Hungary: Information on compulsory military service, including the minimum and maximum ages for call-up, length of service, penalties for avoidance and whether they are enforced
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 November 1995 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | HUN21969.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Hungary: Information on compulsory military service, including the minimum and maximum ages for call-up, length of service, penalties for avoidance and whether they are enforced, 1 November 1995, HUN21969.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6acd670.html [accessed 27 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
According to the MTI Econews attachments of 2 and 13 January 1995 and 15 August 1995, the length of compulsory military service in Hungary is twelve months, but there are plans to reduce this period to nine months. According to the Deutsche Presse-Agentur attachment of 25 November 1994, the twelve-month period for compulsory military service will be reduced to nine or ten months beginning in 1996; the Kossuth Radio Network attachment of 20 August 1994 states that the length of obligatory military service will be reduced to 10 months beginning in February 1996.
According to the MTI Econews attachment of 19 April 1994:
Hungry's new defence law was enacted, in consensus, last December. The law left the 12-month compulsory military service unchanged, but reduced the period of unarmed military service from 15 to 12 months. Civilian service, where soldiers receive basic military training and then work in their trade under a contract between their companies and the army, has been cut from 22 to 18 months. Fathers of two children are called up only for six months, while those of three or more are entirely exempted from military service.
Information on the minimum and maximum ages for military call-up, and the penalties for avoidance of military service and whether they are enforced, could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB 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. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.
References
Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 25 November 1994. BC Cycle. "Hungary to Reduce Size of Armed Forces in Line with NATO Guidelines." (NEXIS)
Kossuth Radio Network [Budapest, in Hungarian]. 20 August 1994. "Defense Ministry Reduces Compulsory Draft Period." (FBIS-EEU-94-162 22 Aug. 1994, p. 15)
MTI Econews [Budapest]. 15 August 1995. "Defence Minister Keleti at Armed Forces Conference." (NEXIS)
_____. 13 January 1995. "Smaller, More Modern Hungarian Army to Use Fewer Conscripts." (NEXIS)
_____. 2 January 1995. "Hungarian Ministry of Defence-Plans for 1995" (NEXIS)
_____. 19 April 1994. "Four Years of Change in Hungarian Army." (NEXIS)
Attachments
Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 25 November 1994. BC Cycle. "Hungary to Reduce Size of Armed Forces in Line with NATO Guidelines." (NEXIS)
Kossuth Radio Network [Budapest, in Hungarian]. 20 August 1994. "Defense Ministry Reduces Compulsory Draft Period." (FBIS-EEU-94-162 22 Aug. 1994, p. 15)
MTI Econews [Budapest]. 15 August 1995. "Defence Minister Keleti at Armed Forces Conference." (NEXIS)
_____. 13 January 1995. "Smaller, More Modern Hungarian Army to Use Fewer Conscripts." (NEXIS)
_____. 2 January 1995. "Hungarian Ministry of Defence-Plans for 1995" (NEXIS)
_____. 19 April 1994. "Four Years of Change in Hungarian Army." (NEXIS)
Other Sources Consulted
Open Media Research Institute (OMRI), Prague. Transition. Bi-Monthly.
Oral sources.
RFE/RL Research Reports [Munich]. Weekly.
Uncaptive Minds [New York]. Quarterly.
