The U.S. Department of State International Religious Freedom Report for 2016 includes a summary of the 2011 Hungary religion law and an overview of the country’s practices in violation of the freedom of religion or belief, which includes the following key information.
Legal Framework
The Fundamental Law [of Hungary], the country’s constitution, provides for freedom of conscience and religion, including freedom to choose or change religion or belief and freedom—alone or in community with others and in public or in private—to manifest religion or belief through religious acts or ceremonies, or in any other way, in worshipping, practice, and observance. It prohibits religious discrimination as well as speech “aimed at violating the dignity” of any religious community.
The constitution’s preamble states that “We recognize the role of Christianity” in preserving the nation and “value the various religious traditions” in the country. The constitution stipulates separation between religious communities and state and the autonomy of religious groups. According to the constitution, the state may, at the request of religious communities, cooperate with them on community goals. Implementing legislation provides for a dual system of religious communities, consisting of “incorporated churches” with which the state cooperates on community goals as outlined in the constitution, and “organizations engaged in religious activity” (religious organizations). Neither category is limited to Christian organizations.
A 2011 law on religion automatically deregistered more than 300 religious groups and organizations which had previously had incorporated church status. Those organizations were required to reapply if they wished to regain incorporated church status; their applications were also subject to the approval of a two-thirds majority of parliament…. Incorporated churches have certain privileges not available to religious organizations, such as greater access to state funding and exemption from state oversight of their financial operations connected to religious activities.
Government Practices
There were numerous reports of perceived anti-Muslim rhetoric by government officials and politicians, including at the highest levels, voiced in connection with the European refugee crisis, as well as government endorsement of an individual who engaged in anti-Semitic rhetoric. The government initiated a national referendum (held on October 2 [2016]) on whether the EU should be able to establish quotas for the settlement of refugees, most of whom were Muslim, in the country without the approval of parliament. In the months preceding the referendum, the government ran a media and political campaign in which governing officials repeatedly stated that European and Christian values needed to be protected from the threat posed by Islam. On July 26, Prime Minister Orban described the arrival of asylum seekers in Europe as “a poison” and said his country did not want or need “a single migrant,” adding that “every single migrant poses a public security and terror risk.”
An official government booklet mailed to all 4.1 million households in the country stated “illegal immigration increases the threat of terror. We reject forced settlement, because it would increase the danger of terror. The immigrants largely come from places where European states are engaged in military campaigns. This significantly increases safety risks.” The overwhelming majority of participants voted no to the EU quotas, but a low participation rate rendered the referendum results invalid. On November 8, parliament narrowly failed to enact a constitutional amendment to block the EU quota of refugees.
Law enforcement and judiciary agencies continued to prosecute anti-Semitic incidents, including assault and hate speech, but Muslim groups cited a fear among community members of reporting assaults and other incidents to authorities.
Parliament failed to amend the provisions of the religion law the Constitutional Court had previously found unconstitutional and those the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) had previously declared in violation of the European Convention of Human Rights.
For the full executive summary, visit the International Religious Freedom Report for 2016: Hungary.
From its beginnings the Church of Scientology has recognized that freedom of religion is a fundamental human right. In a world where conflicts are often traceable to intolerance of others’ religious beliefs and practices, the Church has, for more than fifty years, made the preservation of religious liberty an overriding concern.
From persecution of religious minorities to issues revolving around religious worship, beliefs, rites, expression, association, dress, symbols, education, registration and workplace discrimination, religious freedom issues have achieved a prominent place in global headlines.
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