The Hungarian public education system has fundamentally changed due to the 2011 adoption of the Act on National Public Education and other related legislation. Considering the severe infringements of children's rights and the curtailing of the autonomy of teachers and institutions, the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union has decided to extend its legal defense activities to this field as well. In the framework of its Freedom of Education Program, the NGO provides legal advice and representation free of charge.More:http://tasz.hu/hirek/elindul-tasz-tanszabadsag-programja

The Hungarian government has filled the Constitutional Court with loyal judges to create a judicial rubber stamp for government interests, according to a study by Hungarian NGOs of recent Constitutional Court decisions.

Prison overcrowding in Hungary leads to inhuman and degrading conditions, the European Court of Human Rights ruled on March 10. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee provided legal representation in the case. The organization has pointed out that the problem is systemic: Hungarian penal policies force thousands to be held in pre-trial detention without any justification. The court said that inadequate sleeping arrangements, insect infestation and poor ventilation, among other things, had amounted to degrading treatment. Some 450 other cases on prison overcrowding are still before the court.More:http://index.hu/belfold/2015/03/10/borton_tulzsufoltsag_strasbourg_emberi_jogi_dontes_helsinki_bizottsag/

On Tuesday, November 18th, a representative of the ACLU, CCLA, CELS, EIPR, HCLU, KHRC, LRC and Liberty, who are part of the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations (INCLO), made a presentation at a public hearing on the right to protest organized by Brazil’s Federal Attorney General’s Office and Sao Paulo State’s prosecutors’ office. The purpose of the hearing was to exchange data, information, criticism and proposals related to exercising that right.

The European Union (EU) is premised on the respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law, and human rights— including the rights of persons belonging to minorities. EU Member States share these values: they are societies committed to pluralism, the prohibition of discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity, and gender equality. Lately, these fundamental values have been systematically disrespected in Hungary.

The third issue of the International Network of Civil Liberties Organizations’ (INCLO) quarterly newsletter, Global Developments in Religious Freedom and Equal Treatment has published. The newsletter highlights recent international developments, including cases and legislation, concerning religious freedom, equal treatment, and the intersection of the two. This edition sheds light on two landmark decisions (Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, SAS v. France), as well as on other transnational developments.