Protecting ethnic minorities, immigrants, and other vulnerable groups in times of economic uncertainty

Prof. Dr. Máté SZABÓ, The Commissioner for

Fundamental Rights, Hungary

The Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights

Hungary in Europe and the World (cca. 10 million inhabitants)

Accession of Hungary to International Organizations:The UN: 1955OSCE: 1975Council of Europe: 1990OECD:1996NATO: 1999EU: 2004

To Treaties/Conventions:Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees: 1989Convention on the Rights of the Child: 1991CRPD: 2007OPCAT: 2012

FOREIGN VISITORS ON OUR WEBSITE:www.ajbh.hu

Visits (Total)

44,365

% of Total: 100.00% (44,365)   

Country/Territory Visits1. Hungary 41,0662. Germany 4673. (not set) 3514. United Kingdom 2755. United States 2396. Belgium 2227. Austria 2188. Romania 1399. France 127

10. Netherlands 85   31. Australia 1981. New Zealand 0

The Hungarian Ombudsman System:

Legal Background: 1993: Adoption of the Act on the

Parliamentary Commissioner for Civil Rights

2001: CC decision on the scope of authorities the Ombudsman can examine (courts are excluded)

2007: Amendment to the Ombudsman Act: Commissioner for Future Generations established

The Basic Law of Hungary entered into force on 1st January 2012.Article 30 of the new Basic Law contains new provisions on the unified ombudsman system with two deputies.

The new Act on the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights (cardinal law: CXI/2011)

History-Generations: 1995: First Human Rights

ombudsman starts her work:

1995-2001: Dr. Katalin Gönczöl 2001-2007: Dr. Barnabas

Lenkovics 2007- 2012: Prof. Dr. Máté

Szabó

Changes of the Hungarian Ombudsman System in 2012:

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Civil Rights

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Future Generations

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minorities Rights

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information

The Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental RightsOne Commissioner and two Deputies: one responsible for interests of national minorities living in Hungary; and one responsible for the protection of the interests of future generations , e.g.: environmental law

The Hungarian National Authority for Data Protection and Freedom of Information

Ex Officio Investigations in 2012

On children’s rights – A CHILD-FRIENDLY JUSTICE

On PENITENTIARY SYSTEM, reformatory institutions and ASYLUM CAMPS

On the situation of LAWYERS IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS

On PUBLIC WORK and UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

On the issues of HATE SPEECH and local ETHNIC CLASHES

Number of Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Number of asylum applicants in Hungary:

Unaccompanied minor asylum applicants

Total number of minor asylum applicants

Total number of asylum applicants

Immigrants/refugees endangering the country’s security and peace (Eurobarometer, 2005)

16

32

5

18

38

12

26

14

12

32

0 10 20 30 40

Slovenia

Slovakia

Romania

Hungary

Czech Republic

minorities immigrants/refugees

IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES MINORITIES

People who accept that ”immigrants are harmful” (Eurobarometer, 2005)

52

3936

32 31 30 30 29 29

0

15

30

45

60

Greece Portugal Estonia Hungary Czech Republic

United Kingdom

Austria France Belgien

Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Number of complaints on refugee affairs :

2008: 13; 2009: 3; 2010: 11; 2011: 4

Ex officio Ombudsman investigations (2012): On a temporary hostel of restricted access (Nyírbátor) A Special Children’s home & juvenile reformatory institution

(Fót) Children in immigration detention (Békéscsaba) Unaccompanied minors from abroad in Hungarian children’s

homes (Fót)

Case Study I.: On a temporary hostel of restricted access- Nyírbátor

At Nyírbátor temporary hostel of restricted access, mainly single men, illegal migrants coming from countries outside of Europe are held in custody for a period no longer than 12 months.

On-the-spot inspections of the ombudsman Findings: ”WORSE THAN A PRISON!”

Buildings in terrible conditions: the building „A” is practically similar to a prison; while for those accommodated in building „B”, the present circumstances are unsuitable for detention.

Most of the staff members of the temporary hostel of restricted access speak no foreign languages.

continuous verbal violations of human dignity of the detainees

At night, plastic bottles used instead of toilets. In building „B” it is prohibited to open cell’s windows. There are only three public phones available for more

than 200 detainees.

Case Study II.: Children in immigration detention

• THERE IS NO LEGAL BASIS AND THERE ARE NO LEGAL GUARANTEES FOR THE DETENTION OF MINORS.

• An unannounced on-the-spot inspection at the Temporary Detention Facility of Békéscsaba in order to examine the enforcement of the fundamental rights of families with children who live there.

•With a view to deportation, immigration authorities may take into custody for up to 30 days foreign nationality children together with their adult family members for illegally crossing the state borders of Hungary.

