2008 Assessment

This peer-reviewed country report includes:

Integrity Indicators Scorecard: Scores, scoring criteria, commentary, references, and peer review perspectives for more than 300 Integrity Indicators.

Reporter's Notebook: An on-the-ground look at corruption and integrity from a leading local journalist.

Corruption Timeline: Ten years of political context to today's corruption and integrity issues.

Country Facts: Statistical context for each country.

Government accountability is weak in Hungary, particularly in the judiciary, where rules governing conflicts of interest are weak, patronage plays a role in the selection of judges, and the public lacks access to the asset declarations of judges. Furthermore, while the media earned moderate ratings, there are some troubling signs of extensive self-censorship among journalists. In addition, there are no gifts and hospitality rules for either Members of Parliament or civil servants. Political financing also earns weak scores. For instance, regulations on domestic and foreign donations to political parties "can be circumvented by receiving donations from foundations to which no strict disclosure rules apply." On the positive side, Hungary has a strong national ombudsman and audit agency, civil society organizations (CSOs) working on anti-corruption are active, and voting and the electoral process are very strong and inclusive.