The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that the Hungarian government violated human rights in the case of an Iraqi-Kurdish asylum-seeking child. In 2017, the child was forcibly taken back to Serbia without proper investigation, SchengenVisaInfo.com reported.
Karoh fled Hungary in 2017 when he was 16 years old. Despite the fact that the police were aware of his age, they forced the boy to travel to Serbia instead of placing him in an unaccompanied minors’ home in Fót.
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee won the case in Strasbourg and the client, together with his adult companions, was forced to leave Hungary under the then newly introduced rules. These rules have since been ruled unlawful by the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the EU. The Court criticised the fact that the victim of Hungary’s state violation was a child in need of assistance.
Karoh’s legal representative, Tamás Fazekas, stated that it would have been much better for everyone if Hungary had processed asylum claims under a fair asylum system rather than deporting children without due process.
“Because the Hungarian government has been causing suffering and harm for years. We are glad that justice has been restored a little, even if our client ended up receiving protection in another state.”
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee says that “no matter what the Prime Minister says,” fundamental human rights also apply to international citizens, as the committee believes this has been confirmed by the European Court of Human Rights for the second time.
On October 5 last year, the ECHR found Hungary guilty of inhuman treatment of asylum seekers in three judgements handed down in Strasbourg.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) recently called on Hungary and Belgium to finalise the signing of the Migration Asylum Pact after both countries hold rotating presidencies of the EU Council this year: Belgium from January to June and Hungary from July to December.
