Political Freedoms and Rights in Relation to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Poland and Hungary in a Comparative Legal Perspective

Abstract

The subject of the article are selected political rights and freedoms guaranteed by the Polish and Hungarian constitutions, which are analysed in the context of possible limitations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The analysis covers the right to vote in elections and referendums, the freedom of expression and opinion, and the freedom of assembly. The main aim of the article is to identify similarities and differences in the legal solutions adopted in Poland and Hungary in the context of restrictions or threats to political freedoms and rights. As a result of the research carried out, the authors positively verified the hypothesis that Poland and Hungary, although they chose different methodologies to implement the specific legal order applicable due to the coronavirus pandemic, namely Hungary has introduced one of the constitutional states of exception, i.e. the state of danger, while Poland did not introduce a state of natural disaster, the formula for sanctioning restrictions on political freedoms and rights with secondary legislation was similar in both countries. The authors express the view that continuous efforts should be made to develop legal institutions that would allow for a balance between the need to preserve political rights and freedoms and the need to make quick decisions in relation to the pandemic and citizens’ right to health. A pandemic should never be an excuse for those in power to restrict political freedoms and rights for longer periods of time, so as not to make these freedoms and rights the next victims of the SARS-CoV–2 virus.