Hungary - Universal Periodic Review

UPR 39, November 3, 2021
Recommendations by Canada

Recommendations

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Thank you, Madam President.

Canada welcomes the strong commitment made by Hungary to strengthen international human rights bodies, including the UN Human Rights Council, of which Hungary was an active member in the period 2017-2019.

Canada recommends that Hungary:

1. Improve the human rights protection of all individuals, including immigrants, refugees and other displaced persons, by strengthening democratic institutions, including the Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights.
2. Take measures to protect the rights of LGBTI persons, including by enabling authorities to change an individual’s sex designation in official documents to reflect their gender identity. Concerns continue around the Children’s Protection Act passed in June 2021 that prohibits sharing content on homosexuality or sex reassignment with people under 18 in school sex education programmes, films or advertisements..
3. Take further steps to improve education, housing and social protection of Romani, particularly children, including by addressing cases of school segregation and the inclusion of Romani in the education system.

Canada is concerned by the increase in the stigmatization of human rights defenders, LGBTI persons and other vulnerable groups, which undermines human dignity and the pillars of a pluralistic society.

Canada is also concerned about changes to the Hungarian Constitution in December 2020 which altered the definition of families to exclude transgender and other LGBTI individuals.

Background

In recent years, there has been significant and widespread concern regarding the erosion of checks and balances for democratic institutions in Hungary. Canada shares concern with certain non-government organizations and international institutions regarding a number of more negative trends. The European Commission’s 2021 Rule of Law Report identified several issues regarding the independence of the judiciary and pointed out that frequent and sudden legal changes undermine a predictable legal environment.

The Equal Treatment Authority (ETA) was an independent body to protect, enforce and promote equality. Its full powers have been assumed by the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights since 2021. Human rights defenders have expressed concerns that the legislative change, undertaken without sufficient public consultation, has significantly weakened human rights protection in the country.

The 9th Amendment to the Fundamental Law, adopted by Parliament in December 2020 during the State of Danger as declared by the government due to the COVID-19 pandemic, had important human rights implications, which human rights organizations described as having adversely affected the rights of LGBTI persons. In a shadow report, LGBTI organizations have noted that of the 35 recommendations Hungary received in the 2nd UPR cycle on LGBTI issues, 31 have not been implemented.

One of Hungary’s main human rights challenges continues to be the treatment of Romani despite some gradual improvements in the past years. In its 2019 report, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination highlighted serious concerns about the persistence of discrimination against Romani, and the segregation and extreme poverty they face. In the 2020 concluding observations on the sixth periodic report of Hungary, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child set out urgent measures for the government to take in several areas, including violence against children, children with disabilities and education, with a focus on Romani children.