No Substantive Ruling in the Amnesty International vs. National Police Headquarters Lawsuit

On July 13th, 2007 the Metropolitan Court returned its verdict in the Amnesty International (AI) vs. National Police Headquarters (NPH) lawsuit. The HCLU has taken on the legal representation of AI during the proceedings.

AI has sued the NPH for their practices during the visit of Lech Kaczynski, Head of the Republic of Poland in March, 2006. Civil organizations prepared for the welcoming of the Polish president by organizing demonstrations in response to his homophobic measures. The demonstrations were obstructed by the police without issuing a prohibitive order. The police set up cordons and did not allow the demonstrators to reach the previously reported locations.

The court, without substantially dealing with the matter, overruled the order of the NPH and has obligated them to re-conduct the process. It was the AI's and the HCLU's goal to stop the restrictive practices of the police and local governments, with which - by a simple administrative order - they restrict our basic rights.

 

Share

Related articles

Civil Liberties Groups from 10 Countries Launch Coalition to Reshape Human Rights Landscape

In response to increasing restrictions on personal freedoms and civil protest, independent national human rights organisations from ten countries today launched the International Network of Civil Liberties Organisations (INCLO). They also released “Take Back the Streets: Repression and Criminalisation of Protest Around the World,” a collection of nine case studies showing patterns of police crackdown and abuse against peaceful assembly, accompanied by concrete recommendations to expand free speech.

Read more »

A Court had to Overturn the Actions of the Police and the Counterterrorism Center

The Metropolitan Court of Budapest invalidated the decision of Budapest’s chief police officer that effectively banned an announced demonstration at the Prime Minister’s residence. The decision also found that closing the area, in order to prevent the demonstration, violated the law. The HCLU welcomes the decision by the court which stated that “limiting a peaceful demonstration because it is held in the presence of a high level official but otherwise serves as an expression of a political opinion is unnecessary in a democratic society.”

Read more »

Again, the Banning of the Budapest Pride March Requires Legal Remedy

With the legal help of the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, the Rainbow Mission Foundation challenges the banning order issued by the Budapest Chief of Police.

Read more »