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Budapest, 8 March, 2021

Dear President and Vice-Presidents,

On behalf of the Center for Fundamental Rights, a Budapest-based Christian conservative research institute for legal analysis, we would like to express our sincere concerns over the attempt of some Members of the „so called” LGBTTI Intergroup to exert political pressure on the nomination of dr. Tymoteusz Zych as Member of the European and Social Committee (EESC).

The role of the EESC should be to represent diverse groups and point of views. Freedom of expression is a fundamental right not only enshrined in the EU Treaties, but without it there could be no democratic political system at all. We are concerned that political correctness and the dogmatic way of thinking that attaches to this fundamental right are becoming more and more prevalent in Europe as well, making it impossible to have a real dialogue under the guise of neutrality.

We are convinced that the European Union must take firm action against political correctness, because it would create an opinion-monopoly; eliminate pluralism of opinion and political communities that have different point of view from mainstream political tendencies. The article 300 section 4 of the Treaty on the Functioning of European Union states that „the members of the Economic and Social Committee and of the Committee of the Regions shall not be bound by any mandatory instructions. They shall be completely independent in the performance of their duties, in the Union’s general interest”.

We ask you to stand firmly in defense of this basic idea of EESC: that members can have different views, which should be subject to substantial discussion. We strongly believe that democratic society needs dialogue, not exclusion. Attempt to exert any level of political pressure in order exclude representative of Polish Federation of NGOs (Konfederacja Organizacji Pozarzadowych Rzeczypospolitej) from the Diversity Europe Group is unacceptable and contrary to the procedural rules of the functioning of the European Union.

As the signatories of this letter, we strongly condemn the attempt of this exclusion and since Liberals always argue about the importance of dialogue and understanding of each other, by their own standards the exclusion of others should and must not be tolerated.

Your sincerely,

Miklós Szánthó – Director

István Kovács – Strategic Director