Border monitoring report 2011
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, the National Police Headquarters and the UNHCR Regional Representation in Central Europe present their annual report on border monitoring activities carried out in 2011.
The report summarizes the experience gathered in 2011 and presents joint recommendations to Hungarian authorities.
Similarly to previous years, the three cooperating parties call the attention of Hungarian law enforcement agencies and immigration authorities that the principle of non-refoulement – as set forth in Article 33 of the 1951 Refugee Convention – has to be absolutely respected when carring out border management activities. The application of Article 31 of the above Convention remains problematic, whereas criminal charges are automatically brought agaist asylum seekers in case they enter the country with forged travel documents, which is in clear contradiction with the provisions of the Convention.
In 2011 the number of unaccompanied minors increased and it seems that their situation remains unsolved. Hungarian authorities often send them back to Serbia (where they came from) without carefully examining their situation and the child protection regime in Serbia upon return.
The project was supported by the UNHCR Regional Representation in Central Europe.