"With Communication for Equal Dignity - Integrating Speech vs. Hate Speech" - Re-port on the Ombudsman's Project

An integrating society, equal opportunity may be reached only through consistently applying the instruments of nurturing tolerance – stressed the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights in his report investigating alternative methods of fighting hate speech. Máté Szabó has made several recommendations in order to make state institutions more efficient in their fight against prejudice, for strengthening tolerance.

Prohibition is a necessary but far from sufficient instrument in fighting hate speech. The formation of thoughts leading to hate speech may and should be prevented only through education and information. In an adequately self-conscious and educated society, both the public opinion and the legislators must give an unambiguous and explicit answer to the manifestations of hate – stressed Ombudsman Máté Szabó in his concluding report on the project „With Communication for Equal Dignity – Integrating Speech vs. Hate Speech". This project was made especially timely by the realization that the socio-economic crisis, the neediness and the ever-growing defencelessness lead to scapegoating and discrimination. The state organs and the actors of the civil sphere in the broad sense face serious tasks in the formation of a tolerant and prejudice-free social environment.

The Commissioner for Fundamental Rights pointed out that, in spite of the positive efforts in public education and the education of teachers, there is still no conceptual change in the field of school education as far as the means and the ethos of teaching are concerned and, partly due to inadequate legal regulation, segregation is getting stronger by the day. It would be of major importance that the various initiatives in the field of educational policy should aim at lessening inequality and transforming the members of the younger generations into open-minded, unprejudiced grown-ups.

The specialists of the media, at least on the level of principles, are ready to inform and entertain serving the interests of both the vulnerable groups and the society as a whole – concluded the Ombudsman in his report. The relevant studies show, however, that the vulnerable groups either remain mostly invisible or are introduced in a biased, one-sided way in the media. Certain stereotypes are still so deeply rooted in public opinion and public speech that occasionally even the representatives of the otherwise responsible and quality media unintentionally reproduce them – confirmed a media expert interviewed during the project inquiries.

The approach of those working in the justice system is of major importance as one of the guarantees of the prejudice-free application of the law. The faculties of law all around the country informed the Ombudsman that they all attached, although to various extent, prime importance to conveying knowledge on vulnerable groups. Notwithstanding, an independent study established that the readiness to integrate the vulnerable groups was low among law students, which can be explained, beside the influences of earlier socialisation, by the fact that inducing sensitivity is still under-rated in educating lawyers.

The prejudices existing in a society lack any rational foundation; nevertheless, it is quite easy to arouse unmitigated animosity against almost any community. As a result of disputes between Hungary and their mother countries, the leaders of national minorities living in Hungary or, occasionally, even the minority communities themselves received serious threats. That is why it would be very important to duly reflect in the National Strategy for Social Inclusion and the Action Plan aimed at its execution the tasks contributing to the elimination of prejudices and promoting open-minded, tolerant thinking in the majority society – pointed out Máté Szabó.

Due to their isolated and unique character and the absence of comprehensive state support, the various international and EU projects and the exemplary initiatives of civil organisations may be effective only within narrow bounds, cannot substitute for measures taken by the state. A stronger and more coordinated action by the state institutions would be needed in order to render hate speech and hate crime into isolated phenomena, to make integration, tolerance, openness and diversity a generally accepted social value – concluded Ombudsman Máté Szabó.

The Hungarian text of the project report can be found at

http://www.ajbh.hu/documents/10180/111959/201201199.rtf