The Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC) has published an information update on the violations of the rights of third-country nationals in the country’s transit zones, including the deprivation of food. The HHC has challenged the practises of the Hungarian Immigration and Asylum Office (IAO) on a case by case basis at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) to stop the starvation of detainees.
Between February 2019 and the publication of the update, the HHC have had to apply for interim measures on behalf of 13 people who have been deprived of food in transit zones. In each instance, the HHC have had to apply to the ECtHR for emergency interim measures in order to get food to those detained.
The IAO also fails to examine the merits of protection claims under the new asylum regulations and exposes applicants to a risk of refoulement. Under the new regulations in Hungary, applicants for asylum are held in transit zones throughout the duration of the procedure. Following a refusal of an asylum seeker’s application, the authorities have justified depriving applicants in these transit zones of access to basic provisions, including food.
For further information:
- AIDA, Country Report Hungary– 2018 Update, March 2019
- ECRE, Constitutional Court Fails to give sufficient protection to people and organisations working to protect the rights of asylum seekers, 8 March 2019
- HHC/ECRE, Crossing a Red Line: How EU Countries Undermine the Right to Liberty by Expanding the Use of Detention of Asylum Seekers upon Entry, 8 February 2019
Photo: (CC) Michael Gubi, October 2015
This article appeared in the ECRE Weekly Bulletin . You can subscribe to the Weekly Bulletin here.