Information, topic by topic, on prisons across the world

March 16, 2023

Hungary: There have never been so many behind bars

News

Europe Overcrowding Hungary

The government explains this by the high number of traffickers caught, but does not talk about the failure of the prison expansion programme or the under-use of alternative sentences.

May 5, 2020

Hungary: Tight measures in a closed system

Report

Coronavirus Europe Health Material conditions Social ties Hungary

The Hungarian penitentiary institutions have become even more closed and less transparent since the COVID-19 outbreak. On 5 April 2020, a Government Decree introduced tighter measures for prisons. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee updates us on the situation.

May 25, 2017

Inside the Hungarian closed camp

News

Hungary

“I have spent three months stateside in the past year. The rest of my time has been split between Greece and Serbia where I have been volunteering with refugees. During this time, I have had the privilege of meeting some of the strongest, most resilient people I have ever met. The friends and conne…

April 30, 2017

‘It was an invasion’: how Hungary managed to erase illlegal immigration in just a few months

News

Hungary

When other countries welcomed refugees with open arms, Hungary decided it was time to eradicate illegal immigration at any cost. The country succeeded, but that success damaged relations with the European Union in the process.

March 31, 2017

Mise en lumière du recours à la détention pratiqué par la Hongrie, alors que le Sous-comité des Nations Unies pour la prévention de la torture conclut sa visite

News

Europe Torture Violence Hungary

Hungary should immediately address the excessive use of detention, the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT) said on Friday at the end of an 11-day visit to the country.

March 28, 2017

Hongrie: la détention des migrants commence

News

Europe Hungary

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

March 7, 2017

Hungary: tout migrant entrant sur le territoire sera désormais placé en détention

News

Europe Hungary

This article is not available in English. If you wish you can consult the French version

March 7, 2017

Hungary to detain all migrants in border camps, despite UN warnings of 'terrible physical and psychological impact'

News

Mental health Hungary

Hungary approved plans on Tuesday to detain migrants in camps on its border, state news agency MTI said, a step which the United Nations said violates European Union law and will have a “terrible physical and psychological impact” on asylum seekers.

March 7, 2017

En Hongrie, les migrants passeront obligatoirement par la case prison

News

Europe Hungary

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

March 7, 2017

La Hongrie va remettre tous les migrants en prison

News

Europe Hungary

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

March 2, 2017

Hungary uses prisoners to build massive border fence to block migrants

News

Hungary

Hungary has used prison inmates to build a second line of fencing along its southern border with Serbia in another move to block immigration into the country.

February 7, 2017

Hungary to build eight new prisons until summer 2018

News

Facilities Hungary

Eight new penitentiary facilities of European standard will be constructed in Hungary until the summer of 2018, Tamás Tóth, head of the Hungarian Prison Service told news agency MTI.

February 7, 2017

Almost 90% of inmates study or work in Hungarian prisons

News

Hungary

More than 10,000 of Hungary’s prison inmates, or 88 percent, spend their sentence studying or working, national prison chief Tamás Tóth told a press conference on Tuesday.

November 30, 2016

Hungarian court sentences migrant to 10 years in jail

News

Hungary

A Hungarian court has sentenced a migrant to ten years in jail for participating in rioting at the country’s southern border with Serbia last year.

June 10, 2016

Hungary: Budapest detention facility "unsuitable for human habitation"

News

Hungary

Hungarian prisons have never met European standards, but a recent OPCAT study conducted by the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights found that conditions of incarceration in Hungary are even worse than thought.

May 12, 2016

Hongrie : les barbelés antimigrants fabriqués en prison

News

Europe Hungary

This article is not available in English. If you wish, you can consult the French version.

April 29, 2014

COE report : Hungarian prisons crowded

News

Overcrowding Hungary

Many member countries of the Council of Europe have problems with overcrowded prisons, among them Hungary, a report released in Brussels today showed.