Strasbourg, 09/06/2015 (Agence Europe) - In a report on Hungary published on Tuesday 9 June (the fifth since 1996), the Council of Europe's European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) welcomes a series of initiatives taken by the Hungarian government but is concerned by the rise in racist violence and hate speech in the country.
The setting up of a special unit in the police to fight against hate speech is a move in the right direction, point out the experts from ECRI, as is the creation of a network of 20 experts in equal treatment, which supports the action taken by the Hungarian Authority for Equal Treatment, which sanctions cases of discrimination and racism.
Nevertheless, the text expresses some deep concerns about the sharp rise in racist violence against the Roma, migrants, asylum seekers and refugees. Far from being latent, this climate is further exacerbated by the increasing acceptance of hate speech, which is now spreading throughout the entire political spectrum and is no longer restricted to extremist parties.
The question of reception facilities available to asylum seekers is also the focus of the group of experts' attention. It is calling for more of them, particularly for families with children, and deplores the fact that 22% of these people are currently denied their freedom.
With regard to the Roma, the ECRI report calls on the central government to take action when the local authorities attempt to evict them from social housing or expel them without proposing any alternative appropriate accommodation for them.
The report also points out that Hungry continues to place a disproportionate number of Roma children in schools for children with learning difficulties, which effectively segregates against them. This point was also raised during the ninth “COE experts' meeting on Roma questions” held in Strasbourg on 27-30 May last.
This report also contains recommendations to the Hungarian government. They will be subject to a follow-up procedure by an intermediary within a maximum two-year framework. The report looks at the situation on 12 December 2014 and in its conclusions explains that it is not taking into account possible developments that have occurred since then. (Véronique Leblanc)