Commissioner O’Flaherty has published today his written observations in the case of Hungarian Helsinki Committee v. Hungary which is currently pending before the European Court of Human Rights. The case relates to the introduction of Article 353/A of the Hungarian Criminal Code in June 2018 and was lodged by a non-governmental organisation active, amongst others, in the area of human rights of migrants.
In his submission, the Commissioner puts before the Court information on the basis of which it may consider the following points: the introduction of Article 353/A of the Criminal Code constitutes a component of broad restrictions to freedom of expression and freedom of association of civil society in Hungary; the criminalisation of “facilitating or supporting illegal migration” introduced through Article 353/A was neither necessary nor foreseeable within the meaning of Article 10(2) and Article 11(2) of the European Convention on Human Rights; several aspects call into question the declared purpose behind the introduction of Article 353/A.
This third-party intervention is the first submitted by Commissioner O’Flaherty since the start of his mandate on 1 April 2024.