Migration is a sensitive issue ali over the world. The social and economic differences among states, the increasing number of ethnic, religious or poiiticai confliets, not to men-tion the expanding possibilities of travel supported by the improved conditions, have ali turned migration into one of the greatest challenges of recent times. This challenge is also laden with security policy, economic and humanitarian aspects. Migration has become an issue of defence policy, too.
Migration is an extremely complex phenomenon, extending to the economic, social and cultural areas of a society, from refugees to immigrants, from seasonal labour migra-tion to illegal migramigra-tion, and to organised internamigra-tional crime. Therefore a reconsideramigra-tion and re-shaping of the legal institutions ofmigration are increasingly more timely.
Hence any poiiticai go al or carefully elaborated strategy becomes feasible only if it re-ceives the support of the majority of the society of the respective host country.
The implementation of a comprehensive migration policy intended to respond to ali inherent challenges requires complex legal regulations and law enforcement based on the existence of relevant administrative institutions, thus ensuring the complete treatment of the various forms of migration.
However, a truly comprehensive migration policy can not be implemented by public administration or police organisation alone. It also requires the close co-operation of governmental and civil ageneies, as weIl as a realistic attitude of the society, free from xenophobia but at the same time rnindful of the country's security interests.
This co-operation of public adrninistration with civil organisations is constant with the fact that there exist different priorities in the activities of the two sides whose interests are otherwise basicaIly identical.
The e1aboration of Hungary's migration policy is fundamentally influenced by the country's aspirations for EU accession. In its application for associate membership in the EU in 1994, the Hungariari governrnent affirmed that the country would co-operate within the Maastricht Treaty in the tieid of home affairs. This objective calls for the co-ordination of Hungarian migration policy with the Union legislation.
The formulation of public administration policies with respect to migration is in direct collaboration with EU member states, more specitically within the frarnework of the so-called third pillar of the EU.
While the EU does not currently have a comprehensive and uniform migration policy, there is nonetheless an obvious effort to create harmonised legislation and law en
force-ment. Artic\e Kl of Title VI of the Treaty of the European Union specifies areas of
"common interest" thereby necessitates express ing that intergovemmental co-operation in which much larger emphasis is given to the sovereignty of the state with reg ard to these questions, compared with those issues community levelones.
The only realistic goal of Hungarian migration policy can be to bring continuity to the various humanitarian obligations undertaken and make sure that such initiatives meet a uniform set of standards. Further on, such policy should take into account constitutional regulation, the nation's economic, social and security interests, as weil as extemal re-quirements set for us in connect ion with EU accession a consistent legal framework.
Let us now take a look at the main elements of Hungary's migration policy.
Since the second half of the 80s - because of events in Romania and in the Southem-Slav region - Hungary has metamorphosed from a refugee sending country to a signifi-cant transit and host country. At the beginning of the process, a standardised legal or institutional framework for the mass reception of the refugees practicaIly did not exist.
In 1989, as the first of the members of the former Warsaw Treaty, Hungary acceded to the 1951 Geneva Convention and its supplemental 1967 New York Protocol. Amendment to the Convention was made with a geographical reservation under which Hungary was ready to fulfil its assumed obligations only for persons seeking asylum due to events oc-curring in Europe. With regard to the political conditions at the time of the access ion, and due to the fact that this legal instrument was virtually without precedent in the country, that limitation was acceptable.
In the course of the amendment of the Constitution in 1989, the then still ideologically charged provision on refugee status was revised. The amendment specified the circ\e of persons recognised as refugees similarly to criteria of 1951 Geneva Convention. Accord-ing to the Constitution the law on asylum has to be passed by a two-third vote ofrepresen-tatives.
From the summ er of 1991, as a result of the Yugoslav crisis, several waves of asylum seekers arrived in Hungary. Instead of c\aiming individual persecution, their need for protection could be justified by wartime conditions in their countries of origin. Most of them declared an intention to retum home as soon as possible. The notion of temporary protection, lacking the proper legal and institutional framework, evolved as a result of circumstances. Following registration, the accommodation for and legal practice concem-ing temporarily protected persons would not have been possible without the co-operation with municipalities, non-govemmental organisations and institutions of different com-munities.
