New wake up service european justice Hungarian asylum policy. A decision issued by the EU Court of Justice this Thursday sentence Hungary from “unnecessarily” preventing the possibility of applying for asylum by subjecting the request for international protection to the submission of a prior declaration of intent at the embassy in a third country. Concluding that “it cannot be considered as a sufficient measure”, the court considers that the procedure applied to the defendants is also inappropriate. potential asylum seekers constitutes a “clearly disproportionate violation”.
The lawsuit began in 2020 after the outbreak of the covid19 pandemic. HE government Victor Orban saw the loophole that would make it difficult to access asylum by applying new law Certain nationals or stateless persons of a third country who are on or within the territory of Hungary and wish to benefit from international protection, previous procedure. In particular, they had to go to the Hungarian embassy in Belgrade (Serbia) or Kiev (Ukraine) to present a statement of intent in person. Based on this statement, the Hungarian authorities can decide whether to issue a travel document allowing them to enter Hungary to formally submit their application for international protection.
The European Commission is a violation procedure Evaluating that Hungary did not comply with the obligations brought by the European regulations, he filed a lawsuit for non-compliance with the Court of Justice. Once again, the judges agree with him. First, the CJEU confirms that Hungary has not fulfilled its obligations. Secondly, it considers that the requirement for a declaration of intent is “not provided” in European regulations and is “contrary to the purpose of guaranteeing effective, simple and fast access to the international protection procedure”.
Charter of Fundamental Rights
In addition, the judges understand that Hungarian legislation deprives third-country nationals or stateless persons of the right to effectively enjoy the right to seek asylum in Hungary, which is guaranteed in Hungary. Charter of Fundamental Rights European Union. The planned restriction cannot be justified to protect public health and combat the spread of COVID-19, as the Orban government claims. “While it is true that, exceptionally, Member States may subject an application for international protection to certain procedures designed to limit the spread of an infectious disease within their territory, such procedures must also be suitable for guarantee. purpose and is not disproportionate to it”.
And in this case, the CJEU, “the obligation to travel to an embassy abroad so that third-country nationals or stateless persons are at risk of contracting covid19, which can then spread in Hungary, cannot be considered an appropriate measure to combat.” The spread of the epidemic.” Therefore, the European judges consider that the procedure initiated by Hungary “a clear disproportionate violation of the right of international protection applicants to apply for international protection from the moment they arrive at the Hungarian border”.
It is not the first time that the European Court of Justice has condemned the country led by Viktor Orbán for its asylum policy. In December 2020, the European Court ruled that by limiting access to Budapest’s asylum procedures, the irregular detention of applicants for international protection in transit areas, and the illegal transfer of third-country nationals to the Serbia-Hungary border without respecting guarantees that must be taken into account in all return procedures . A year later, the same court ruled against Hungary for violating European law with its law punishing those who help irregular migrants – even with prison sentences. Hungary is also the only country, along with Poland, to have categorically rejected the asylum reform, which at the beginning of the month had been made by EU interior ministers to guarantee the resettlement of refugees.
Source: Informacion
James Sean is a writer for “Social Bites”. He covers a wide range of topics, bringing the latest news and developments to his readers. With a keen sense of what’s important and a passion for writing, James delivers unique and insightful articles that keep his readers informed and engaged.