Hungary: Follow-up to HUN39546.E of 9 July 2002 on social assistance available to a young Roma single mother

According to a staff attorney at the European Roma Rights Center, the amount a Roma single mother would receive from social assistance in Hungary would be insufficient for a "decent living" (24 July 2002). The attorney stated that she would surely face discrimination in the acquisition of both housing and social assistance, especially since many Roma do not have a fixed address and therefore cannot obtain proper identification papers required for social programs (ibid.). The attorney further stated that such services as day care and job training could be inaccessible because of the ethnic origin of the mother and because of a lack of identification papers (ibid.). Furthermore, legal recourse requires money to pay for lawyers or to pay fees for complaints and applications to various authorities (ibid.).

A representative of the Hungarian women's rights group NaNE! stated that, although the law forbids all forms of discrimination, a young Roma woman would not receive the information and assistance required to obtain proper social assistance (22 July 2002). The representative also stated that the amount of assistance a young Roma mother would be likely to receive would be insufficient to survive (ibid.):

I would venture...that about the maximum amount she [a young Roma mother] was likely to get if she received all possible moneys (provided no special circumstances occur, such as the infant having some special disease, e.g.) might be around HUF 27,500 at the most, which is USD 120. If she lives alone (i.e. not with her family, having to pay for accommodation), the amount of child benefit does not enable a person to survive and feed a baby as a rule. Again, there might be people who manage somehow, but it might be helpful to know that the minimal wage at the moment in Hungary is HUF 50,000. Social housing dropped drastically since the political change in Hungary...

Being Roma does not help either. Again, based on our experiences regarding prejudices and stereotypes, we believe she probably was advised to get married, to go back to the father of the child, or find 'alternative' ways to get money and/or accommodation. Again, this might not be the case here, but it is usual.

The representative also stated that a young single mother would not have the financial means to pursue legal action, and would not likely be able to provide evidence of discrimination (ibid.). Certain NGO's do provide legal assistance to individuals in need, including the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, NEKI and Roma Women in Public Life, but the representative feels human rights mechanisms in Hungary are insufficient to deal with such cases (ibid.). More generally, the representative stated the following:

I find it very unlikely that there are training courses that take into consideration the specific needs of a woman having to deal with an infant without any help form family members if there is no crèche nearby (i.e. holding courses while offering child-care). As for jobs: I was told by a Social and Family Affairs Ministry official (head of a department) once that she believes and also says so in conferences that employers should first employ men, because the women at least will do the household chores and some garden work too, while men would not do it if it were the women who were employed. I cannot say to what extent [this affects] employers' choices (ibid.).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

References

European Roma Rights Center (ERRC). 24 July 2002. Correspondence received from a staff attorney.

NaNE! Women Together Against Violence. 22 July 2002. Correspondence received from a representative.