•For small children who are unable to comprehend the cause of the detention and estimate its length, 30 days in custody causes a mental stress incompatible with childhood.

•Consequently, this measure does in no way serve the best interests of the child as laid down in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Case Study III.: Unaccompanied minors from abroad in a Hungarian children’s home, Fót

• Before unaccompanied minors seeking asylum had been placed in the refugee accommodation centre of Bicske. (inadequate conditions for providing education and getting to know the country)

• Following the ombudsman’s initiative, the Minister for Social and Labour affairs and the Minister for Public Administration and Justice set up the home of unaccompanied minors in Károlyi István Children’s Centre in Fót.

• The life circumstances of alien minors are considerably better than they were in Bicske.

• The new inquiry highlighted further problems:

- danger to the right to physical and mental health

(No isolation ward where newly arriving youths suffering from infectious diseases or from parasites could be treated and cared for)

- the psychologists and the pedagogical support staff working in the children’s centre are unable to properly deal with the alien minors suffering from ‘posttraumatic stress disorder’.

Estimated number of people belonging to minorities in Hungary (cca.10 million inhabitants)

Estimations Census data from 2001

Living conditions of the Roma people:

Ombudsman Activity Relating to Ethnic and National Minorities

Number of cases of the ombudsman regarding the rights of national and ethnic minorities:

2007: 738

2008: 1033

2009: 1012

2010: 1064

2011: 1248

Ombudsman investigations regarding minority issues (2012):

- Use of national minorities’ languages in the public administration

- functioning of the nationality self-government - ethnic and national minority education- election of national minority representatives

-ROMA POPULATION:• increasing social tensions & discrimination • long-term unemployment• segregated education• hate speeches; hate crimes, ethnic tensions ( e.g.: Gyöngyöspata in 2011)

AJB-2709/2012 : Act on the Rights of National Minorities (Act CLXXIX of 2011)– petition to the CC

Petition is based on the submission of the nationality self-government of a municipality. The requirement of equal treatment is not observed in the Act on the Rights of National

Minorities: it allows ONLY those nationality ORGANIZATIONS to have candidates at nationality self-government elections which are legally QUALIFIED AS OF ‘PUBLIC BENEFIT’.

Petition holds that the regulation linking the status of minorities to the data of the national census is contrary to rule of law and violates the rights of minorities.

It is a restriction of the right to use one’s mother tongue that nationality self-governments MUST DRAW UP MINUTES OF THEIR SITTINGS IN HUNGARIAN EVEN IF THE LANGUAGE OF THE SITTING IS THE MOTHER TONGUE of the given nationality; this also infringes the obligations undertaken by the State and laid down in the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages - stated in the petition.

Another problem is that the assets of nationality self-governments which cannot continue their activities after the 2014 general elections will be taken over by the settlement local governments. But these assets may only be used later for nationality related purposes.

Another provision of the Act is contrary to the presumption of innocence: it holds those representatives who have not taken part in the decision making responsible for any unlawful utilization of nationality self-government assets.

The resources in staff and equipment necessary for the functioning of nationality self-governments must be ensured by the local governments. NATIONALITY REPRESENTATIVES LIVING WITH DISABILITIES, however, may request a sign-interpreter for example only from the nationality self-government, which has a significantly lower budget. This constitutes an unconstitutional discrimination and is also contrary to the international obligations undertaken by Hungary.

Ethnic Conflicts in Gyöngyöspata (Spring of 2011)

Case Study IV.: A local ethnic conflict in Gyöngyöspata

•The public order of an Northeastern village of Gyöngyöspata was disturbed by groups sympathizing with the ideology of the previously disbanded extreme-right organization called Magyar Gárda (Hungarian Guard) in the spring of 2011, with the intention to take over the tasks of police of maintaining law and order against Roma groups and to protest against Roma people living in the village.

•Minority Ombudsman’s findings:

neither the local, nor the relevant national policies have had an adequate response to the social problems enhanced by the financial and economic crisis which resulted in the increased unemployment and social inequality of ROMA inhabitants.

the segregation of ROMA pupils in school and the ghettoization in the field of housing, neither of which can be separated from the events that have occurred in spring 2011 in Gyöngyöspata.

legislative and law enforcement deficiencies: legislative gaps, missing and/or not adequate mediation procedures of state and local authorities.

•The Ombudsman pointed out the fact that: after the conflict, the situation in Gyöngyöspata has NOT BEEN RESOLVED; and EXTERNAL HELP is needed to ease the remaining tensions, fears and to restore peace and tranquility of the village and the country which "split into two parts".

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Thank you for your kind attention!

THE SYMBOL OF THE UNIFIED OMBUDSMAN INSTITUTION: