There are estimated to be 30,000 homeless people in Hungary. [1] 131 homeless people died of hypothermia in Budapest between 2006 and 2010. [2]
After repeated attempts by the Fidesz government to make homelessness a criminal offence, and with homeless people in many cities facing severe restrictions imposed by local ordinances, [3] a law banning homelessness was introduced in June 2018. [1] Since the law took effect, about 200 homeless people have received police warnings and at least four have been arrested. Thus far, the courts have dealt with the homeless people brought before them by handing down formal cautions. [4]
Various Hungarian nongovernmental organizations, notably a group named The City is For All, have protested against the new law, calling it "inhumane". [1]
Central European University is a private research university accredited in Austria, Hungary, and the United States, with campuses in Vienna and Budapest. The university is known for its highly intensive programs in the social sciences and humanities, low student-faculty ratio, and international student body. A central tenet of the university's mission is the promotion of open societies, as a result of its close association with the Open Society Foundations. CEU is one of eight members comprising the CIVICA Alliance, a group of European higher education institutions in the social sciences, humanities, business management and public policy, such as Sciences Po (France), The London School of Economics and Political Science (UK), Bocconi University (Italy) and the Stockholm School of Economics (Sweden).
Viktor Mihály Orbán is a Hungarian politician who has served as prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has presided over Fidesz since 1993, with a brief break between 2000 and 2003.
LGBT people in Hungary face legal and social challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents. Homosexuality is legal in Hungary for both men and women. Discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and sex is banned in the country. However, households headed by same-sex couples are not eligible for all of the same legal rights available to heterosexual married couples. Registered partnership for same-sex couples was legalised in 2009, but same-sex marriage remains banned. The Hungarian government has passed legislation that restricts the civil rights of LGBT Hungarians – such as ending legal recognition of transgender Hungarians and banning LGBT content and displays for minors. This trend continues under the Fidesz government of Viktor Orbán. In June 2021, Hungary passed an anti-LGBT law on banning "homosexual and transexual propaganda" effective since July 1. The law has been condemned by seventeen EU countries so far. Also, in July 2021, the EU Commission has started legal action against Hungary and Poland for violations of fundamental rights of LGBTQI people: "Europe will never allow parts of our society to be stigmatized." Russia had similar laws implemented in 2013.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in Turkey face legal challenges not experienced by non-LGBT residents, though Turkey's LGBT rights are considered to be relatively progressive compared to most other Muslim-majority countries.
Kurds have had a long history of discrimination perpetrated against them by the Turkish government. Massacres have periodically occurred against the Kurds since the establishment of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. Among the most significant is the Dersim rebellion, when 13,160 civilians were killed by the Turkish Army and 11,818 people were sent into exile. According to McDowall, 40,000 people were killed. The Zilan massacre of 1930 was a massacre of Kurdish residents of Turkey during the Ararat rebellion, in which 5,000 to 47,000 were killed.
Hungary has recognized registered partnerships since 1 July 2009, offering same-sex couples nearly all the rights and benefits of marriage. Unregistered cohabitation for same-sex couples was recognised and placed on equal footing with the unregistered cohabitation of different-sex couples in 1996. However, same-sex marriage is prohibited by the 2011 Constitution of Hungary, which took effect in January 2012.
Magyar Gárda Mozgalom founded by Magyar Gárda Hagyományőrző és Kulturális Egyesület was a patriotic-nationalistic association somewhat mimicking an army in its organisation and paraphernalia. It was coined a paramilitary, a party-militia, or – sarcastically – an operetta-guard by its opponents and certain media outlets, even though it was never armed. It was in varyingly close relationship with the Jobbik party in Hungary. It was founded through an "oath of loyalty to Hungary" by its members in Buda Castle, Budapest, on 25 August 2007. It was dissolved by the Budapest Tribunal on 2 July 2009. The president of the Association was Gábor Vona, and it had such prominent members as former (1990–1994) defence minister Lajos Für and actor Mátyás Usztics.
