Legal provisions on guardianship and the right to vote in Hungary - Conference and Roundtable Discussion

Legal provisions on guardianship and the right to vote in Hungary 

Conference and Roundtable Discussion on Guardianship and

the Right to Vote in Hungary in light of Hungarian and international regulations

Hosted by:

The Mental Disability Advocacy Center (MDAC);

CEU (Central-European University)

Two of Hungary’s obligations under international law gave rise to the organization of this conference: First, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which was ratified by Hungary in 2007, entered into force on 3 May 2008. Among other obligations, the CRPD includes provisions on legal capacity and the right to vote for persons with disabilities, which Hungarian legislation does not currently comply with with. Second, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Hungary was not in compliance with its international obligations with respect to the right to vote for persons with disabilities in its judgement on K.A v. Hungary.

Despite these current deficiencies, there are opportunities to harmonize the Hungarian legal framework and practice with international obligations: the ongoing recodification of the Hungarian Civil Code presents opportunities to reform the rules of guardianship. In addition, the the European Court of Human Rights judgement in K.A v. Hungary, includes several important aspects for the reconsideration of the constitutional regulation of the right to vote.

This conference is organized by MDAC and CEU and will present the human right concerns in relation to Hungary’s guardianship system and its regulations on the right to vote. Through the particiaption of international lawyers and international and national experts, the conference will seek to identify the factors that need be taken into consideration for effective realization of international human rights norms in relation to legal capacity and the right to vote for persons placed under guardianship.

The conference will be held in Hungarian and English. Translation will be provided by the organizers. Participation at the conference is free.

Contact:

Mariann Amir

Mental Disability Advocacy Center (MDAC)
Address: 1051 Budapest, Hercegprímás utca 11. 3. floor

Tel: + 413 2730 / fax: + 413 2739
email:mamir@mdac.info; www.mdac.info

This event was supported by the EEA/EFTA Financial Mechanism, the Hungarian Environmental Partnership Foundation and its partners and the Zennström Philanthropies.