MEP Cristian Buşoi (PNL, EPP) appreciated the European Parliament’s decision to activate Article 7 of the Treaty of Lisbon against Hungary as ”a strong political signal that Budapest needs to reconsider its attitude.”
”I voted for the conclusions of this report (n.r. Sargentini report), in coordination with the EPP Political Group, after attended both public debates and those that were not made public, in the EPP Group. In Hungary, there have already been signaled many violations of democracy, rule of law, which are also presented in the report”, mentioned the Romanian MEP in a post on his Facebook page.
In a tense vote, a majority of EU lawmakers backed a motion that opens the door to sanctions against Hungary. Viktor Orban’s government is accused of silencing media, targeting NGOs and removing independent judges.
Members of the European Parliament voted to censure the Hungarian government on Wednesday for eroding democracy and failing to uphold fundamental European Union values.
The measure to trigger Article 7 sanctions procedures garnered the necessary majority needed to pass, with 448 voting in favor of the motion, 197 against and 48 abstentions. The move means that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government could eventually lose its EU voting rights.
The motion will now pass to the leaders of the EU’s 28-member states for approval. However, a unanimous vote is required to suspend Hungary’s voting rights and launch sanctions — a move that is likely to be blocked by Poland.
