added, “It is clear for us that our European values are not negotiable.”

Immediately after the vote, MEPs gave a standing ovation to Dutch Green MEP Judith Sargentini, who drafted the report upon which the resolution was based.

“I am so proud that my Hungary report has the support of the European Parliament, but this is foremost about the rights of Hungarian citizens. I thank my colleagues that stand for the protection of democracy and the rule of law, above their interest in party politics,” Sargentini said.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó decried the vote as “revenge” by pro-migration politicians. He also said it involved “cheating” because abstentions were not counted in determining whether the necessary two-thirds majority had been met.

Nigel Farage, the U.K. Independence Party MEP, slammed the vote, declaring that “the authoritarian grip of the EU gets even tighter.”

This article has been updated.

Read this next: European Parliament votes to adopt copyright reform </s> European Union lawmakers voted on Wednesday to launch action against the Hungarian government of Prime Minister Viktor Orban for allegedly undermining the bloc's democratic values and rule of law. Hungary called the vote fraudulent and vowed to challenge it.

The lawmakers voted 448-197 in favor of a report recommending the launch of a so-called Article 7 procedure, which could lead to the suspension of Hungary's European Union voting rights.

It is the first time in EU history that the European Parliament had initiated and approved such a motion, which needed a two-thirds majority to pass and was approved by 69.4 percent of the lawmakers.

For years, Orban had been able to deflect much of the international condemnation thrown his way. Critics say that Hungary's electoral system is disproportionate; media freedoms and judicial independence are dwindling; asylum-seekers and refugees are mistreated and there are limits placed on non-governmental organizations.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, echoing Orban's longtime position, called the Wednesday's vote "petty revenge" against Hungary for its tough anti-migration policies.

He also claimed that the vote involved "massive fraud" since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed majority.

There were 48 abstentions, so the 448 in favor exceeded the two-thirds needed only because it was based on 645 votes. If the abstentions were counted into the final tally, there would have been a total 693 votes, so the 448 in favor wouldn't have reached two-thirds.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

But Judith Sargentini, who presented the report prepared by the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, welcomed the outcome.

"Viktor Orban's government has been leading the charge against European values by silencing independent media, replacing critical judges, and putting academia on a leash," Sargentini said. "The Hungarian people deserve better. They deserve freedom of speech, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice and equality, all of which are enshrined in the European treaties."

"This is a historic result for Hungarian citizens and for European citizens everywhere, that the European Parliament has voted by a large majority to stand up for the values we all hold dear," Sargentini said.

The move saw some members of the European People's Party bloc — of which Orban's Fidesz movement is a member — vote against their ally in Budapest.

Even EPP leader Mandred Weber, who earlier was supportive of Orban and is seeking to become the European Commission president next year, said he had voted for triggering Article 7.

"I have always been in favor of building bridges and I want to continue to do so, but yesterday (Tuesday) I didn't see any readiness from the Hungarian PM to make a move towards his EU partners and address our concerns," Manfred tweeted.

While Weber had called on Orban to show a willingness to compromise on some of the most high-profile issues — like an agreement being delayed by the Hungarian government for the Central European University, founded by George Soros, Orban's ideological opponent, to remain in Budapest and recent laws criminalizing the work of civic groups working with asylum-seekers and refugees — Orban remained steadfast that his policies wouldn't change.

"I have nothing to compromise about since the questions they objected to were decided by the Hungarian people," Orban said Tuesday in Strasbourg, France, after the debate in the European Parliament on the report on Hungary. "There is nothing to talk about."

Orban, who was re-elected in April to his third consecutive term in office, fourth overall also said Tuesday that he expected lawmakers to approve the motion with the support of some EPP lawmakers.

"The order has arrived from Berlin and they will vote accordingly," Orban said, in reference to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose governing Christian Democratic Union is the largest party in the EPP.

Orban has insisted that all of the criticism against his government is based on Hungary's tough anti-immigration policies, which include fences built in 2015 on Hungary's southern borders with Serbian and Croatia to divert the flow of migrants and very restrictive asylum rules. He has also expressed his desire to remain within the EPP, which he said was "deeply divided" on the issue of migration.

