Case Law

The case concerned media access to reception facilities for asylum-seekers. The applicant in the case, a journalist for an Internet news portal, complained about the authorities’ refusal of his request to carry out interviews and take photographs at the Debrecen Reception Centre, thus preventing him from reporting on the living conditions there. The Court stressed that research work was an essential part of press freedom and had to be protected. It was not convinced that restricting the applicant’s ability to carry out such research work, which had prevented him from reporting first-hand on a matter of considerable public interest, namely the refugee crisis in Hungary, had been sufficiently justified. In particular, the authorities had only given summary reasons, namely possible problems for the safety and private lives of asylum-seekers, for their refusal, without any real weighing up of the interests at stake.

8 October 2019 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Legal Instrument: 1950 European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) | Topic(s): Freedom of expression | Countries: Hungary

26 April 2017 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Deportation / Forcible return - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Freedom of expression - International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) | Countries: Denmark - Iran, Islamic Republic of

29 December 2016 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Freedom of expression - Honour killings - Prison or detention conditions | Countries: Algeria

1 December 2016 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Freedom of expression - Rule of law / Due process / Procedural fairness | Countries: Canada - Saudi Arabia

24 November 2016 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Effective remedy - Freedom of assembly and association - Freedom of expression | Countries: Belarus

24 November 2016 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Effective remedy - Freedom of assembly and association - Freedom of expression | Countries: Belarus

24 November 2016 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Effective remedy - Freedom of assembly and association - Freedom of expression | Countries: Belarus

19 November 2015 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Exhaustion of domestic remedies - Freedom of assembly and association - Freedom of expression | Countries: Belarus

21 October 2015 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Arbitrary arrest and detention - Effective remedy - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Freedom of assembly and association - Freedom of expression | Countries: France - Uzbekistan

24 September 2015 | Judicial Body: UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) | Topic(s): Arbitrary arrest and detention - Expulsion - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Freedom of expression - International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) | Countries: Egypt