Since Dayton Accords and the peace treaty signed in Paris created the basic conditions for peace, as of January 15, 1996, the Hungarian govemment no longer provides tempo-rary protection for new arrivals from the former Yugoslavia.
In addition to participating in the 1951 Geneva Convention, Hungary is also party to relevant international agreements, especially to protective instruments such as the 1950 European Convention of Human Rights, which obliged the signatory parties to protect fundamental human rights. Hungary recognised the authority of the European Human Rights Commission for addressing individual complains and the jurisdiction of Stras-bourg.
The legal status of recognised refugees is regulated by Law Decree 19 of 1989, which
entered into force on October 15, 1989. This decree stipulates that refugees should be regarded as "quasi-Hungarian citizens" in tenns of the application of the laws, the only differences be ing that:
• they do not have the right to vote;
• they may not be employed in jobs which are by law restricted to Hungarian citizens;
• they are not obliged to perforrn military service;
• they enjoy preferential treatment in receiving Hungarian citizenship through naturali-sation;
• they can receive Hungariari language classes free of charge;
• they can receive bilingual passports as defined in the 1951 Geneva Convention.
Following the ratification of the above international guidelines, the necessary amend-ments to the existing Hungarian laws were also enacted and the institutional framework necessary for the implementation of these agreements were created. Although an adminis-trative and welfare system for refugees was created during 1988-89, its modernisation still remains a task for the future.
It can thus be stated that the elaboration of the asylum law and the status of temporary protected persons which differs from that of recognised refugees can no longer be de-layed. The maintenance of the geographical reservation by Hungary to the 1951 Geneva Convention is unnecessary and incompatible both with the Constitution and future acces-sion to the European Union.
Preparation for a standardised EU asylum law is underway and on ce it is enacted, ex-isting geographical restrictions will also be lifted. Aceording to the bill drafted concur-rently with the ratification of the law, geographic particularities made to the 1951 Geneva Convention will be dropped. It is a common knowledge that Hungary was the first to ratify the Convention in this region on the eve of the poIiticaI changes. It is also obvious that legal status of the refugees from Romania, whose number ran into tens of thousands by that time, had to be legalised using the instruments of international law. Ratification of the geographical prerequisites at that time seem justified since the collapse of Commu-nism and the disintegration of the Soviet Union threatened to yield a tlood of uncontrol-lable migration. In spite of the full legal regulation of the protection system for refugees and asylum procedure, Hungary still lacks an asylum law, even though the Constitution explicitly states the necessity for granting asylum.
In the process of forrnulating government policy and regulations on aliens arriving in and residing in Hungary, our working parameters are basically determined by the coun-try's accession to the EU and our borders becoming the external on es of the European Union. We will have to establish border protection systems and visa policy congruent with EU standards. At the same time, we cannot ignore that numerous ethnic Hungarians live in the neighbouring countries. Maintenance of contact between the ethnic Hungarians living beyond the borders and the mother country should be guarantced.
Following EU accession, there will be two groups of aliens distinguished at the point of entry. The citizens of the member countries will be entitled to free movement and stay, while a protective policy will be applied to the citizens of other countries. For them, entry and stay will be possible only amidst increasingly rigorous conditions. Consequently, Hungarian regulations concerning the irnrnigration and residence of foreigners must be modified with regard to the domestic job market and employment policy forecasts. As to
the future, in order to form a standardised all-encompassing migration policy, Hungary must execute the formulation of a labour market strategy, as weil as settlement of the legal status, the provision of shelter to illegal who cannot be deported due to human rights consideration.
lIlegal migration should draw the hardest possible treatment applied by ali countries.
The danger of illegal migration lies in the fact that it is directly connected to international organised crime. It is a weil known fact that organised crimina ls deal in the trafficking of illegal migrants, drugs and arms along the mayor routes of transit. Hungary is prepared to introduce strict border controls on the external borders to curb illegal migration and inter-national organised crime.
It has to be repeatedly stressed that the implementation of a successful migration pol-icy needs weil orchestrated government actions supported by the society, and the active participation of non-governmental organisations.