The European Commission has voiced support for Budapest’s Central European University.
Vice-President Frans Timmermans hailed the CEU as “the pearl and the crown of central Europe” in a speech on Wednesday, April 12. Timmermans said the university nurtures “a new generation of European leaders that see east and west as geographical denomination, not moral or political denominations” and thus needed to be protected. He also recalled the “feeling of repression” in Hungary before the fall of the Berlin Wall and vowed to fight for liberty, openness and European cooperation.
The Hungarian government has been criticized for posing restrictions on foreign universities and non-governmental organisations. Hungarian President Janos Ader signed amendments to the Higher Education Act into law on Monday. The new legislation bans non-EU registered higher education institutions from awarding diplomas and requires NGOs receiving foreign donations of at least $24,500 to register with the government as foreign-funded groups, Reuters reported.
The European Union is investigating the new Hungarian law.
