Hungary is no longer a full democracy but an 'electoral autocracy,' MEPs declare in new report
Hungary is no longer a fully functioning democracy, members of the European Parliament declared on Thursday in a non-binding but highly symbolic report.
Instead, the country should be considered a "hybrid regime of electoral autocracy" in which elections are regularly held but without respecting basic democratic norms.
"There is increasing consensus among experts that Hungary is no longer a democracy," the lawmakers said, citing a series of international indexes that have in recent years downgraded Hungary's status.
In their resolution, MEPs point the finger directly at Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has been in power since 2010, and condemn his government's "deliberate and systematic efforts" to undermine the EU's core values.
Lawmakers raise concerns about a long list of fundamental rights they believe to be under threat, including the electoral system, the independence of judiciary, privacy, freedom of expression, media pluralism, academic freedom, LGBTIQ rights and the protection of minorities and asylum seekers.
MEPs also criticised the EU institutions for allowing democratic backsliding to go unchecked.
The Parliament "expresses deep regret that the lack of decisive EU action has contributed to a breakdown in democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights in Hungary, turning the country into a hybrid regime of electoral autocracy," the interim report reads.
The text passed by a wide margin on Thursday: 433 votes in favour, 123 against and 28 abstentions.
Led by Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield, a French MEP who sits with the Greens, the report examines the developments that have taken place in Hungary since the hemicycle triggered the Article 7 procedure in 2018.
This is believed to be the first time an EU institution
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