John Horvath on Sun, 17 May 1998 06:18:21 +0200 (MET DST) |
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---------- Forwarded message ---------- date: Tue, 12 May 1998 22:34:36 +0200 (MET DST) from: John Horvath <jhorv@helka.iif.hu> to: Interior Minister <miniszter@b-m.x400gw.itb.hu> cc: Amnesty International <amnestyis@amnesty.org>, Andras Bencsik <bencsik_a@hotmail.com>, Tamas Bodoky <bodoky@caesar.elte.hu>, Geert Lovik <geert@xs4all.nl>, Prime Minister <horn@mehp.meh.hu>, European Council <isil.gachet@dhdir.coe.fr>, Blue Danube Radio <kerry.skyring@orf.at>, National Security Office <nbh@mail.matav.hu>, Prime Minister's Office <P104@mehp.meh.hu>, Tibor Vidos <vidos@ind.eunet.hu>, Greg Guma <TFmag@aol.com>, Florian Roetzer <fr@tp.heise.de> subject: incident The following letter is being forwarded to you in order to give you more information about an incident that recently took place in Budapest, Hungary. Although the incident is not as serious as others of this kind, it nevertheless is meant to provide you with personal, background information. Such incidents occur regularly in Hungary, and may be used as a point of departure or to compliment existing research in this area. Please feel free to disseminate or forward this information to wherever you may deem appropriate. The attachment with this message is scanned from the original and is in a PCX file format. If you have any problems retrieving the image, or if you would like more information, please don't hesitate to contact me. Thank you for your time and support. Sincerely, John Horvath -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Ministry of the Interior (Belugyminiszterium) Attn.: Gabor Kuncze, Interior Minister Budapest Jozsef A. u. 2/4 1051 John Horvath (Horvath Janos) Budapest Pf. 464 1462 May 11, 1998 Dear Mr Kuncze, Although I am a Hungarian citizen living and working in Hungary, I am writing you this letter in English so as to disseminate the information herein to a wide audience. After all, if Hungary wishes to be part of the European Union, where at present there are nine official languages (and that the subject of this letter is also addressed indirectly to officials from various European Union bodies), then the government of Hungary must start getting used to civic discourse that includes those whose native language is not Hungarian. In any case, enclosed with this letter is a copy of the original complaint, in Hungarian, to which I would like to draw your attention. To state my case very briefly: on the night of Hungary's parliamentary elections (May 10, 1998) I was in a pub with a friend and, along with a dozen or so other people, were suddenly controlled by a group of police officers. When they asked me for my papers I asked why, to which they replied that it was a routine check. These police officers did not wear the standard police uniform, but a plain, dark suit with the word "police" (in Hungarian) written on it. Since I am unfamiliar with such a uniform, I asked for identification to which they said they were not obliged to show any and that the word "police" on their uniform was enough for identification. Also, the fact they collected all the identification papers from the people and took them outside was, as far as I was concerned, not usual practice, so I followed them outside to ensure that this police check was done properly. At this point they were overbearing that I, a tax-paying citizen, dare check on the police and assert that my rights (and subsequently the rights of others) are respected. In essence, what I am drawing your attention to is the abrasiveness and blatant lack of professionalism that the police exhibited. Admittedly, I have to give them that much credit that one of the officers did eventually produce identification. However, he did so after a lengthy argument and in a condescending manner (telling me, for instance, that I can also certify the bar-code if I wished) and then proceeded to take down my name and the information on my identification card (such as my address) on a piece of paper, warning me that if anything happened to his family he would not fail to seek me out. Such attitudes on the part of one whose job is to serve and protect borders precariously close to vigilantism. Furthermore, it merely reinforces the deplorable state of public security in Hungary in where police officers are apprehensive of showing identification, regarding those who demand they do so as potential terrorists. Throughout the whole incident -- including at the police station where I made my complaint -- the police repeatedly insisted that there was nothing wrong in how the check was carried out and that they are under no obligation to produce identification, for a simple uniform -- without any form of identification except for the word "police" and an insignia on the shoulder -- is sufficient. I ask, therefore, the Interior Ministry to look into this case to ascertain whether this is true or not. If it isn't, then I expect appropriate steps to be taken. If, on the other hand, what the police had told me is true, then I feel that a change is urgently needed in order to conform Hungary's police practices to that of the European Union, in where respect for the citizen comes first (at least in theory). Additionally, I would like to also know if the police have the right to take down my name and personal information on a piece of paper just because I had asked for identification. Finally, I would like to know why there is not a system whereby I can make a complaint at any police station, for this incident took place only two blocks from a local police station, and yet I had to travel late at night to the other end of the city in order to make my complaint. I would like to make myself perfectly clear: I have no personal grudge against the individual officers involved, rather the institution of the police as a whole. Indeed, I have to give the officer who eventually gave me his name and identification number credit for having done so, although I expect this to be a matter of course. What I am emphasising, however, is the desperate need for more professionalism within the police force and a change in attitude in where the police, while they may be enforcers of the law, are not a law unto themselves. To this extent, I expect a written apology from both the Budapest police department (BRFK) and the Interior Ministry. What is more, I would like to know what kind of measures will be taken in response to the threat made by one of the officers to seek me out in case something happens to his family, and to insure I will not become a victim of retribution because I had made a complaint against the police -- in other words, that I had dared to stand up for my rights and the rights of others. I expect prompt and swift reaction to this request. Yours sincerely, John Horvath (Horvath Janos) encl. Official Report of Complaint (in Hungarian) cc. Prime Minister's Office National Security Office Mayor Gabor Demszky, Budapest City Hall Budapest Local Government, District 12 Budapest Local Government, District 8 Andras Bencsik, journalist Tamas Bodoky, journalist Tibor Vidos, lobbyist and political consultant Amnesty International Mme Isil Gachet, Secretary of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (France) Geert Lovik, XS4ALL (Netherlands) Florian Roetzer, editor, Teleopolis (Germany) Greg Guma, editor, Toward Freedom (USA) Kerry Skyring, Blue Danube Radio (Austria) -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.3i Charset: cp850 iQCVAwUBNVdhPmxso7FAX/5FAQFriQP8CWvIfxaHFAK66C7huzscX7MDahXx6zmO n6pCDhTcHhy6orNHNxn+aeyo4u8WnLS7i04O3q5m/HukXmBX6LOCvjteGIUI0z+V RETgYtm+ExT56JJ+Et6Q0KbIk9KPVWTpssZunBlqZnCy3Paa7/YK0zSoGLeBhyKz +dx43gQdf2Y= =jeCv -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- --- # distributed via nettime-l : no commercial use without permission # <nettime> is a closed moderated mailinglist for net criticism, # collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets # more info: majordomo@desk.nl and "info nettime-l" in the msg body # URL: http://www.desk.nl/~nettime/ contact: nettime-owner@desk.nl