Black Friday at Hungarian courts
Sweeping public protest of Hungarian judges against a political deal undermining judicial independence
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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.
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Assessing Hungary’s compliance with conditions to access EU funds
In December 2022, European Union institutions suspended and tied to conditions Hungary’s access to EU funds under various procedures due to severe breaches of the rule of law and human rights. Ahead of the upcoming re-assessment by the Commission and the Council in the framework of the conditionality mechanism in December 2024, Hungarian civil society organisations looked at the steps the Hungarian government has taken to date to address the deficiencies identified by the Commission and the representatives of Member States in the Council.
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The Constitutional Court gave the green light to state arbitrariness – the case against the Sovereignty Protection Office continues in Strasbourg
The Constitutional Court today rejected the constitutional complaint of Transparency International Hungary. This allows, at least for the time being, all the arbitrary provisions of the Sovereignty Protection Act that threaten the freedoms of citizens and the operation of independent news outlets and NGOs to remain in effect. NGOs will not back down and will continue to challenge the government’s dangerous political project before every possible legal forum.
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Disregard for EU values: a snapshot of rule of law issues in Hungary in light of the Article 7 procedure
Six years have passed since the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on the Council of the European Union to determine, pursuant to Article 7(1) of the Treaty of the European Union, the existence of … Read more
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Criteria for monitoring the operation and activities of the National Judicial Council of Hungary
Over the past years, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee and Amnesty International Hungary as human rights watchdog organisations have been closely monitoring the situation of the Hungarian judiciary as part of their activity aimed at defending human rights and the rule of law. Besides keeping track of legislative changes affecting the courts, we also examine and evaluate the organisation of the judiciary, the activities and statements of court administration actors and judicial bodies. In line with our former practice, we will continue to monitor the activities of the National Judicial Council (NJC), the highest judicial self-governing body mandated to supervise the central administration of courts.
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Clear Principles, Divergent Practices: The Right to Know in National Security Related Immigration Matters in EU Member States
A comprehensive research study on how the issue of applicants’ right to know and to access classified information is regulated in immigration-related proceedings in the Member States of the European Union, and whether national frameworks are in line with European standards was published earlier in 2024 by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee. The study identified a number of breaches of these standards, which are now specifically highlighted in a policy brief, primarily with the purpose of drawing the European Committee’s attention to these breaches and the need to monitor compliance issues in this area.
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‘TÁMASZ’ project – Support for the relatives of detainees (2024-2025)
The aim of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee’s project is to improve the quality of contact in prisons. The preservation of family ties is fundamental to the reintegration of prisoners, so it is not only in … Read more
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More serious action needed on police ill-treatment
In October 2024, the Hungarian Helsinki Committee submitted its observations to the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on the Gubacsi v. Hungary group of cases for the 7th time. This group of … Read more
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Statements & Written Submissions at the 2024 OSCE Warsaw Human Dimension Conference
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee participated at the 2024 OSCE Human Dimension Conference and took the floor and provided written submissions on the situation of human rights defenders and civic space, on the rights of asylum-seekers … Read more
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The Hungarian Helsinki Committee has been awarded the Paul Weis Prize
We received this year’s Paul Weis Prize for our commitment to human rights, the rule of law, and refugees. This recognition gives us further encouragement, not only in the field of asylum but also in other areas of civil rights advocacy.
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The Hungarian government can’t fool the Strasbourg judges
The Hungarian state violated the human rights of an asylum-seeking boy when it unlawfully detained him for 86 days in prison conditions in the Röszke and Tompa transit zones, the European Court of Human Rights … Read more
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Child-friendly Hungary: boy detained for 82 days, with fewer rights than a prisoner
The Hungarian state violated a 15-year-old Afghan asylum-seeker boy’s human rights when it unlawfully detained him in a prison-like transit zone in Röszke, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled. The Hungarian Helsinki … Read more
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Iranian Christian asylum-seeker gets fair compensation for unlawful detention and mistreatment in Hungary
The Hungarian state violated A.P.’s human rights when it unlawfully detained him for more than a year and even starved him in the Röszke transit zone, ruled the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) today. … Read more
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Just one particularly shameful case of the thousands of push-backs from Hungary
Hungarian police forced a family of six asylum seekers into Serbia unlawfully. The European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Hungarian state had violated the prohibition of collective expulsion. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee represented … Read more
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No excuses for a family’s unlawful detention and starving
The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has ruled against Hungary in another transit zone case. The asylum-seeking mother and her four children were unlawfully detained under inhuman conditions for 17 months. The Hungarian Helsinki … Read more
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WEBINAR – Access to Classified Data in National Security Related Immigration Cases
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee is organising a webinar from 9 AM to 3 PM on 17 October 2024 on ‘Access to Classified Data in National Security Related Immigration Cases’ together with the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) and the Polish Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights (HFHR).
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Breaking barriers: justice for children with imprisoned parents
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee coordinated a coalition of three civil society organisations (CSOs) working in Hungary to contribute to General Comment 27 of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (UN CRC), which focuses on children’s rights to access to justice and effective remedies. In its draft General Comment, the CRC aims to clarify the terms, approaches and actions that States should take to implement the right of all children to access to justice and effective remedies when their rights under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child fail to be respected.
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STARLIGHT webinar: Unlocking the power of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee and the Hertie School are holding a closing webinar for the STARLIGHT programme on Thursday, 12 September 2024 at 10:00-11:30 CET on Zoom. Registration is now open!
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STARLIGHT unlocks the power of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights for 120 human rights lawyers
The two-year novel capacity-building programme by the Hertie School Executive Education and the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, concludes in Berlin.