Its Court ruled that it had breached EU law by refusing to renew the operating license of a major independent radio station, which is often critical of the Prime Minister.
Orbán measures against the media under the microscope
The nationalist leader, who faces the most serious challenge in his 16 years in power in parliamentary elections in April, has curtailed civil rights, including blocking independent media.
Radio station Klubradio can only broadcast online from 2021 after losing a court challenge to keep its broadcasting license. The European Commission has initiated proceedings against Hungary regarding this matter.
What does the Court support in its decision?
“In its decision, the Court accepts the majority of the Commission’s objections and finds that Hungary has breached its obligations under Union law,” the Court of Justice of the European Union said in a statement.
According to the same source, Hungary violated many principles, mainly those of freedom of expression and information.
The Court points out that “the Hungarian media law automatically excludes the renewal of the validity of the rights of use of radio frequencies in case of infringement more than once, even when the infringements are minor, purely formal ones for which sanctions have already been imposed and remedial measures taken”.
Hungary “infringed the freedom of expression and information enshrined in Article 11 of the Charter,” the Court underlined.
The story of the case
Radio station Klubradio, which began broadcasting in the 1990s, had to fight a series of legal battles to stay on the air shortly after Orbán returned to power in 2010. For several years, it operated on short-term licenses, which were periodically renewed.
Hungary’s media regulator NMHH, whose chiefs are close to Orban’s ruling Fidesz party, insists its decisions are not dictated by political expediency, claiming in 2020 that Klubradio had repeatedly broken regulations.
During Orban’s tenure as prime minister, most of Hungary’s independent media were forced to close or were bought by people close to the government. State media are accused of having turned into government propaganda instruments.
As parliamentary elections on April 12 approach, the opposition Tisza party is leading in opinion polls, amid economic stagnation and growing dissatisfaction among Hungarians with public services.
