Ombudsman Outlines Responsibilities

Budapest (MTI) – Laszlo Szekely, Hungary’s ombudsman, told MTI in a wide-ranging interview that the government control office has a constitutional right to investigate how civil organisations distribute funding.

Referring to a rights group which had turned to him for his opinion on whether the control office (Kehi) had the legal authority to examine the use of funds distributed under the Norway Grants scheme — and asking him to seek the top court’s opinion — the fundamental rights ombudsman said the Constitutional Court’s opinion was not required. “My job is to advise the sides involved about the basic legal facts rather than to take sides in a political dispute.” The scope of Kehi’s powers and how they are exercised must be jointly clarified by states (ie, by Hungary and Norway) on the basis of the agreement on granting and disbursing foreign funds, Szekely said.

On the topic of a complaint about the shrinking size of Budapest’s green areas due to the planned museum quarter in City Park, he said this was an issue to be examined not by the ombudsman but by municipality politicians and experts.

Concerning discrimination affecting members of the LGBT community, Szekely said his office had received only a few submissions. However, he called for extra efforts to increase social sensitivity on the issue and to enhance tolerance. “This community was, 2-3 decades ago, forced to remain basically invisible. Now it is high time for society to get used to fact that they openly declare their orientation, which is a basic component of their identity.”