Hungary, which had been announced to hold the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in May 2021, had been questioned in a current affairs debate organised this morning by the Parliamentary Assembly. At the heart of the criticism is its refusal to sign the Athens Declaration adopted on 4 November by the Committee of Ministers.
Entitled “Effectively responding to a public health crisis in full respect for human rights, democracy and the rule of law”, the Declaration warns, inter alia, of the increase in gender-based violence during the pandemic and “underlines the significant role of the Istanbul Convention” in combating this phenomenon. This was enough to block the signature of three of the 47 Member States: Azerbaijan, Turkey and Hungary, whose parliament rejected the ratification of the Istanbul Convention in May 2020, deeming that it “promotes the destructive ideology of gender”.
“This refusal to sign the Athens Declaration raises the question of sharing our values”, said French Liberal Jacques Maire at the opening of the debate. This viewpoint is shared by other speakers.
Németh Zsolt, head of the Hungarian delegation and member of Fidesz, replied that Hungary was “ in favour of the spirit of the Convention”, but had been unable to sign the Athens Declaration because of a “drafting issue”. She had proposed adding “and relevant national measures” after “the significant role of the Istanbul Convention”, which was rejected.
Present in Athens, Rik Daems, President of the Assembly, made a point of specifying his “personal feeling” at the end of the debates: “one or more countries thought that by approving the Athens Declaration, they could be perceived by public opinion as approving a Convention they had not adopted”. (Original version in French by Véronique Leblanc)