The vote, however, has little chance of ending up with the ultimate penalty of Hungary being suspended from voting in the EU. If nothing else, its Polish ally would veto that.

The 197 votes cast against the parliament's first bid to launch the punitive process of the EU treaty's Article 7 also highlighted the substantial minority of European opinion who see Orban as a crusader for the rights of nation states and ethnic majorities against rules of civic behavior agreed in Brussels.

Since sweeping to power in 2010, Orban, once a campaigner against Hungary's Soviet Communist overlords, has used his parliamentary majority to pressure courts, media and non-government groups in ways his opponents say breach EU rules.

He has also led opposition to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and others who want Europe to take in more Muslim refugees.

With Britain about to leave the bloc altogether in March and Europeans voting in European Parliament elections in May, the row over Hungary -- and Poland, which faces a similar sanctions procedure launched by the executive European Commission in 2017 -- highlights tensions between nationalist and federalist camps.

All the applause for the Hungarian leader on Tuesday came from the far right of the chamber, notably among supporters of France's Marine Le Pen and the UK Independence Party.

Geert Wilders, the leader of the Dutch anti-immigration Freedom Party, called the vote - which also weighed on Hungarian assets - "a bloody shame".

"Orban is a hero and deserves the Nobel Prize. He closed the borders for Islamic fortune seekers. He protects his citizens against terror and defends the identity of his country," he said.

The Commission has preferred to pressure Budapest through standard legal powers, but the head of the EU executive, Jean-Claude Juncker, also an EPP member, said he would have voted for the move if he were a lawmaker. </s> European Union legislators voted overwhelmingly in favour of launching punitive action against the Hungarian government for flouting democratic rules in a stunning political blow for Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

With 448 votes in favour, 197 against and 48 abstentions, the motion passed in the plenary session on Wednesday, the first time ever the European legislature triggered an Article 7 procedure against an EU member state.

The unprecedented vote could allow Hungary's EU voting rights to be stripped.

Dutch Greens MEP Judith Sargentini, who spearheaded the vote, smiled broadly and breathed a sigh of relief before embracing her supporters in parliament in the French city of Strasbourg.

"It is a positive sign of this parliament taking responsibility and wanting action," Sargentini told a press conference afterward.

She had urged colleagues not to let Hungary off the hook, declaring that Orban's rule "violates the values on which this union was built".

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said before the vote that the commission "will resist all attacks on the rule of law" in an annual state-of-the-union speech in the European Parliament.

Juncker went on to say the commission, which proposes EU legislation and oversees implementation of decisions, "continues to be very concerned by the developments" in some EU member states and promised to employ the rule-of-law procedure against any governments that veer from the EU's democratic principles.

EU 'blackmail'

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wasted little time in slamming the vote as "nothing less than the petty revenge of pro-immigration politicians".

"This decision condemning Hungary and the Hungarian people was made because we Hungarians have demonstrated that migration in not a necessary process and that migration can be stopped," Szijjarto told reporters in Budapest.

Since sweeping to power in 2010, Orban has pressured courts, media, and non-governmental groups, as well as refusing to take in asylum seekers arriving in Europe.

Though the EU has often protested, it largely failed to stop what his critics decry as Orban's growing authoritarianism.

But a surge in support for nationalist and populist politicians across the bloc galvanised a stronger reaction. Speaking in front of the assembly on Tuesday, Orban said he would not bow to the EU's "blackmail" and stick to his policies.

Refugee stance

The vote was hailed as "historic" by Berber Biala-Hettinga, Amnesty International's expert on human rights in the EU.

"The European Parliament rightly stood up for the Hungarian people and for the EU. They made it clear that human rights, the rule of law and democratic values are not up for negotiation," she said.

In June, Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly passed a law imposing jail terms for anybody seen to be aiding undocumented immigrants.

The law targets rights groups and NGOs and allows banning of organisations.

In addition to the bill, the parliament also passed a constitutional amendment stating an "alien population" cannot be settled in Hungary.

