Hungarian Helsinki Committee
Cases- Location of case in SG report
- 2018-053-001
- Relevant SG report
- Year of the report
- 2018
- From Country
- Country Geolocation
Latitude: 47.162494
Longitude: 19.5033041
- Country Geolocation (linked Cases)
- Hungary
- From Region
- Type of record
- Named organization
- Was the victim a foreign national?
- No
- Was the victim a minor?
- No
- Individual's/organization's activity
advocacy on migrants’ rights at the United Nations
- Type of rights defended
- Migrants’/refugees’/IDP’s rights
- Was the victim a civil servant, member of the security forces or of the judiciary?
- No
- Reported trigger of reprisal
participated in the review of Hungary by the Human Rights Committee during the consideration of the Government’s periodic report in March 2018
- Engagement with UN body
- UN Treaty Bodies: HRC
- Dates of engagement
- March 2018
- Type of attempted engagement
- Participation in meeting on UN premises
- Dates of mentioned reprisals
- 27 June 2018
- Reprisal information
It was reported that the Governing Fidesz party have used language such as calling for “cleaning out [the country]” with reference to civil society. In 2018, there has been a targeted campaign of putting stickers on the doors of NGOs reading ‘organization supporting illegal migration,’ reportedly carried out by coalition partner KDNP (Christian Democrats) or Fidelitas (the youth wing of Fidesz). The Hungarian Helsinki Committee received a sticker on their door on 27 June 2018, while Amnesty International received such a sticker on 12 June 2018. It was reported that the Governing Fidesz party have used language such as calling for “cleaning out [the country]” with reference to civil society. In 2018, there has been a targeted campaign of putting stickers on the doors of NGOs reading ‘organization supporting illegal migration,’ reportedly carried out by coalition partner KDNP (Christian Democrats) or Fidelitas (the youth wing of Fidesz). The Hungarian Helsinki Committee received a sticker on their door on 27 June 2018, while Amnesty International received such a sticker on 12 June 2018.
- Types of reprisals suffered
- Defamation / Defamation campaign
- Threats/Intimidations (incl. "fear of reprisal")
- Alleged/likely perpetrators
- State actors
- Was the reprisal based on new legislation?
- No
- Does the report make general comment about country’s environment for engagement with UN?
- No
- Government response dates
- 3 August 2018
- Government response content
the Government notes it is of the position that “putting stickers on the doors of NGOs does not in any way prevent organizations from availing themselves of UN procedures in the field of human rights.” Further, the Government notes that in the review of the Human Rights Committee, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary only remarked that “serious debates on this issue [migration] were taking place with non-governmental organizations, which exerted their voices in the international space” and that this should not be interpreted as a “call for cleaning out the country” with reference to civil society.
- Is the country cited for a "pattern of reprisal" in the context of this case?
- No
- Is a pattern of reprisals mentioned otherwise in the context of this case?
- No
- Does the report cite "self-censorship" as an issue in the context of this case?
- No
- How many times has the case been followed up in subsequent SG reports?
- 1
- In which SG report was this case followed up on? 0
- 2020
- Follow up information provided in SG report 0
The case of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, a civil society organization working on migration and asylum-related issues, was included in the 2018 report of the Secretary-General in connection to its engagement with the Human Rights Committee in 2018 (A/HRC/39/41, Annex I, paras. 53–55, 58–59). In July 2019, the Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants visited Hungary and regretted that, in the past years, civil society organizations working on migrants’ rights have experienced multiple obstacles in carrying out their work, such as those resulting from legislative amendments, financial restrictions and other operational and practical measures taken by the Government 48 (see also A/HRC/42/30, para. 57 and Annex I, paras. 47–52) and that, as a result, some civil society organizations have been deterred from cooperating with UN entities assisting migrants and refugees (A/HRC/44/42/Add.1, para. 55). 69. The Special Rapporteur referred specifically to a November 2019 ruling of the Supreme Court of Hungary on a 2017 national consultation questionnaire, which contained false allegations about the Hungarian Helsinki Committee pertaining to its work and advocacy on migrants’ rights (para. 55). It is reported to OHCHR that this kind of targeting of the organization is related to its ongoing advocacy with the UN and other international bodies. The Supreme Court established that the Government had damaged the reputation of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee and ordered the Office of the Prime Minister to pay 2 million Hungarian Forints (about USD 6,500) in damages to the NGO. The Court also ruled that the Government should publish an apology to the Committee, both through the National Press Service and on the home page of the official Government website, visible for 30 days. 70. On 24 July 2020, the Government responded to the note verbale sent in connection to the present report stating that it complies with all of its obligations under international law, including by proving access to transit zones for civil society organizations providing humanitarian assistance in agreement with the Government. It provided details on organizations that have been granted access to the facilities, and stressed that the National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing continues to be open to cooperation with civil society organizations and other entities. 71. In regards to the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, the Government provided details of the decision of the Constitutional Court concerning the constitutionality of the provisions of the Criminal Code, relating to the conformity with the Fundamental Law and annulling Section 353/A of the Act C of 2012 on the Criminal Code (facilitation and support of illegal immigration). The response of the Government does not reflect on allegations of intimidation and reprisals concerning civil society organizations assisting migrants and refugees that may have been deterred from cooperating with the UN entities or been subject to smear campaigns, administrative or criminal investigations and reputational damage.
- Followup Trends 0
- Improvement
- Did the government respond? 0
- Yes
- Was this case followed up by a UN body? 0
- UN Special Procedures: Thematic