We are delivering the winter issue of the online journal V4 Human Rights Review, which reports on developments in the areas of human rights and democracy in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

We start with a report from the V4 conference on democracy, rule of law and human rights written by Pavel Doubek. The main focus of the conference was on judicial independence, as well as on hate speech and discrimination. What are the opinions of each country’s experts on recent developments in these areas? 

In the Czech section, Eliška Hronová discusses the gender pay gap, as the Czech Republic is one of the countries with the highest gender pay gap in Europe. In her article she focuses on how pay transparency could contribute to the reduction of pay inequality.

In the Hungarian section, Péter Kállai explains the recent developments with regard to the disruption of the largest Hungarian news portal. What are its consequences for media freedom in Hungary?

In the Polish section, Łukasz Szoszkiewicz provides an insight into the situation of the LGBT+ community. The matter gained attention this summer after an LGBT+ activist was arrested, which triggered various reactions not only in Poland.

In the Slovak section, Erik Láštic reflects on how the judges of the Constitutional Court are selected and focuses on events that took place over the last two years, including the recent developments that give rise to optimism.

We hope you enjoy this issue!

We are delivering the autumn issue of the online journal V4 Human Rights Review, which reports on the developments in the areas of human rights and democracy in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

We start with a contribution by Hanna Suchocka from the University of Poznań, who was also a long-term member of the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe. Her article focuses on the independence of the judiciary and the role of High Judicial Councils not only in Poland.

Jana Šikorská then informs us about the decision of the Court of Justice of the EU, which found that the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland violated EU law by refusing to take in refugees.

In the Czech section, Zuzana Jarabinská discusses the failure of the Czech Republic to establish a national human rights institution (NHRI) and makes several proposals regarding how this could be done.

In the Hungarian section, Alíz Nagy explains why the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention) has still not been ratified by the Hungarian parliament.

In the Polish section, Krzysztof Dwiecki provides an insight into the recent presidential elections, which were affected by several controversies. How did the elections organized during the pandemic period unfold?

In the Slovak section, Erik Láštic reflects on the means of direct democracy, in particular the use of referenda for different political purposes in Slovakia.

We hope you enjoy this issue!

We are delivering the summer issue of the online journal V4 Human Rights Review, which provides information on the developments in the areas of human rights and democracy in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

We start with a contribution by Veronika Haász concerning the role of National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) in the V4 countries. The author explains the competences and importance of NHRIs as independent guardians and promoters of human rights. Furthermore, she discusses the current situation in all four countries with regard to the existence, work and impact of these institutions.

In the Czech section, Eliška Hronová focuses on procedural safeguards of children under the age of criminal responsibility. Are the rights of children under 15 years of age sufficiently safeguarded?

In the Hungarian section, Veronika Czina explains the widely discussed measures that the Hungarian government adopted to increase its powers amidst the fight against the coronavirus. To what extent are democratic values and the rule of law endangered?

In the Polish section, Artur Pietruszka reflects on the question of independence of the new Disciplinary Chamber for judges. Based on the ruling of the Court of Justice of the EU, the Polish Supreme Court examined this issue. How did the Constitutional Tribunal respond?

In the Slovak section, Erik Láštic discusses the results of parliamentary elections and how the new government led by an anti-corruption movement had to deal immediately with the pandemic. 

We hope you enjoy this issue!

We are delivering the spring issue of the online journal V4 Human Rights Review, which provides information on the developments in the areas of human rights and democracy in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia.

We bring you an interview with Mr Pavol Žilinčík, who is a member of the Judicial Council in Slovakia. His professional focus is on safeguarding judicial independence and strengthening the accountability of the judiciary. How does he evaluate the developments in Slovakia and other V4 countries?

Jana Šikorská then informs us about the new pact of the four capital cities - Budapest, Warsaw, Bratislava and Prague - in which the mayors pledged to stand against illiberal policies in their respective countries.

In the Czech section, Pavel Doubek discusses a dispute between Archbishop Dominik Duka and a theatre, which was characterised by a conflict between religious freedom and freedom of artistic expression.

Alíz Nagy from the Hungarian section focuses on cases of segregation of Roma children in primary schools. What was the courts’ reaction and the opinion of the Prime Minister?

In the Polish section, Witold Płowiec explains the ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU, which held that the Supreme Court must ascertain the independence of the new Disciplinary Chamber.

Erik Láštic from the Slovak section reflects on the state of the judiciary. Although it was granted self-regulation, it is confronted with the lowest trust among public institutions. What led to such a situation?

We are delivering the second issue of the new online journal V4 Human Rights Review, which updates you on recent developments in the areas of human rights and democracy in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. We are proud to organize this project together with our expert partners from all V4 countries.

The introductory contribution was written by Kateřina Šimáčková, a Judge of the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic, who is also a representative in the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe. In her article, Judge Šimáčková focuses on how the Venice Commission deals with issues regarding judicial independence, illustrating the problem on examples of recent developments in Hungary and Poland.

In the Czech section, Aneta Frodlová starts with the 30 years of freedom anniversary and looks back on the 1989 Velvet Revolution in the former Czechoslovakia, as well as on the events in other V4 countries.

In the Hungarian section, Veronika Czina reflects on whether Hungarian judges can request a preliminary ruling from the Court of Justice of the EU regarding their own independence. Péter Kállai then discusses the current situation with the Hungarian media.

Artur Pietruszka from the Polish section clarifies a smear campaign that was uncovered in August, in which several governmental officials created an informal group with the aim of discrediting some Polish high-level judges.

In the Slovak section, Erik Láštic explains how free access to information in Slovakia serves as an efficient tool to hold the government accountable. Furthermore, Max Steuer focuses on current issues concerning free speech in Slovakia.

We hope you enjoy reading it!

You have the first issue of the V4 Human Rights Review in front of you. How did this happen?

This year we commemorate 30 years since the four ‘Visegrad countries’, which include the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, began their journey to become liberal democracies.  Over the years, these central European states established systems based on respect for personal liberties, rule of law and human rights.

Nevertheless, there are numerous threats to the quite new democracies, such as efforts to undermine judicial independence, restrict the rule of law or certain fundamental rights, as well as xenophobia, advance of populism and polarization of the societies. These challenges can only be successfully tackled if people are well-informed about the phenomena.

In our opinion, on the one hand, there are a number of rather superficial articles, both on paper as well as on the internet. On the other hand, there are also well-researched scholarly articles. However, the general public might find those too daunting to read, and thus their insights often go unnoticed outside of academia. Therefore, we decided to launch a joint project in which leading human rights institutes from each V4 country will choose experts to write shorter, easy to read articles on current developments in the areas of human rights and democracy.

We feel that in many ways the V4 countries tend to behave similarly. Thus, we believe that by objectively informing about actual developments, we can contribute to preventing democratic backsliding.

The V4 Human Rights Review will be an online quarterly publication. We wish you enjoyable reading!