Hungary
Hungary regularly reports hate crime data to ODIHR. In 2012, the National Police Headquarters established a special hate crime network, which is responsible for supervising hate crime investigations. In the same year, a civil society working group against hate crimes (GYEM) was established with the aim of strengthening co-ordination with police and developing a list of bias indicators, which were adopted by the network and uploaded onto the police intranet. In 2018, the Ministry of Interior hosted a workshop on hate crime recording and data collection. The workshop was co-facilitated by ODIHR and the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights and resulted in a set of recommendations for relevant state authorities.
OFFICIAL DATA REPORTED BY STATES
| Year | Hate crimes recorded by police | Prosecuted | Sentenced |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 37 | 39 | 8,771 |
| 2023 | 65 | 50 | 8,928 |
| 2022 | 58 | 58 | 8,980 |
| 2021 | 38 | 40 | 8,979 |
| 2020 | 100 | 12 | Not available |
| 2019 | 132 | 39 | - |
| 2018 | 194 | 52 | - |
| 2017 | 233 | Not available | Not available |
| 2016 | 33 | 33 | 39 |
| 2015 | Not available | Not available | Not available |
| 2014 | 79 | 23 | Not available |
| 2013 | 43 | 30 | 14 |
| 2012 | 38 | 16 | Not available |
| 2011 | 37 | 28 | Not available |
| 2010 | 19 | 12 | Not available |
| 2009 | 15 | 18 | Not available |
About 2024 Data
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The above records of prosecuted and sentenced cases include offences that fall outside the OSCE definition of hate crime. Hate crime flags used by prosecutors to mark a hate crime and related bias motivation are only used for cases in which the offenders are known; therefore, the number of prosecuted cases may not reflect the actual number of prosecuted hate crimes.
Hate crime recorded by police
The breakdown below does not include categories of incidents that fall outside the OSCE definition of hate crime (such as hate speech). However, three incidents of slander and denial of Nazi crimes, which fall outside the OSCE hate crime definition, are included as they could not be separated.
KEY OBSERVATION
ODIHR recognizes Hungary's efforts to enhance the capacity of police and prosecutors to respond to hate crimes. However, based on the available information, it observes that Hungary's hate crime recording and statistics do not sufficiently distinguish hate crimes from other crimes. In addition, ODIHR observes that Hungary would benefit from reviewing the existing legal framework to ensure that bias motivations can be effectively acknowledged and that appropriate penalties can be imposed on the perpetrators.
ODIHR recalls that in Ministerial Council Decision 9/09, OSCE participating States agreed to a common definition of hate crime and committed to collecting reliable data and statistics on such crimes. To that end, hate crimes need to be distinguished from hate speech and extremist crimes throughout the recording and data collection processes. Participating States also committed to enacting specific, tailored legislation to combat hate crimes, providing for effective penalties that take into account the gravity of such crimes. ODIHR stands ready to support Hungary in meeting the relevant commitments through its comprehensive resources and tailored assistance in the area of hate crime recording and data collection, as well as by providing further resources and tailored legislative advice.
OVERVIEW OF INCIDENTS REPORTED BY CIVIL SOCIETY
For 2024, ODIHR received reports of hate incidents in Hungary from the following civil society organizations:
- European Roma Rights Center (ERRC)
- Working Group Against Hate Crimes
To learn more about these organizations, visit the Contributors page.
All incidents submitted by the above organizations have been analysed by ODIHR. Those that are broadly considered to be hate crimes within the OSCE definition (criminal offence committed with a bias motive) are listed in the tables below according to the bias motivation category. Some incidents have multiple biases and may be listed in multiple categories.
ODIHR’s insightsFor 2024, ODIHR received reports of nine incidents that took place in Hungary in the following bias motivation categories: anti-LGBTI, and anti-Roma, and racist and xenophobic hate. Several incidents involved both gender-based and anti-LGBTI bias motives. ODIHR observes that several of the reported incidents targeted Roma men with serious violence, including abduction, beatings, homicide and attempted homicide. ODIHR also noted incidents targeting LGBTI persons, including physical assaults against gay men and trans women, as well as repeated threats accompanied by homophobic and transphobic insults. It should be noted that ODIHR did not receive any reporting on Hungary relating to anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, other religion or belief, or disability hate incidents. This indicates potential gaps in the information reported here. |
Please note that incidents reported here are based on voluntary civil society submissions and as such might not reflect the actual number of incidents or the most targeted communities in Hungary.
To address under-reporting, ODIHR encourages any civil society organizations or groups that monitor hate incidents in Hungary to report these to ODIHR at hatecrimereport@odihr.pl.
To export an Excel sheet with summaries of all incidents from Hungary click here and search by year and country.
CIVIL SOCIETY INCIDENT SUMMARIES
Racist and xenophobic hate crime
| Date | Type of incident | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-06 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-03 | Attacks against property | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
Anti-Roma hate crime
| Date | Type of incident | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-03 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-12 | Violent attacks against people | European Roma Rights Center (ERRC)
|
Show info |
Gender-based hate crime
| Date | Type of incident | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-06 | Threats/Harassment | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-01 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-12 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
Anti-LGBTI hate crime
| Date | Type of incident | Source | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-06 | Threats/Harassment | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-07 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-05 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-01 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |
| 2024-12 | Violent attacks against people | Working Group Against Hate Crimes
|
Show info |