RuleOfLaw Legislating fear
excluding and threatening dissenters on a constitutional level
Sovereignty Protection Act in Breach of EU Law
All of our materials related to the Sovereignty Protection Office
Relevant Helsinki Files
-
Legislating fear – excluding and threatening dissenters on a constitutional level
Recent legislative proposals threaten with the “suspension” of Hungarian citizenship, violate freedom of assembly, and effectively ban Pride. These changes represent a significant escalation in the Government’s efforts to suppress dissent and weaken human rights protection, and elevate exclusion and the threatening of dissenters to a constitutional level.
-
Court of Justice of the European Union: the gender of trans people in national registers must be corrected
According to the judgment rendered by the CJEU, the GDPR obliges Hungarian authorities to correct personal data on gender identity where it is inaccurate, i.e. in all cases where the social reality and gender identity … Read more
-
Persecuted in Iran, imprisoned in Hungary, found justice in Strasbourg
Hungarian authorities violated an Iranian asylum seeker’s human rights by detaining him under inhumane and degrading conditions for 13 months in the Tompa transit zone, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee’s client was awarded €4,500 in just satisfaction. With this, the human rights NGO has now won its 110th case in Strasbourg.
-
Human Rights Defenders of the Future – handbook
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee has published a handbook on the involvement of young people and teachers in human rights work.
Looking for older content? Use our search engine!
-
Three hellishly difficult years for Ukraine and people fleeing the war
Ukraine has been defending itself against the invasion of Putin’s Russia for three years. Currently, tens of thousands of refugees from Ukraine live in Hungary. While the government keeps restricting its support to them, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee has so far provided information and legal assistance to over 14,000 people fleeing the war in Ukraine. Interview with Anikó Bakonyi, Refugee Programme Director at the Hungarian Helsinki Committee.
-
Submissions to UN Special Rapporteurs in the context of elections in Hungary in 2024
The UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and of Association and the Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Opinion and Expression are working on reports on elections for the Human Rights Council in June … Read more
-
The last piece of the puzzle? An assessment of the NHRI’s performance
How the Ombudsperson’s weak independence and concentrated mandates weaken fundamental rights protection – Human rights defenders assess the performance of Hungary’s national human rights institution
-
Discriminatory restriction of national minorities’ voting rights remain unresolved
Hungary continues to deny equal voting rights to members of national minorities, despite the European Court of Human Rights’ final ruling in the Bakirdzi and E.C. v. Hungary case in April 2023.
-
HHC addresses European Parliament’s LIBE Committee on Hungary’s backsliding on democracy and the rule of law
The European Parliament’s LIBE Committee invited the HHC to an exchange of views on Hungary’s backsliding on democracy and the rule of law, on 27 January 2025.
Watch the full exchange of views on the European Parliament’s website here.
-
Hungarian CSOs contribute to the European Commission’s 2025 Rule of Law Report
For the sixth year in a row, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee is contributing to the European Commission’s annual Rule of Law Report in coordination with other Hungarian human rights and anti-corruption CSOs in the framework of the stakeholder consultation launched by the European Commission
-
Team Hungary Newsletter: Results of the DigiRights Research Project
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee is participating in a European research project examining the impact of digitalisation on procedural rights in criminal proceedings in Hungary. The project aims to promote the implementation of digitalisation in criminal proceedings in a way that ensures the consistent and complete enforcement of procedural rights, providing a uniform and adequate level of protection across the EU.
-
Inhumane detention conditions remain widespread in Hungarian prisons
Despite rulings by the European Court of Human Rights and repeated calls by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe over the past 13 years, Hungary still fails to tackle prison overcrowding and inhumane detention conditions. As a result, large-scale rights violations persist.
-
Persisting threats to the freedom of expression of judges
More than eight years have passed since the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered its judgment in the Baka v. Hungary case. The implementation of the judgment would require Hungary to pass legislative measures … Read more
-
Family of six unlawfully detained in transit zone
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled against the Hungarian state, in favour of a family seeking asylum . The ruling states that the Hungarian authorities violated the human rights of four children and two adults by unlawfully detaining them in the transit zone and withholding food. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC) represented the family in this case, marking their 109th favourable ruling at the ECtHR.
-
The Right to Know – Legal Template on EU and International Law Regarding Disclosure of Classified Information in Asylum and Return Procedures Based on National Security Grounds
This Template presents the relevant EU law and the relevant Court of Justice of the European Union case law, as well as the pertinent provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights and the applicable … Read more
-
Presidential retaliation against critical opinions at the Kúria
In quick succession, András Varga Zs., the President of the Kúria, Hungary’s apex court, has retaliated against two employees to silence professional criticism of his activities. By suppressing the expression of opinions, the Kúria President … Read more
-
Physical separation during prison visits in Hungary: considerable improvements and remaining concerns
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC) utilised all human rights CSO tools (research, advocacy, empowerment, strategic litigation, public- and professional awareness raising) to eliminate mandatory glass partitioning between inmates and their family members in Hungarian prisons during visits for seven years. The seven-year-long status quo is currently changing.
-
Attempts at the Kúria to silence judicial dissent
Breaches of the freedom of expression of judges have been a long-standing problem in Hungary. The individual instances may not be as blatant as in the case of Poland, however, the issue is persistent: for … Read more
-
Black Friday at Hungarian courts
Sweeping public protest of Hungarian judges against a political deal undermining judicial independence
-
Judges’ salary is a public matter, and not an issue of personal finances
The Hungarian judges speaking up for judicial independence in the form of statements published on the homepage of two judicial associations use words like “treason”, “humiliation”, “abuse”, “bribery”, “blackmail”, “starving the judiciary out”, “leashing”, a “slap in the face”, “bleeding out”, and even a “sneaky political game”. The judges felt compelled to speak up publicly against the “Agreement” concluded recently by judicial leaders, the National Judicial Council and the government. As the judges point out, the document is not the result of the fair negotiations of equal parties: the “discussion was unilateral”, and only the government’s will prevailed.