Documents published by the watchdog organization have revealed that it was Prime Minister Viktor Orbán himself who initiated the investigation.
The investigation meant that more than 50 lawfully operating NGOs were dragged through mud for no legitimate reason. In the end, none of them was found guilty.
In at least one case the court admitted that the proceedings had been unjustified and unlawful.
According to the HCLU, the fact that the prime minister himself decided to harass NGOs only reinforces the view that it was a political attack against civil organizations.
Further questions are raised by the fact that Viktor Orbán denied in an interview he gave to a German newspaper that he had any knowledge of the public proceedings against one of the concerned NGOs.