Office of the commissioner for fundamental rights of hungary

On 10 March 2022, Commissioner for Fundamental Rights Dr. Ákos Kozma conducted an online consultation with Scotland’s Ombudsman Ms. Rosemary Agnew on the issue of the refugees arriving in Hungary, fleeing the war in Ukraine.

During the meeting, Dr. Ákos Kozma talked about the current situation at the Hungarian-Ukrainian border, the circumstances of the reception of refugees arriving in Hungary from Ukraine, and the measures taken to provide assistance to them more effectively.

Within this context, the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights reported on the experience gathered during his visits at the border crossing points at Záhony–Čop and Tiszabecs–Vilok, and to the reception point at Mándok. Furthermore, Dr. Ákos Kozma informed Scotland’s Ombudsman Ms. Rosemary Agnew that the Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights had opened a temporary field office at the Záhony railway station on 3 March 2022.

The participants of the meeting also discussed that the Office of the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights, which is Hungary's National Human Rights Institution, had opened regional offices in Szeged, Győr and Debrecen at the beginning of this year, and that additional regional offices would be opened in Székesfehérvár, Miskolc and Pécs in March – which is a unique achievement in international ombudsman practice.

Scotland’s Ombudsman Ms. Rosemary Agnew assured the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights of the continued support of the Scottish Human Rights Institution, and she invited Ombudsman Dr. Ákos Kozma to share his experience related to the regional offices.