The European Court has rejected the Hungarian law on education. The conditions are incompatible with EU law – ČT24 – Czech Television

The Court of Justice of the EU has rejected the Hungarian law on higher education, after which the Central European University, founded by George Soros, had to close down in Hungary. “The conditions imposed by Hungary are incompatible with EU law,” the court said. @CT24zive

— Lukas Dolansky (@Lukas_Dolansky) October 6, 2020

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According to Tuesday’s press release, the highest body of the EU judiciary stated that Hungary had violated its obligations under the Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) concluded within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO) by amending the law.

According to Dolanský, the Court of Justice of the EU usually follows whether a country does not violate European laws or international treaties. “Hungary has specifically violated the obligations of the Universal Treaty Treaty and the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights – specifically the chapter on academic freedom,” Dolansky said.

Hungary faces penalties for non-compliance with the verdict

According to the court, the amendment also contradicts EU rules on the free movement of services and freedom of enterprise. The judges thus accepted the European Commission’s arguments. Hungary will have to comply with the verdict, otherwise it faces financial penalties.

“Member States have a duty to comply with the judgments of the Court of Justice of the EU. If Hungary did not agree, the European Commission would have to go to court again to initiate proceedings to force Hungary to comply with the judgment. The court would then impose a sentence and the country would face a fine, which could be in the order of several million euros, “Dolanský added.

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The EU institutions have long been prosecuting Budapest for violating European values. Last week, in its first-ever annual report evaluating the rule of law in all EU countries, Brussels expressed concern, in particular, about the situation in Hungary and Poland.

According to the Vice-President of the European Commission Věra Jourová, the EU executive is concerned about restricting the independence of the judiciary, academic freedoms, the media and non-governmental organizations.

Hungary criticizes the verdict, the law will apply differently

Hungarian Justice Minister Judit Varga has criticized the court’s verdict, saying the CEU could not be given any advantages over Hungarian universities. “We consider the double meter measurement to be unacceptable,” the MTI agency quoted the minister as saying.

Varga said that most of the other foreign universities in Hungary have no problem with the requirements of the amendment on universities. According to her, Budapest will respect the verdict, but it intends to apply it in a way that is “in accordance with the interests of the Hungarians”.

Opposition Hungarian parties, on the other hand, welcomed the court’s decision. Socialist (MSZP) officials said the verdict was further evidence that there was no rule of law in the country.

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