Europe's rights body says Hungary's transparency bill threatens human rights

BUDAPEST (Reuters) -The Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights has called on Hungarian lawmakers to reject or amend a bill that targets foreign-funded NGOs and media, citing concerns over human rights violations.

In a letter published on Wednesday and addressed to parliament Speaker Laszlo Kover, Commissioner Michael O'Flaherty said the legislation "allows for severe interferences in the functioning of civil society organisations, to the point that the continuation of their activities may become impossible."

The Council of Europe, the continent's leading human rights watchdog, was formed after World War Two to uphold rights and the rule of law.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's ruling Fidesz party submitted a bill to parliament on May 14 that would draw up a list of organisations that get foreign funding and restrict or even shut them down if deemed to threaten Hungary's sovereignty and its culture.

Orban - who has repeatedly clashed with the EU over policies that critics say erode democracy in Hungary - has described such groups as a "shadowy army" funded by foreign powers to undermine the state. He pledged to crack down on foreign funding of independent media, opposition politicians and NGOs in March, stepping up his campaign ahead of elections due in 2026 where he faces a serious challenge from a new opposition party.

O'Flaherty, whose office has an independent mandate to promote respect for human rights among the Council's 46 member states, urged lawmakers to refrain from adopting the legislation unless it is modified to comply with international human rights laws.

The bill is expected to be approved in mid-June as Orban's party holds a parliamentary majority. The proposed law triggered protests and over 80 editors from leading European news outlets signed a petition last month calling for the scrapping of the legislation.

Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said last month that the bill was introduced "in response to escalating concerns about foreign-funded organisations".

(Reporting by Anita Komuves, Editing by William Maclean)