EU funds withheld from Poland and Hungary

 

Letter to Editor of The Times

Dear Sirs,

One of the risks emanating from the European Court of Justice decision giving the European Commission the right to withhold European post pandemic recovery funds from Poland and Hungary for legislation violating judicial independence and minority rights ("Hungary and Poland could lose 100bn euros after EU ruling" The Times 17/2/22), is that it could cause a increased resurgence of the nationalism that initially prompted this legislation and would stigmatize all who criticized the two governments, as being called traitors for supporting a foreign power, likened by state media to the Soviet Union. Both governments might be tempted stubbornly to continue their defiance, forgo these funds for a year and let their citizens suffer privation. The EU will be seen as punishing the Polish and Hungarian people, rather than their governments.

The best way of restoring judicial independence and LGBT rights in those countries, and curtailing the forces of radical nationalism and religious fundamentalism, is not by outside pressure, but by the opposition parties uniting (as they are doing now in Hungary) and winning the next elections. If the EU does not want to compromise the opposition it should use the next months to devise a system where the recovery fund can still be spent in local authorities which do not espouse the ideology of their governments, and thus encourage the population to see the EU as their friend. In the past the Commission has targeted Polish local authorities with retribution for declaring "LGTB free zones", and they can similarly now target support to authorities who do not share their governments' prejudices. 

Yours faithfully

Wiktor Moszczynski

Sent to The Times 17.02.2022