Assembly on an Open Private Property or When Private Should Be Public – The Ombudsman on Solving a Dilemma

6718/2012

Assembly on an Open Private Property or When Private Should Be Public – The Ombudsman on Solving a Dilemma

While investigating an event that took place, simultaneously with a hunger strike, back in September, the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights stumbled upon a problem which is not covered by the Act on the Freedom of Assembly and which may even lead to conflicts.

Budapest's Kossuth Square is a public place on state-owned land, under the management of the Office of the Parliament. In late August the Democratic Coalition notified the Budapest Police Headquarters of their intention to hold a week‑long demonstration on Budapest's Kossuth Square in September with a political rally near the Batthyány Eternal Night-light on its closing day. This notice was duly acknowledge by the police. Practically the same area was leased out by the Office of the Parliament to the organizers for holding the event.

From that moment on the venue of the event could not be accessed by anyone; however, the event also became subject to restrictions specified by the law for public places: the event shall not infringe upon the rights and freedoms of others, commit or call for committing a crime, and shall be attended unarmed. The organizers shall maintain order and also bear responsibility for incidental damages caused by the participants.

According to the Ombudsman, the cause of the problem is that an event held in an out-leased public place is similar to an event held at a privately owned venue: the police has but restricted jurisdiction under the Act on the Freedom of Assembly. It is unclear in what way the police may be represented and what actions they may take, while those with an intent to disturb the public order may have free access to the venue. It is also fraught with risks when the event's organizers use the lease-out so as to evade certain stipulations of the Act on the Freedom of Assembly, i.e. they interpret the Act according to their momentary interests and treat the place as public or private depending on the character of the police action they deem necessary.

In view of this problem, the Ombudsman pointed out that if a place can be accessed by anyone, it should be handled during demonstrations as a public place irrespective of its ownership, thus making clear the organizers' responsibilities and the police's jurisdiction. To this end, explicit legal regulation would be needed – Ombudsman Máté Szabó has requested the Minister of Interior and the Minister of Public Administration and Justice to take the necessary measures.