The European Commission says it will examine a Hungarian law withdrawing state-funded shelter from Ukrainian refugees which could lead to thousands of refugees pushed on to the streets.
The Commission wants to determine whether the law passed this week is in line with EU asylum rules. Budapest says it is targeting only those who are able but unwilling to work.
The new law which threatens to push thousands of Ukrainian refugees on to the streets or back to Ukraine has come under fire from human rights groups.
The regulation restricts state support for Ukrainians to those who come from parts of Ukraine directly affected by the fighting caused by Russia’s invasion. Thirteen regions in Ukraine are on the list, which will be updated monthly by the Hungarian government.
“We are aware of this decree and we are looking into it,” Commission spokesperson on migration Anitta Hipper told reporters in Brussels Thursday, adding: “The EU stands united in providing protection for all those fleeing Putin’s bombs… and we’ll ensure their protection as long as it takes.”
It is not known how many of the 46,000 Ukrainians taking shelter in Hungary will be affected by the new law.
Some 120 Ukrainian citizens, mainly Roma women and children of Roma, were evicted from a privately run shelter in the town of Kocs on Wednesday, the day when a government decree took effect which limits eligibility for accommodation to people from different regions of Ukraine which are deemed to not be active war zones.
There are currently some 4.2 million Ukrainians in the EU who have been accorded ‘temporary protection’ status under EU law. Some 46,000 of these are in Hungary, and 3,000 could be affected by the change in Hungarian law, human rights groups say.
“This means immediate protection and access to rights in the EU…throughout all member states, including residency rights, but also access to the labor market, accommodation, social welfare, medical and other assistance,” Hipper said.
The Commission official would not comment on whether the EU executive believes Hungary might be contravening the directive. “This decree just entered into force, we need to be in touch with the Hungarian authorities, and this is where we are at this stage.”
“We have paid out 10 billion forints (about 25 million euros) in one year to provide accommodation to people who are capable of work,” said Gulyás. The measures put in place in Hungary were “entirely in line” with those in Poland, Romania and Czechia, he claimed.
The group spent a night under an outdoor shelter, while the owner of the hostel in which they had been staying provided mattresses for the children, according to András Léderer, head of advocacy for the human rights group the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, who was present.
The United Nations’ High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said it was monitoring the situation, and reiterated its warning that any transition from refugee shelters must be gradual and accompanied by long-term solutions to prevent homelessness and destitution.
“The UNHCR is not aware of any other countries hosting Ukrainian refugees, where a distinction is made based on the area of origin/residence for the purpose of accessing subsidized accommodation, or any other services,” it added.
Some 120 women and children in Kocs were being bused to temporary accommodation provided through the Hungarian Charity Service of the Order of Malta, a Catholic organization that receives state funding, Euronews reported.
Léderer welcomed the fact that the public attention drawn by the events in Kocs had apparently led the authorities to mobilize temporary relief for the evicted refugees.
“What happens after one week, your guess is as good as mine,” he added, while expressing the concern that similar situations could develop elsewhere in Hungary.
