Office of the commissioner for fundamental rights of hungary

On April 27-28, Deputy Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, Ombudsman for the Rights of National Minorities Dr. Elisabeth Sándor-Szalay paid a two-day working visit to Novi Sad, Serbia, where she had been invited by Ombudsman Zoran Pavlović and Deputy Ombudsman for National Minorities Eva Vukašinović. At the Office of the Vojvodina Ombudsman, the ombudsmen or deputy ombudsmen of Hungary, Serbia, Croatia, Romania and Bosnia-Herzegovina met in order to coordinate the planning and establishment of a forum promoting the cooperation of the ombudsmen of the Central-Eastern European region. As part of this, as the first topic to be discussed, they shared their experiences on the current situation of the welfare systems, as well as the challenges posed by poverty and aging. The Deputy Ombudsman was accompanied to this meeting by Senior Legal Advisor Ms. Tímea Csikós.

On the 22nd of March the Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights hosted Equinet’s kick off project meeting on combating violence against women which was followed by the Working Group meeting on Gender Equality on 23rd of March.

Equinet, the network of European equality bodies, has initiated the formulation of standards applicable at both European and, subsequently, national level. Through their overall activities and as a key element thereof, the 46 member organizations, operating in 34 countries, fight against various forms of discrimination using often diverse mandates, powers and tools. Hungary is represented in Equinet by the Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights and the Equal Treatment Authority.

In some Member States, doctors still view homosexuality as a disease and transsexuality as a mental disorder, according to findings from a new report by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA). Such negative views of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) people in society, among professional groups and policy makers hampers efforts to counter discrimination and hate crime.