As per the invitation of Lieutenant General Dr. Tamás Tóth, Director General of the Hungarian Prison Service, Commissioner for Fundamental Rights Dr. Ákos Kozma participated in the annual general briefing and awards ceremony in honour of the patron saint of the Hungarian Prison Service, Saint Adrian, which took place in the Ministry of Interior on 6 September, 2024. During the event, Minister of Interior Dr. Sándor Pintér acknowledged the exemplary fulfilment of service-related duties and rewarded several staff members for their professional conduct.

The legacy of St. Adrian, a former Roman imperial guard-turned martyr, has been commemorated every 8th day of September, since 1996. This day, let us pledge our gratitude and respect to those staff members who honour the legacy of Saint Adrian by performing their daily duties according to the chief virtues the life of the former legionnaire symbolizes and remain dedicated in their quest to ensure the safety of us all. 

The Commissioner for Fundamental Rights wishes a fruitful anniversary, health and professional success to all who serve the Hungarian Prison Service.

Date:

2024-08-26

Since the beginning of the armed conflict in Ukraine, the Commissioner for Human Rights has been closely monitoring the situation of war refugees arriving in Poland. Recently, many complaints have been received regarding difficulties in obtaining, reinstating, or reapplying for the UKR status, which is regulated by Act of March 12, 2022 on assistance to citizens of Ukraine in connection with the armed conflict on the territory of Ukraine.

The Commissioner has addressed these issues with the Government Plenipotentiary for Ukrainian War Refugees and the Head of the Social Insurance Institution (ZUS) multiple times in 2023. The primary concern is the inability to simultaneously benefit from temporary protection in more than one EU member state. The Act specifies that Ukrainian citizens who hold temporary protection in another EU country cannot be granted UKR status in Poland. Complaints indicate that some refugees are being denied UKR status due to their continued registration in the EU temporary protection platform.

This practice appears inconsistent with European Commission guidelines. According to the guidelines, a member state should not refuse registration of a person under temporary protection based solely on their registration in another member state. The new host country must ensure that the person receives the rights conferred by the EU law and update their status accordingly.
Another issue involves updating the Ukrainian citizens' data in the registry when they acquire new identification documents. Problems arise when refugees update their documents but do not reflect these changes in the registry, leading to unintended loss of UKR status. There are also complications for children whose parents lose access to their Diia.pl electronic documents upon receiving residence permits, affecting their ability to travel and prove their legal stay.

The Commissioner requested the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration (MSWiA) to address these issues by issuing guidelines to standardize procedures across local authorities and to consider alternative documentation formats for refugees, especially those who were digitally excluded.

In response, the MSWiA issued recommendations to local authorities to ensure uniform practices regarding UKR status and the impact of holding temporary protection in other EU countries. They also noted that updating personal data in the registry was crucial and provided information about the new regulations regarding temporary residence permits and family reunification, which were intended to address these challenges.

The MSWiA also emphasized ongoing support through written and telephone inquiries handled by the Border Guard, alongside updated information on their website and a newly developed brochure detailing recent legislative changes.

El Defensor del Pueblo no interpondrá recurso de inconstitucionalidad contra la Ley Orgánica 1/2024, de 10 de junio, de amnistía para la normalización institucional, política y social en Cataluña (BOE del 11 de junio). La institución da respuesta así a los treinta escritos recibidos en las últimas semanas relativos a la valoración de esa posibilidad, tras la aprobación de la Ley en el Congreso de los Diputados el pasado 30 de mayo.

El artículo 29 de la Ley Orgánica del Defensor del Pueblo recoge que el Defensor del Pueblo está legitimado para interponer recursos de inconstitucionalidad de acuerdo con lo dispuesto en la Constitución (artículo 162) y en la Ley Orgánica del Tribunal Constitucional (artículo 32).

La resolución del Defensor del Pueblo, adoptada el 4 de septiembre y notificada a los interesados hoy 11 de septiembre, argumenta que tanto por razones institucionales como de fondo no interpondrá en este caso recurso de inconstitucional.

Las razones institucionales se fundamentan en el respeto a las decisiones judiciales, pues el Tribunal Supremo y el Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Cataluña han interpuesto cuestiones de inconstitucionalidad. La interpretación de la posición institucional del Defensor del Pueblo ha conducido a que, sin prejuzgar lo que resulte al respecto dado que no le corresponde hacerlo en estas cuestiones, se aparte de los asuntos en los que ha habido intervención judicial. Asimismo, se ha tenido en consideración el respeto a los ciudadanos hasta ahora amnistiados por los jueces en aplicación de esta Ley.

Por otra parte, en la resolución del Defensor del Pueblo se desarrollan algunas cuestiones de fondo sobre los conceptos de arbitrariedad e igualdad en relación con esta Ley. Según se explicita en esta resolución del Defensor del Pueblo, el control constitucional de la arbitrariedad deviene más bien en un juicio de proporcionalidad. Puede indicarse que el análisis de proporcionalidad encuentra motivos, tanto históricos, de derecho comparado, jurisprudenciales como conceptuales, que permitirían contradecir la presunta arbitrariedad de la norma.

Acerca de la igualdad, la resolución del Defensor del Pueblo señala que “el canon de constitucionalidad que exige la jurisprudencia del Tribunal Constitucional a las leyes singulares de supuesto de hecho es el de la razonabilidad, proporcionalidad y adecuación. En aplicación de este canon ha de comprobarse si el supuesto de hecho que contempla la Ley cuestionada tiene una justificación objetiva y, de ser así, si la utilización de la Ley es proporcionada a la excepcionalidad que se trata de atender y que ha justificado su aprobación”.

On 9 and 10 September in Strasbourg, Commissioner O’Flaherty convened a consultation meeting with experts working on the human rights of Roma and Travellers. The discussions addressed how to best advance the protection of the human rights of Roma and Travellers across Europe. The Commissioner emphasised the need to work closely with Roma and Traveller communities to break down barriers and trigger positive change.

“With an estimated 10 to 12 million Roma and Travellers in Council of Europe member states, their situation is one of the greatest human rights issues of our continent,” said the Commissioner. “We must confront inequality, antigypsyism, and exclusion more resolutely. Since day one, I have committed to standing up for these communities. Now, I am focused on turning the insights gained during these discussions into tangible actions, contributing to making a real difference in the human rights situation of Roma and Travellers.”

Watch the Commissioner’s video: