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Hungarian lawmakers Monday voted overwhelmingly to limit prime ministers' terms in office to a maximum of eight years, a constitutional change that blocks nationalist Viktor Orban's return.The amendment was a key campaign promise of pro-EU conservative Peter Magyar, who in April elections ousted Orban from office, promising sweeping reforms as part of a "regime change".Magyar argued the possibility of limitless tenure can lead to power concentration, pointing to his predecessor as an example, whom critics accused of constantly tweaking Hungary's political system to keep a tight grip on power.Orban's party opposed term limits, arguing that it could possibly restrict popular will.The amendment passed parliament with 135 votes for, 50 against, and six abstentions. Under Hungarian law, such a measure can be passed by a two-thirds supermajority without needing a referendum.Some countries around the globe impose term-limits on their top leaders, with such restrictions usually placed on presidents.The tenure of Hungary's president, whose role is largely ceremonial, is already limited: he can be reelected only once to a second five-year term.The adopted term limit does not completely rule out Orban's return to power, however, as it could be revoked in the future by another constitutional change.This is the 16th time Hungary's Basic Law has been changed since its adoption in 2011.The approved amendment also removed a provision stipulating the need for independent body to "safeguard" the country's "constitutional identity".This was done to prepare the ground for disbanding the Sovereignty Protection Office.The controversial agency, established under the previous government in 2024, was entrusted with broad investigative powers ostensibly to curb "foreign influence".But it mainly targeted Orban's critics, accusing independent media and NGOs like Transparency International of serving foreign interests for its scrutiny of the government.The agency has not released any official reports since Magyar won the election.Hungary's parliament is set to vote on a bill for the agency's dissolution at the end of June. 

Pakistan's parliament approved a sweeping constitutional amendment Thursday granting lifetime immunity to the president as well as the current army chief, a move critics warned would erode democratic checks and judicial independence.The 27th amendment, passed by a two-thirds majority, also consolidates military power under a new Chief of Defence Forces role and establishes a Federal Constitutional Court.The changes grant army chief Asim Munir, promoted to field marshal after Pakistan's clash with India in May, command over the army, air force and the navy.He and other top military brass will enjoy lifelong protections.Under the amendment, any officer promoted to field marshal, marshal of the air force, or admiral of the fleet will now retain rank and privileges for life, remain in uniform, and enjoy immunity from criminal proceedings.Such protections were previously only reserved for the head of state."This constitutional amendment will increase authoritarianism and whatever little semblance of democracy existed in this country will fade away," said Osama Malik, an Islamabad-based lawyer."It will not only remove civilian oversight from the military's activities, it will also completely destroy the military hierarchy where all service chiefs were considered equal under the joint chief system," he told AFP.Pakistan, a nuclear-armed nation of more than 250mn people, has long struggled to balance civilian authority with the military's role in politics.The amendment also shields President Asif Ali Zardari from any criminal prosecution, although that immunity will not apply if he or any other former president later holds another public office.Zardari has faced multiple graft cases, although proceedings were previously stayed.He signed the bill into law following the parliamentary vote.Opposition parties, led by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), tore up copies of the bill in both chambers over the past few days.The amendment also bars courts from questioning any constitutional change "on any ground whatsoever".The bill also creates a Federal Constitutional Court with exclusive jurisdiction over constitutional cases, stripping the Supreme Court of its original powers and transferring pending petitions.Another clause empowers the president to transfer High Court judges on the recommendation of the Judicial Commission, a change critics say could be used to sideline dissenting judges."This is the final nail in the coffin of an independent judiciary and a functioning democracy," PTI spokesman Sayed Zulfiqar Bukhari told AFP.PTI secretary general Salman Akram Raja described the amendment as "deeply undemocratic at its core"."They have given lifetime immunity from criminal prosecution to the president and created a system that concentrates power in one military office," he told AFP.The Senate initially passed the bill on Monday. It was then tweaked and passed by the National Assembly, the lower house, two days later before returning to the upper house for final approval."Sixty-four members are in favour of the passage of the bill and four members are against, so the motion is carried," Senate Chairman Yusuf Raza Gilani said Thursday.It also cleared the 336-member lower house with the required two-thirds majority.