rule of law

Under the pretext of investigating the Russia\'s influence in Poland, the newly formed polish parliamentary commission has been granted the authority to silence the opposition and impose a ban on individuals holding public positions for up to 10 years. In the light of the upcoming fall parliamentary elections, this tool strikes at those seeking to run in the elections or get appointed.

The past year was full of events related to the ongoing crisis of the rule of law in Poland. The last few months have been dominated mainly with the issue of the \"milestones\" attached to the National Reconstruction Plan and the disagreement within the ruling coalition as to how to achieve them. Among other things, for this purpose the infamous Disciplinary Chamber was abolished and replaced with Chamber of Professional Responsibility.

Last year in Poland was marked by heated discussions linked with the provision of European Union Recovery Funds, which have been promised to the Polish government on condition that it successfully restores the rule of law, infringed through multiple reforms of the ruling coalition. Introduced over the last seven years, they largely touched upon the judiciary system, increasing its dependence on the legislative branch.

In this episode, Leszek Jażdżewski talks with Gerald Knaus about the enlargement policy of the European Union, new potential EU members, the \"New Cold War\", and the future of the European project.

Since Prime Minister Morawiecki has come to the conclusion that he needs additional funds from the EU, one has to wonder from where they will come. The EU budget does not come from nothing.

Though Fidesz supported sanctions against Russia, the government is not allowing the transfer of lethal weapons through Hungarian territory to Ukraine. The narrative that Fidesz supports peace while the opposition supports war was completely false, nevertheless it worked.

The law should protect us from the will of the rulers, arbitrary decisions of the elected or non-elected politicians, any of us acting in an anti-social way, as well as any wrongdoing. Classical liberals are simply striving for a lawful society.

After a promising start the Hungarian political system could not turn into a liberal democracy. It is not a special occurrence, in some other \"third wave countries\" democratization slowed down or stopped as well. The democracy crisis has many reasons: fragmented political culture, economic problems, problematic challenges to fundamental rights.

Viktor Orban\'s new legislative package equates homosexuality with paedophilia. For next year\'s elections, Orban\'s government needed another bogeyman against which it could mobilize populistically. But sexual identity is protected in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. The European Commission must immediately initiate infringement proceedings against Hungary, demands Moritz Körner in an interview.

Many extraordinary events took place in 2020. What do you think about how they will reshape the world in the rest of the decade? In light of the global pandemic, I see three significant changes in the making. First, the preparedness of the state for emergencies will improve. Health systems were unprepared for such a […]