According to a report from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights relayed by CNews, Hungary “voluntarily deprives” migrants who have lost their right to asylum.
“At least 21 migrants waiting to be expelled had been deprived of food by the Hungarian authorities, in some cases up to five days” since August 2018 according to the UN specialized agency, headed by Michelle Bachelet.
The latter had already accused Hungary of not distributing food to migrants held in transit areas at the Serbian border in September 2018 – a practice that the Hungarian government had promised to stop after a warning from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).
For ECHR spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani, all adult migrants, with the exception of pregnant and lactating women, are “deliberately starved” , which “can lead to malnutrition, harm their health and is fundamentally inhuman”.
However, the Hungarian government denies the facts, explaining on an official blog that “the asylum seekers whose application is being examined continue to receive food aid and shelter as they have always been” and added that “Hungary is not responsible for those who do not apply for asylum or those whose application is rejected”.
Rejected migrants are in fact free to leave the country and return to Serbia, but some have refused and continue to want to claim benefits from the Hungarina state.
But this fact was denounced by the Office of the High Commissioner because such “voluntary” departures could lead migrants to “illegally enter Serbia in violation of Serbian law”.
“We encourage Hungary to respect its human rights obligations to those deprived of their liberty, whether they are in transit areas or detention centers where they can not provide for themselves” the agency said.