Anti-homelessness legislation can take two forms: legislation that aims to help and re-house homeless people; and legislation that is intended to send homeless people to homeless shelters compulsorily, or to criminalize homelessness and begging.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in the U.S. state of Michigan may face some legal challenges not faced by non-LGBT residents. Same-sex sexual activity is legal in Michigan, as is same-sex marriage. Discrimination on the basis of both sexual orientation and gender identity is illegal since July 2022, was re-affirmed by the Michigan Supreme Court - under and by a 1976 statewide law, that explicitly bans discrimination "on the basis of sex". The Michigan Civil Rights Commission have also ensured that members of the LGBT community are not discriminated against and are protected in the eyes of the law since 2018.
The City is For All is a volunteer based grassroots organization founded in 2009. It operates in Budapest and Pécs in Hungary. Homeless and non-homeless activists work together for housing rights and social justice.
Picture the Homeless (PTH) is an American homeless person–led rights organization founded in 1999 by Lewis Haggins and Anthony Williams. It focuses on human rights, housing, police violence and other social justice issues. It was housed originally in Judson Memorial Church, which still hosts its Longest Night of the Year memorial event, and was located for a time in El Barrio and 2427 Morris Avenue in the Bronx. It is currently based at 104B E 126th Street in Manhattan.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons in the U.S. state of Mississippi face legal challenges and discrimination not experienced by non-LGBT residents. LGBT rights in Mississippi are limited in comparison to other states. Same-sex sexual activity is legal in the state and same-sex marriage has been recognized since June 2015 in accordance with the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges. State statutes do not address discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity; however, the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County established that employment discrimination against LGBT people is illegal under federal law. The state capital Jackson and a number of other cities provide protections in housing and public accommodations as well.
Gergely Szilveszter Karácsony is a Hungarian politician, political scientist and current Mayor of Budapest. He previously served as member of the National Assembly (MP) from 2010 to 2014 and Mayor of Zugló from 2014 to 2019.
Máté Kocsis is a Hungarian jurist, sports administrator and politician, who served as Mayor of Józsefváros from 2009 to 2018. He also represents Józsefváros in the National Assembly of Hungary from 2010 to 2014, and since 2018. He is the current leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group. Since 2015 he is the president of the Hungarian Handball Federation.
The fourth Orbán government was the Government of Hungary from 18 May 2018 to 24 May 2022, after the 2018 parliamentary elections, led by Viktor Orbán.
Censorship of LGBT issues is practised by a number of countries around the world. They may take a variety of forms, including anti-LGBT curriculum laws in the United States, the Russian gay propaganda law, and the Hungarian anti-LGBT law, and laws in Muslim-majority states such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Malaysia prohibiting advocacy that offends Islamic morality.
Magnitsky legislation refers to laws providing for governmental sanctions against foreign individuals who have committed human rights abuses or been involved in significant corruption. They originated with the United States which passed the first Magnitsky legislation in 2012, following the execution of Sergei Magnitsky in Russia in 2009. Since then, a number of countries have passed similar legislation such as Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
The Act LXXIX of 2021 on taking more severe action against paedophile offenders and amending certain Acts for the protection of children, often mentioned in English-language media as Hungary's anti-LGBT law are legislative amendments that were approved by the Hungarian Parliament on 15 June 2021, on a 157–1 vote. It was condemned by human rights groups and left-wing Hungarian opposition parties as discriminatory against the LGBT community. The EU and the United States consider the amendments to be discriminatory anti-LGBT restrictions. By contrast, most Eastern European EU countries did not take a public stance, apart from Poland, which supported the Hungarian position.
Human rights in Hungary are governed by the Constitution of Hungary, laws passed by the National Assembly, and oversight of international organizations such as the Council of Europe. Human rights groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have raised concern for the status of human rights in Hungary under the rule of Viktor Orbán and the Fidesz party since 2010.