In recent years, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee has repeatedly attacked the government and its policies in numerous ways. For example, it criticized Hungary’s immigration policy, particularly the border fence and transit zones. These criticisms contributed to the European Court of Justice's June 2024 decision to impose a massive €200 million fine on Hungary, plus an additional €1 million per day until it changes its asylum regulations. The primary reasoning behind the court’s decision was that Hungary consistently failed to ensure effective access to asylum procedures. “It’s outright harmful that the government hasn’t implemented the EU court ruling,” the HHC commented on the pro-immigration judgment.
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee also played a role in efforts to justify the EU's unlawful blocking of funds from Hungary. For example, they regularly participate in compiling rule-of-law reports. Periodically in collaboration with other pseudo-NGOs and pseudo-civil society organizations (CSOs) such as Transparency International Hungary, HHC submits reports to the European Commission condemning Hungary.
These documents have been used by EU institutions to justify punitive measures against Hungary, including the suspension of funding. The Helsinki Committee itself acknowledged this role on its website, stating that the 2023 Rule of Law Report “reflected many of the concerns we expressed in our submission.”
This targeted campaign to undermine Hungary is heavily financed by the EU.
In the last eight years alone, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee received nearly €1.3 million from Brussels. At current exchange rates, that’s more than half a billion forints. The organization has been involved in 19 projects, acting as a beneficiary in 15 and a coordinator in 4. Detailed breakdowns of project names, dates, and grant amounts are available on the European Commission’s official website, which served as the source for Magyar Nemzet’s calculations.
