According to the former Minister of Justice, no one can dispute the legitimacy of the Basic Law, it was adopted with the vote of two-thirds of all parliamentarians in accordance with the current legislation.
In the debate about the future of the European Union (EU), the concept of constitutional identity is of particular importance, so that the member states cannot renounce their own constitutional identity, so the construction of Europe cannot be controlled from above, said László Trócsányi in an interview with Magyar Nemzet.
In his newly published book Public Life and Public Law, the law professor and former justice minister presents the evolution of the European discourse around Hungary along the lines of his own life path.
I am convinced that Hungary is one of the protagonists of the value debates in Europe today, he said. In the interview, he recalled that he had spent the last decade in public life. According to him, all of this gave him a way of seeing and so much experience that he should pass on to those who are interested.
"When my profession as a constitutional judge ceased in 2010 and I became Hungary's ambassador to Paris, the last decision I signed was related to the Treaty of Lisbon. At the time, I had no idea that I was taking a stand on an issue that is still defining to this day," he said, adding that in the parallel justification he referred to the concept of constitutional identity and the fact that no EU member state can renounce its constitutional self-identity.
"Hungary is an independent country, and as an independent country it also decided to play a role in European construction. This also means that as long as the Hungarian state exists, we cannot renounce our constitutional identity. It was of symbolic importance to say goodbye to the profession of constitutional judge with this idea," he emphasized.
As he said, the basic law adopted in 2011 contains a new spirit, places greater emphasis on national values, places the relationship between the individual and the community on a new basis, and also provides for issues such as the concept of marriage, the importance of the family or responsibility for the future generation. . "This new-spirited constitution was already under severe attack from abroad, I could mention, for example, the Tavares report of the European Parliament in 2013," he noted. He added: the presentation of national values and Christianity in the constitution is what defeated the "European guarantee " the most.
According to László Trócsányi, with the debates of the last ten years, Hungary has significantly contributed to stirring up the stagnant water in Europe and becoming a protagonist in value debates. He sees the reason for the conflicts with the European Commission in the fact that between 2010 and 2014, the negotiation of equal rights took place with the committee headed by José Manuel Barroso. They were able to hold constructive discussions and reach compromises on controversial issues. Action against Hungary was already being urged in the EU parliament at that time, but there was no mention of a procedure according to article seven.
"During my ministry of justice, from 2014, the conflict entered a new dimension, the cooperation with the committee led by Jean-Claude Juncker was no longer nearly harmonious. And the Sargentini report, adopted in 2018, already included the initiation of the procedure according to article seven. During this period, I was able to experience how those who promote the European spirit attack those who think differently on certain issues and do not get on the express train of the ideological mainstream," said László Trócsányi.
He drew attention to the fact that the union has been in crisis mode since 2010. First, it had nothing to do with the Arab Spring, then with the economic crisis, migration, and now with the pandemic. And Brexit is of such importance that even today we cannot really comprehend its consequences.
Instead of the EU being an important actor in world politics, it just follows the events.
For this reason, the period after 2019 is dominated by the debate about the future of the EU and, as I have already mentioned, Hungary's role in it. It may also seem that the failures of European construction in the last decade can be well hidden by accusations of the rule of law against individual countries. Instead of self-examination, unnecessary value debates have appeared, which results in deep ditches instead of strengthening Europe," László Trócsányi opined.
Europe is a diverse continent where we are united by common values. But there are also their own national values that belong to each nation. Mutual respect is the key to Europe's unity," he declared. For me, it is crucial that, just as integration cannot be controlled from above, the discussion about its future must not be controlled either," said László Trócsányi in the interview.
Source: mandiner.hu
Image: Facebook/László Trócsányi
