11 April 2025
We, Hungarian international lawyers, observing with great concern the recent international and domestic events, guided by the best of our knowledge, professional convictions, and social responsibility, issue the following statement on certain current issues with international law relevance.
- Bowing our heads before the victims who suffered horrors shocking the conscience of humanity, we declare our firm commitment to international efforts to eradicate the culture of impunity. We pay tribute to the historic results of all these efforts, which, at the end of the last century, led, inter alia, to the adoption of the Rome Statute establishing the International Criminal Court in The Hague, constituting a civilizational milestone. We emphasize that all States Parties must comply with their international obligations under the Rome Statute to hold perpetrators of the most serious international crimes accountable. Bearing in mind that withdrawing from the International Criminal Court is an option to all States Parties, we recall that any such measure weakens the possibilities for preventing the most egregious international crimes, international efforts to protect victims of crimes and hold perpetrators accountable, and may harm the international relations and reputation of the State concerned.
- Recalling that our predecessors established the United Nations in the aftermath of the Second World War with the express objective to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, we are shocked to see armed conflicts erupting on the European continent and in many other parts of the world. Since Russia committed aggression against Ukraine first with the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and then the subsequent armed attack launched on 24 February 2022, we draw attention to the fact that a State that is the victim of an armed attack may legitimately request and receive external assistance in exercising its inherent right to self-defense. We also draw attention to the fact that the acquisition of territory by using force cannot be recognized as lawful, and that changing state borders is only possible through peaceful means, with the full consent of the States concerned, without any external coercion.
- We also emphasize that our inalienable human rights, recognized after a long struggle, ensure the well-being of all of us. They protect the individual against potential abuses by authorities and strive to ensure living conditions worthy of a human being. Recalling that every person has the basic human right to return to their own country, we consider the ‘suspension of citizenship’ an unprecedented conception in international law, which, in our opinion, can easily be abused. The expulsion of a State’s own nationals from their country may, in some cases, constitute a form of exile and inhuman treatment, and appears to be contrary to human rights conventions ratified by the State concerned. Similarly, we recall that the essence of human rights, including the freedom of assembly and freedom of expression, which cannot be restricted by law, must not be less than the minimum level of protection required by international law.
I hereby sign the document ‘Statement of Hungarian international lawyers against the blatant disregard for international law’.
I consent to the processing and disclosure of the indicated data.
Ádány, Tamás
Baller, Barbara
Berkes, Antal
Csapó, Zsuzsanna
Ganczer, Mónika
Hoffmann, Tamás
Horváth, Valéria Eszter
Jeney, Petra
Kajtár, Gábor
Kaponyi, Erzsébet
Kardos, Gábor
Kecskés, Gábor
Kende, Tamás
Kirs, Eszter
Kis, Kelemen Bence
Kiss, Amarilla
Komanovics, Adrienne
Lamm, Vanda
Lattmann, Tamás
Mihajlov, Dobromir
Molnár, Tamás
Nagy, Boldizsár
Nagy, Noémi
Őszéné Takó, Dalma
Sulyok, Gábor
Sulyok, Katalin
Szalai, Anikó
Szappanyos, Melinda
Sziebig, Orsolya Johanna
Szigeti, D. Péter
Tóth, Norbert
Török, Csaba
Vizi Balázs
Nemzetközi jog 