Nearly 3,000 Ukrainian refugees lose their homes due to Hungarian government decree - Human Rights Watch
The Hungarian government, in violation of EU law, has issued a decree canceling state funding for a refugee shelter for refugees from western Ukraine.
This is stated in a report by Human Rights Watch, Censor.NET reports.
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee, which monitors the situation with Ukrainian refugees governed by this document, claims that about 3,000 refugees from Ukraine, most of whom are women and children, are covered by it.
"The Hungarian government has hit rock bottom with this cruel decision, which throws thousands of people fleeing the war in Ukraine onto the streets. The European Commission must use all tools at its disposal to force Budapest to reverse this decision and fulfill its responsibilities as an EU member state," said Lydia Gall, Senior Europe and Central Asia Researcher at Human Rights Watch.
The Hungarian government's decree restricts access to state-funded housing for Ukrainian refugees by granting this right to those registered in what the Hungarian authorities consider to be war-torn territory. Ukrainian refugees registered in areas deemed safe for return by the Hungarian government are denied the right to state-funded housing.
HRW reminds that this decision violates the 2001 EU Temporary Protection Directive, which came into force in March 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and requires EU member states to provide temporary protection and assistance to all refugees from Ukraine. The document also contradicts the recommendations of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, which do not distinguish between regions of Ukraine when determining whether a person is in need of protection.
