Representatives of the Ministry of Human Resources held talks with the Human Rights Watch about the organisation's report on domestic violence in Hungary.

The report subsequently acknowledges that including violence within relationships as a separate category of offence within the new Penal Code, operative as of 1 July 2013, was a necessary step and points in the right direction.

The organisation's recommendations partially focus on problems arising from the weaknesses of previous legislation; however, it is too early to systematically analyse the impacts of the new law.

During the course of the negotiations, Human Rights Watch stressed that the report did not attempt to provide a comprehensive view of the Hungarian legal environment, but, through some clear examples, to encourage the Government to introduce further measures.

Representatives of the Ministry asked the organisation to review the factual errors in the report as well as to share the best practices of other countries, which Human Rights Watch promised to do.

The Ministry of Human Resources confirms that the Hungarian Government strongly condemns violence within relationships, the perpetrators of which are liable to judicial proceedings, adding that assistance, protection and crisis management are always available to victims.

The National Crisis Management and Information Service is available non-stop at +36-80-20-55-20.

(State Secretariat for Social and Family Affairs)