Mijatović: Hungary promotes xenophobia and anti-immigrant rhetoric

(Patria) – The Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights has accused the Hungarian government of violating human rights and using anti-immigrant rhetoric that promotes 'xenophobic attitudes, fear and hatred'.

The report, signed by Commissioner Dunja Mijatović, states, among other things, that 'human rights violations in Hungary negatively affect the entire protection system and the rule of law', and that the problem should be urgently addressed.

The report, based on Mijatović's meetings with government ministers and civil society representatives during her five-day visit to Hungary in February, represents the harshest criticism of Hungary's asylum system, which has resulted in the systematic rejection of all asylum applications. Commissioner Mijatović also shared concerns about what she described as the excessive use of force by police when pushing back foreign nationals, and criticized the policy of withholding food from individuals whose asylum applications have been rejected.

In 2015, Hungary declared a 'mass immigration crisis' and consequently built a barbed-wire fence along its southern border with Serbia. In the same year, hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants passed through Hungary, mainly in an attempt to reach Western Europe, writes the British Guardian.

Migrants in Hungary currently live in two transit zones along the border, which, according to the UN, violates Hungary's international obligations towards refugees.