Common declaration on the proposed basic rules for European associations and non-profit organisations operating across borders

During the last week’s plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament adopted an own initiative report requesting the Commission to propose new legislation to remove any control on NGOs or similar organisations which are currently breaking the law, such as working together with human traffickers, or trying to overthrow democratically elected governments through deceit and intimidation.

Our stance is clear; Member States should have the right to defend themselves against any kind of foreign interference and to preserve their culture and traditions.

Civil society organisations should have the right to operate according to national laws, and fundamental rights such as freedom of association, of expression, and of information should be respected, but by no means this should be interpreted as the right to break the law or to act as a Trojan horse to attack Members States’ democratic systems.

With this Report, the European Parliament intends to create a European NGO Agency, which would be set up with the heads of the NGO agencies, representatives of NGOs and academics, thereby reducing Member States’ competences.

This new EU body would be responsible for monitoring the application of the proposed Regulation, would have a say in the funding of NGOs at national and EU level, would operate an e-registration system where cross-border NGOs, also known as “European Associations”, could be registered, and would be subject to scrutiny by the European Parliament and the European Commission. So, once again, the usual federalism: the EU is trying to gain more power at the expense of national sovereignty.

The proposed status impedes national legislation to set transparency requirements from non-profit organisations, in particular regarding the funding of these formations. Even basic information such as the details of the founding, membership, operation, financial revenues and expenditure of NPOs in the future would be considered confidential information, in which neither public authorities nor citizens could have insight.

The EU has to cease on its attempts to circumvent national laws by a fraudulent use of its legislative prerogatives as it poses a risk to security, health and public order, and it constitutes a clear act of political interference and an abuse of their competences thus constituting a violation of the Treaties.

For all these reasons both VOX and Fidesz  delegations to the European Parliament oppose this new EU legislation and we will continue to fight together against this mainstream agenda sponsored by Soros among others, that is willing to end national sovereignty and our culture and traditions.