Almost a week after the European Commission presented its annual report on the Rule of law in the Member states on 6 October, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled in favour of the institution, judging that Hungary had violated European law by imposing new restrictions on foreign universities in Hungary and, in particular, on the Central European University (CEU) in Budapest. It thus confirmed the conclusions of the Advocate General of March 2020 (see EUROPE 12440/21).
The CEU, financed by George Soros, the Hungarian-born billionaire exiled in the United States, had found himself in the cross-hairs of the Hungarian authorities after a new law of 2017 imposed the signature of a convention between the Hungarian government and the country of origin of the foreign universities - thus, the United States, for the CEU. Hungary had not signed this international convention despite calls from the Commission, but also from the EPP, which was already questioning whether Viktor Orbán and his party, Fidesz, should remain in its political family.
The Commission had referred the matter to the Court in December 2017 (see EUROPE 11921/24), but the CEU had not obtained the required accreditation and the institution therefore had to move its courses to Vienna at the start of the 2019 academic year.
In its judgment, the Court finds, first, that by “making the exercise, in Hungary, of teaching activities leading to a qualification by higher education institutions situated outside the European Economic Area (EEA) subject to the existence of an international treaty between Hungary and the non-member State in which the institution concerned has its seat, Hungary has failed to comply with the commitments in relation to national treatment given under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), concluded within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO)”.
Moreover, this requirement is “also contrary to the provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (‘the Charter)’ relating to academic freedom, the freedom to found higher education institutions and the freedom to conduct a business” and favours Hungarian institutions over others.
“By making the exercise, in Hungary, of the activities of foreign higher education institutions, including institutions having their seat in another Member State of the EEA, subject to the condition that they offer higher education in the country in which they have their seat”, Hungary has also failed to fulfil its obligations under the freedom of establishment and the freedom to provide services.
The judgment was welcomed by Greens/EFA MEPs, including the leader of the Article 7 procedure against Hungary, French MEP Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield.
“The CJEU has ruled on what should be indisputable in any European democracy: measures to limit academic freedom are incompatible with European law. Forcing a university to leave the country is undemocratic and goes against European values. The Hungarian government must therefore repeal its laws deemed illegal”, she reacted.
See the judgment of the Court: https://bit.ly/3iBvo47 (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)