Hungary: The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minorities, including its image and its accessibility to Roma

The Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minorities provides the following information on its Website:

Means of submitting a complaint:

Citizens may submit a complaint in writing or orally. It is advisable to attach copies of any pertinent documents that may be necessary in coming to a decision with respect to the case.

Address:

Office of Parliamentary Commissioners

H-1387 Budapest

Post Office Box 40

If you would like to come to the Complaints Office in person, we suggest you indicate this in writing, or call for an appointment.

Telephone: (36-1) 269 35 00

Telefax: (36-1) 269 35 29

E-mail: [email protected]

Complaints Office Hours:

Monday 2:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Wednesday 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Friday 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 Noon

Location: Budapest, V. Tüköry u.3.

Commenting on the Roma's awareness of the Office, a representative of the Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC) stated the following:

To my knowledge the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner is well-known among the Roma living in Hungary.

...

The Parliamentary Commissioner's prestige is very high. He is well-known and respected within the human rights movement and – to my knowledge – also the Roma community (7 Dec. 2001).

However, in a personal comment, Gabor Miklosi, a journalist and the international representative of the Budapest-based Roma Press Centre, stated that

despite the wide publicity of his actions, recommendations and annual reports, the ombudsman, or his activities remain unknown to many people. These people have either limited access to mass media because of financial reasons, or do not understand the related contents due to their lack of education or language difficulties. I would not venture as far as to provide estimations regarding the proportion of these people, but I believe that many rural Romani communities, that are characterized by the above features, are completely unaware of the importance and availability of this institution. The situation is slightly improved by the slowly enhancing Roma emancipation process, the presence of civil rights and legal defense organizations and the Roma Self-Governments (RSGs). The RSG officials usually possess information regarding the Office. Seeking assistance or advice, in a number of cases local RSG presidents contacted the Office. Still, most rural Roma – if knowledgeable about the office – will regard the ombudsman as just another white official in the remote Budapest, who has probably little interest and/or insight in their local matters. This ignorance or distrust is paired with general suspicion on behalf of the majority population, who often use the term 'ombudsman' in a derogatory context, when they learn that local Roma residents have turned to the office with their problems. The above comments refer to all ethnic subgroups, with the additional observation that the language barriers of Wlach and Beash Roma may aggravate the ignorance of, or lack of confidence in the Office (17 Jan. 2002).

According to the HHC representative and Gabor Miklosi, Roma self-governments provide information about the Office to those who enquire (7 Dec. 2001; 17 Jan. 2002), including the procedure to submit claims (7 Dec. 2001).

Regarding Roma's access to the Office, Gabor Miklosi claimed that

because of the severe restrictions on their financial and material resources ... the ombudsman and his Office can access only a limited number of issues. As a general rule the more rural the environment, the less access local people have to services of legal defense institutions like the Office (17 Jan. 2002).

In this regard, the HHC representative indicated that in 2000 the Office had registered 431 complaints, including 291 from Roma (ibid.).

Both the HHC representative and Gabor Miklosi had no reports of difficulties encountered by Roma who resorted to the Office (7 Dec. 2001; 17 Jan. 2002). Elaborating on his comments, the HHC representative added that:

Knowing the commitment of the Commissioner and his colleagues to minority rights, it seems absolutely unimaginable to me that such difficulties would be raised by the staff of the Office. I haven't heard of difficulties caused by other organs to Roma turning to the Office either. Such incidents would definitely be included in the Commissioner's annual report (7 Dec. 2001).

Gabor Miklosi also added the following comment:

I do not think that the Office makes preferences or selections on territorial, ethnic and/or any other unfair bases. I believe that the ombudsman's staff attempt to deal all the upcoming issues, but may be forced to prioritize them with regard to seriousness, impact, the number affected people and other factors (17 Jan. 2002).

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. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Hungarian Helsinki Committee. 7 December 2001. Correspondence from a representative.

Miklosi, Gabor. 17 January 2002. Correspondence.

Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minority Rights [Budapest]. n.d. Information Sheet on Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minority Rights.

[Accessed 5 Dec. 2001]

Additional Sources Consulted

Annual report of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minority Rights, 1 January – 31 December 1998

IRB Databases

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the chair of the Association of Roma Women in Public Life.

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the director of the Autonomia Alapitvany.

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the programme manager of the Delegation of the European Commission to Hungary.

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the National Roma Self-Government.

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the Office of the Parliamentary Commissioner for National and Ethnic Minority Rights.

Unsuccessful attempts to contact the chair of the Roma Civil Rights Foundation.

Internet sites including:

Amnesty International

The Budapest Sun

The European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) [Budapest]

Freedom House

Human Rights Watch

Hungarian Helsinki Committee

International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights

Open Society Institute's Monitoring the European Union Accession Process

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)

Roma Page

US Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights Practices

World News Connection (WNC)