Embassy of the United States of America
Budapest, Hungary
March 22, 2023
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Secretary Blinken Releases the 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
On March 20, U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken released the 2022 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. Since 1976, as required by Congress, the United States has issued the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, addressing the status of internationally recognized human rights in all countries that are members of the United Nations. These reports support the U.S. goal of advancing individual liberty and democratic freedoms around the world and upholding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which this year celebrates its 75th anniversary.
During a press briefing in Washington, Secretary Blinken said: “This report makes a factual, objective, and rigorous accounting of human rights conditions around the world, looking at nearly 200 countries and territories. And, importantly, it applies the same standards to everyone: our allies and partners, and countries with which we have differences… Our willingness to confront our challenges openly, to acknowledge our own shortcomings – not to sweep them under the rug or pretend they don’t exist – that is what distinguishes us and other democracies.”
According to the report on Hungary, significant human rights issues included credible reports of: actions that aimed to interfere with or diminish the independence of the judiciary; serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media, including censorship and content restrictions at the public service media broadcaster; political intimidation of and legal restrictions on civil society organizations, as well as criminal and financial penalties for migration-related work of nongovernmental organizations; exposure of asylum seekers to risk of refoulement; corrupt use of state power to grant privileges to certain economic actors; and threats of violence and harassment by extremists targeting Roma and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex persons. While the government took some steps to identify, investigate, prosecute, and punish officials who committed human rights abuses, action against high-level, politically connected corruption was limited.
The 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in Hungary is available at: https://www.state.gov/reports/2022-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/hungary
