Parliament Abolishes Orbán-Era Sovereignty Protection Office

Hungary's parliament voted 135–44 (six abstentions) on June 30 to abolish the Sovereignty Protection Office (Szuverenitásvédelmi Hivatal), the body created by a 2023 law and operational from February 2024 to investigate journalists, civil-society organizations, and academics accused of acting on foreign-funded 'sovereignty threats.' Human Rights Watch and press-freedom groups had long documented the office's chilling effect on independent media and NGOs. The European Commission had opened an infringement case against the office at the Court of Justice of the EU; the Advocate General's February 2026 opinion concluded its investigative mandate infringed EU fundamental rights and could induce self-censorship among journalists and publishers. The bill, submitted by the governing Tisza party, is among the most concrete rollbacks yet of Orbán-era institutions targeting civil society, alongside the pending removal of President Sulyok and the 8-year PM term-limit amendment passed in May.