Szijjarto said Hungary was considering legal options to appeal the result because of the way the vote was tallied.

He also claimed the vote involved "massive fraud" since abstentions weren't counted into the final tally, which made it easier to reach the needed two-thirds majority.

'Afraid of foreigners'

Uli Brueckner, a professor of European studies at Stanford University in Berlin, told Al Jazeera the vote was made because of Hungary's "misfunctioning democracy".

"In a populous agenda, it is always useful to play the blame-game, and the blame-game here is 'we are afraid of foreigners'. It is always useful to play a blame-game. It instrumentalises people's fears," Brueckner said of the government's policies.

Aside from its anti-immigrant stance, Orban's government is also accused of silencing independent media and academia, removing independent judges, cracking down on organisations helping homeless people, migrants or disadvantaged groups, such as Roma, and condoning government corruption.

The vote means the other EU states must now look at what to do with Hungary.

The most severe punishment under the Article 7 procedure is stripping Hungary of its voting rights in the EU. However, that move is highly unlikely as the rest of the EU needs unanimity.

Poland's nationalist and anti-immigration government - against which the EU Commission has slowly enacted Article 7 procedures over the last two years over concerns about the independence of its judiciary - is expected to block any tough action against Orban.

"Poland is very worried by the decision taken by parliament today," Joanna Kopcinska, spokeswoman for Poland's ruling Law and Justice party, told AFP news agency.

Kopcinska said the vote threatens the EU's unity. "It is necessary to resolve such disputes through dialogue and not diktat," she said. </s> A key committee in the European Parliament voted by a large majority in favor of triggering the EU’s so-called Article 7 process against Hungary, which could ultimately lead to EU sanctions for failing to uphold the bloc’s core values.

MEPs from the Justice and Home Affairs Committee voted by 37 votes to 19 to back a resolution, drafted by Dutch Green MEP Judith Sargentini, which says the situation in Hungary exposes “a clear risk of a serious breach of the values referred to in Article 2 of the Treaties” and calls on the Article 7(1) procedure.

Sargentini’s text highlights concerns about the independence of the judiciary, academic freedom, corruption, freedom of expression, and the rights of migrants in Hungary, among other issues.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government has been accused by critics at home and abroad of putting Hungary on the road to autocracy and reintroducing undemocratic practices. Earlier this month, the Hungarian parliament passed controversial legislation banning anyone from assisting or providing information to migrants and asylum-seekers.

The government has repeatedly dismissed such criticism as overblown and unwarranted meddling in Hungary’s domestic affairs.

If the full Parliament votes in favor on Sargentini’s resolution at a plenary session in September, the assembly will formally ask the Council to trigger the first of a three-step process that could lead to Hungary being stripped of its voting rights in the Council.

Although the final step of sanctions is unlikely — as all other EU member countries would have to vote in favor — a decision to begin the process could damage Hungary’s international standing.

A breakdown of Monday’s vote showed that eight members of the European People’s Party, the center-right grouping that includes Orbán’s Fidesz party, voted in favor of Sargentini’s resolution.

The EPP has been criticized for keeping Fidesz in its ranks, though many EPP members argue that this has helped the group to keep Orbán in check, temper some of his impulses and avoid a problem that could be much more serious. Orbán himself said in a recent speech that he wanted to stay in the EPP and try to reform it.

The vote could add fuel to already strained West-East relations in the EU, just days before EU leaders gather in Brussels for a European Council summit to discuss, among other topics, the sensitive issue of migration. Orbán has been among the strongest critics of EU migration policies.

Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s foreign affairs minister, played down the importance of Monday’s vote. In an official statement on the ministry’s website, he said Brussels was “playing to Georges Soros’ tune,” while “in Hungary, we look at the interests of the Hungarian people.”

Orbán has often accused Soros, an American-Hungarian businessman and philanthropist, of undermining Hungary’s national interests — a charge Soros rejects.

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The European Parliament votes 448–197 to trigger article 7 against Hungary for flouting the rule of law in the country.