News program

“Gyöngyöspata is a frightening example of „law and order”. Do we really want to set this as an example?” – the first sentence of the report already suggests the essence of Ernő Kállai’s observations. In December, the minority ombudsman published his report on public employment, the procedural practice of minor offense authorities, and the state of education in Gyöngyöspata. In his report, Ernő Kállai demonstrates the effects of measures taken on the public morale and the cohabitation of Roma and non-Roma since his investigation in the spring.

Lajos Gubcsi, former Director of Zrínyi Media Ltd. – a background institution of the Ministry of National Defense – initiated a defamation lawsuit against József Spirk, journalist of Index.hu, the leading online news provider in Hungary. The HCLU’s Legal Aid Service provided legal representation. The court ruled that facts written in the article were well-founded and as a result ruled in favor of the journalist. The ruling is final.

The video introduction of HCLU's  'Roma Program not only for Romas'

By today, the situation created by the inability of all Hungarian ruling governments since the transition in 1989 to reform the education, pension and health care systems has become unbearable. The political elite has failed in every aspect. The currently ruling Orban-government is proving over and over again why there is a great need for the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union. The only question that remains to be answered is how to involve people in the work and the supporting of the HCLU, says Balázs Dénes, Executive Director of the organization.

István Pálffy and Tamás Sáringer-Kenyeres, both MPs of the Christian Democratic Party (KDNP) have submitted a proposal to Parliament to reallocate funds from abortions to child protection and to incite adoptions. 45 organizations called the government’s attention to the fact that in case the Parliament were to adopt the proposal, the most vulnerable women would find themselves in even worse situations and that the proposal is against Hungary’s international commitments. The Parliament voted on the proposal on December 13th.

After being reported to police by unnamed individuals, Dopeman, a Hungarian rapper was summoned to the police station and questioned as a witness after coming out with a rap song which contained lines from the Hungarian National Anthem.

“Besides the fact that we find half of the tasks in the Gyöngyöspata Committee’s resolution to be disquieting, we find great flaw in that fact that none of the tasks involve the government, nor the examination of the responsibility of any police organizations,” said Eszter Jovánovics, Head of the Roma Program in the HCLU during the hearing held on October 27th 2011. In this meeting, the agenda of the Gyöngyöspata Committee (whose full name is “The committee investigating the process of uniformed crime, its background and events in Gyöngyöspata, as well as helping eliminate such crime) included the questioning of nonprofit organizations.