Following the announcement that Hungary will not withdraw its proposed “Stop Soros” legislation, the Open Society Foundations (OSF) stated that it will be taking Hungary to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg to challenge these laws. The “Stop Soros” laws, aimed at billionaire philanthropist and founder of OSF George Soros, would allow the jailing of anyone helping migrants “not entitled to protection” apply for asylum or gain the status to remain in Hungary. It also calls for a 25 percent tax on non-governmental organizations and human rights groups that have been deemed to support migration. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has accused Soros of orchestrating immigration to “undermine the cultural and religious identity of Europe,” according to France 24. In addition to bringing this directly to the European Court of Human Rights, OSF also filed an application before Hungary’s Constitutional Court. Though, it is unlikely that the case will be heard there, due to an amendment passed by Orban’s party that significantly limits that court’s ability to hear cases regarding taxes affecting the state budget.

Since the announcement of this legislation back in June of this year, the United Nations Refugee Agency and the European Union (EU) have both openly condemned the laws, as have a number of high ranking OSF officials. The EU voted to censure Hungary earlier this month, citing violations in the EU’s core values. The director of OSF’s legal team spoke to The Associated Press, saying that these laws are “designed to intimidate and silence independent voices in Hungary.” OSF lawyer Daniela Ikawa also mentioned that the legislation breaches EU conventions on freedom of speech and association, as established by the European Convention of Human Rights. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a human rights NGO based out of Budapest, has mentioned that they are also now filing applications at the same courts as OSF. It mentioned that the laws were “a danger not only to its own associates but ‘every well-meaning citizen who views refugees as people and helps them,’” according to Haaretz.

It is extremely important that this case is being taken directly to the European Court for Human Rights, as the Hungarian court will likely not take action on it, and the situation in Hungary is reaching a “critical” level, according to OSF legal director James Goldston. If the legislation goes through, rights guaranteed through the country’s fundamental law would be revoked and refugees will have little to no aid when legally applying for asylum. This may ultimately lead to more illegal immigrants, rather than actually keeping out the refugees, as Orban hopes the law will do. This in turn puts the asylum seekers at higher risk, to the point that they may not leave an unsafe situation, feeling they have nowhere safe to go. With the amount of refugees in this day and age, from conflict, climate, or otherwise, it is vital that countries with the ability to intake migrants do. They are not migrating because they want to disrupt a country’s culture; they are migrating because they do not see they have another option, no matter how difficult it is to leave their home.

Orban has been staunchly anti-immigrant for many years. BBC News noted in response to the Charlie Hebdo attack in early 2015 that he told Hungarian TV: “We will never allow Hungary to become a target country for immigrants. We do not want to see significantly sized minorities with different cultural characteristics and backgrounds among us. We want to keep Hungary as Hungary.” This is a very aggressively xenophobic sentiment, one that results in refugees being detained at the border with Serbia or returned to other countries. With the threat of the “Stop Soros” set of laws passing, the EU has mentioned that Hungary is seeming to become an authoritarian state, which directly goes against EU virtues, according to the Wall Street Journal. Director Goldston also stated in an interview with Haaretz that the tax portion of the legislation would allow the Hungarian government to be able to target close to all the funding for groups affected by the tax, regardless of how little goes to funding migration.

The Open Society Foundations, as well as many other NGOs across Europe, are working to help migrants apply for asylum legally as well as helping them feel more welcome. The hope is to ensure that the “Stop Soros” legislation does not go into effect by taking it to two separate courts at once. Now, it is in the hands of the European Court of Human Rights to take up the case and rightly find Hungary at fault for removing free speech and association, as well as discriminating against refugees. The EU should also continue to move forward with their sanctions on the country, though it is unlikely that its voting rights will be revoked, as Poland will almost certainly refuse to take a stance against Hungary. Succinctly put by the current president of OSF, Patrick Gaspard, “There is only one thing this legislation will stop — and that’s democracy.”