Topic: Refugee and migrant rights

The HHC’s shadow reports and its suggestions for questions to be included in the List of Issues for the UN Human Rights Committee

The “Human Rights Defenders of the Future” the youth group of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, held a Forum Theatre performance on 10 December, on World Human Rights Day. The interactive performance portrayed the problems refugees and foreigners face living in Hungary.

A new handbook is published to support civil society in building strong communities of practice and the first ‘Caring to Include’ toolkit can be accessed that is developed to strengthen the well-being of staff and volunteers who support refugees and people seeking protection.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC), together with the Support Network for Detainees and Their Families (FECSKE), has contributed to the call for input by the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or … Read more

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee participated at the 2025 OSCE Human Dimension Conference. This 11-day conference was dedicated to discussions on the condition of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the OSCE area. The conference provided … Read more

Do you want to:
– get to know how democratic power functions at the local level? 
– be a part of a diverse, young team of refugees, migrants and Hungarians? 
– explore human rights issues faced by refugees in Budapest? 
– learn and have fun with interactive educational methods? 

If yes, apply to the Hungarian Helsinki Committee’s Human Rights Course by 14 September! 

The project encourages and provides practical tools to help youth with refugee background and Hungarian youth  to become active and conscious members of their communities and Hungarian society;  to advocate for their and others human … Read more

WING is a transnational initiative running from 1st June 2025 to 31st May 2027, funded under the CERV programme (Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values) of the European Commission. It is jointly implemented by eight civil society organizations from across … Read more

This report presents key insights from seven refugee-assisting organisations in Europe, including the Hungarian Helsinki Committee. As part of the Caring to Include project, it identifies challenges, good practices, and clear priorities for improving staff mental well-being and embedding trauma-informed approaches.

In a landmark judgment, the European Court of Human Rights has mandated the Hungarian government to pay just satisfaction to three asylum seekers represented by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee after determining their expulsion from Hungary … Read more

June 20 is World Refugee Day. Meanwhile, in Hungary, the word “refugee” has become a slur, and xenophobia underpins government policy. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a human rights organization devoted to defending persecuted people, firmly rejects this approach. Its refugee clients have just won two more cases at the European Court of Human Rights. In both cases, children – even with serious health conditions – were victims of rights violations by Hungarian authorities.

Despite having a Hungarian wife and daughter and living lawfully in Hungary for 31 years, a Turkish father was expelled from the country. He was not even informed of the reasons why his presence was considered a security risk. The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) has awarded him just satisfaction amounting to approximately six million forints, ruling that the Hungarian state expelled him without ensuring a fair trial and adequate judicial remedy. Orhan Demirci was represented by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee.

The Asylum Information Database (AIDA) contains information on asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention and international protection based on data from 24 countries, including Hungary. The report on Hungary for 2024 issued by the Hungarian Helsinki … Read more

The project seeks to provide high-quality, free-of-charge legal assistance and representation to asylum-seekers and other persons of concern to UNHCR in Hungary, as well as to ensure through information provision and situation monitoring, evidence-based advocacy and strategic litigation activities that the … Read more

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

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.

The Hungarian Helsinki Committee has published a handbook on the involvement of young people and teachers in human rights work.

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.

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.

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