A/HRC/33/9
could never harm the dignity of any community, giving the chance to fight against hate
speech.
75.
The new Civil Code of 2014 entitles any member of a community to enforce his
personality rights in the event of a false and malicious statement made in public at large for
being part of the Hungarian nation or of a national, ethnic, racial or religious group. The
application of the Criminal Code was the ultima ratio, but racism-motivated hate speech
needed to be combated. The delegation noted that, after the adoption of the new
Fundamental Law, an act regarding paramilitary organizations had also been adopted that
made it a criminal offence to organize other people against a particular community. The
delegation considered that civil society could also operate as a sort of alarm system, with
the support from the Government to do so.
76.
On the migration issue, the delegation explained that — while taking into account
the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees — according the Schengen
agreement, any irregular migrant could be sanctioned. In that regard, the issue of safe third
countries should be taken into account, and Hungary considered Serbia to be a safe country
because the lives of individuals were not at risk there. The delegation also explained it was
very difficult to control people coming through the green border and that was why transit
zones had been established where people could enter its territories in a regular way. All the
applications and procedures had been launched in connection with those who had entered
Hungarian territories through the transit zones, while medical help and legal assistance had
been provided.
77.
The delegation indicated that efforts against human smugglers were of major
importance, as was the criminalization of acts in connection to human smuggling, referring
to stories about people dying in trucks. It expressed its intention to cooperate with the
Office of the Unite Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and to address the situation
of children and unaccompanied minors.
78.
The delegation asserted that religious diversity and religious tolerance had a long
tradition in Hungary. There was no prejudice against Islam in Hungary and such acts had
no historical context. In Hungary, over 1,000 Muslim university students received a State
grant, enjoyed absolute protection and experienced the tolerant side of Hungarian society
on a daily basis. The delegation stated that Hungary was home to the third largest Jewish
community in the European Union.
79.
The delegation stated that Hungary was very diverse regarding ethnic and national
minorities, 13 of which were registered as having the right of self-governance. In 2011,
during its presidency of the European Union, Hungary initiated the European Roma
Strategy, which continued through the Hungarian National Social Inclusion Strategy and
aimed to ensure that, in the areas such as education, housing and health care, the Roma
minority was supported in order to be a fully integrated group in Hungarian society.
Hungary was against segregation, and the delegation pointed out that, in 2014, a mediumterm strategy had been established to combat segregation and integrate Roma into
mainstream society, including measures concerning early school-leaving and school dropouts.
80.
The Government considered policy concerning the family, women and the
protection of children as one integral issue. Women were enabled to reintegrate into the
labour force after giving birth. Although there were no female ministers in the Government,
there were several female State Secretaries and many women working in senior positions in
the governmental and non-governmental sectors.
81.
Full protection to the rights of children was provided and the Ombudsman had a
very unique set of tools. The office of the representative for children’s rights had been
GE.16-11654
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