Hungary | HCRW

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.

SELECT YEAR

Download the 2010 hate crime report for Hungary

OFFICIAL DATA REPORTED BY STATES

Year	Hate crimes recorded by police	Prosecuted	Sentenced
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 2010 Data

Prosecution figures include crimes of incitement to hatred and discrimination.

Download official data

National developments

The Ministry of Public Administration and Justice’s State Secretariat for Social Inclusion and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, together with ODIHR, brought together government officials, representatives from national human rights institutions, academics and Roma NGOs at a roundtable meeting in November in Budapest to discuss strategic and operational methods to prevent anti-Roma violence and promote Roma inclusion in Hungary.

The Háttér Support Society for LGBT People, funded by the EU Progress Programme and commissioned by the Ministry of National Resources, developed a two-day curriculum to be used in the summer and fall of 2010 for training Hungarian police officers on responding to homophobic and transphobic hate crimes.

KEY OBSERVATION

No information is available.

Incidents reported by civil society, international organizations and the Holy See

Reports

Hate crime against Christians and members of other religions

The Holy See reported eight cases of damage to property and one of the desecration of a cemetery.

Anti-Roma hate crime

IOM and the European Roma Rights Centre (ERRC) reported one arson attack and one case of damage to property, during which shots were fired. Both incidents targeted the homes of Roma families. In addition, the ERRC reported one physical assault and one arson attack.

Human Rights First reported four arson attacks involving the throwing of Molotov cocktails into family homes.

The Movement for Desegregation Foundation reported 12 murders, 24 physical assaults, of which six involved serious bodily injury, seven cases where threats were made, 29 cases of arson targeting the homes of Roma families (four of which resulted in injury and five of which also involved shotgun fire on the houses), ten cases of damage to property targeting the homes of Roma families (one of which resulted in the serious injury of a 12 year old girl and seven of which involved the use of a shotgun) and two cases of graffiti to property.

Anti-Semitic hate crime

IOM and the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union reported one anti-Semitic case of damage to property on the occasion of the second Seder night of Pesach.

The Stephen Roth Institute reported six hate incidents.

Anti-LGBTI hate crime

ILGA-Europe and the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union reported one and three physical assaults respectively, during the LGBT festival in Budapest.

The Háttér Support Society for LGBT People reported five physical assaults, two of which involved serious bodily harm, and the desecration of the grave of a prominent LGBT activist.

Developments

Anti-Roma hate crime

The Hungarian Civil Liberties Union launched a Roma programme in the north-eastern part of Hungary. The programme has established 16 support stations, equipped with communication tools in order to provide access to a team of lawyers who offer legal support for victims.

INTERNATIONAL REPORTS

Racist and xenophobic hate crime

The UN Human Rights Committee recommended that Hungary should ensure proper training for judges, prosecutors and police to recognize hate crimes.