Submission by five Hungarian NGOs to the UN Universal Periodical Review on shrinking civil space in Hungary (March 2021)

Following the years after the transition in 1989-90, Hungarian civil society grew and developed rapidly, however, after the turn of the millennium, this progress slowed down, as the sector became stabilized, or, as it may be argued, stagnating by the mid-2000’s. More recently, however, the trend of shrinking civil space became apparent. Hungarian CSOs have been operating in an increasingly hostile environment for the past 7-8 years, as shown – among others by the downward trend of the USAID CSO Sustainability Index in all aspects, including its legal environment, financial viability and advocacy. CIVICUS Monitor now ranks civil space in Hungary as “obstructed”.

Several factors contribute to this:

1. the funding structures

2. the Government’s and state authorities’ lack of engagement with CSOs

3. the vilification and stigmatization of CSOs

4. the targeted harassment of certain CSOs

5. the restrictive legal amendments adopted in the past years.