E/CN.4/2000/16/Add.1 page 22 III. CONSULTATIONS IN HUNGARY 97. The Special Rapporteur spent most of his stay in Hungary in Budapest from 27 to 30 September 1999. He met senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of the Interior. He also had talks with Mr. Gyula K. Szelei and Mrs. Klára Breuer, respectively Director-General for International Organizations and Chief of the Department of Human Rights and Minorities Legislation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Toso Doncsev, President of the National and Ethnic Minorities Office, Mr. Tamas Ban, Director-General at the Ministry of Justice, and Mr. Zsolt Jékely, Director-General at the Ministry of Cultural Heritage. 98. The Special Rapporteur also had talks with parliamentarians, including Mr. Béla Pokol, Chairperson of the Constitutional Committee of the National Assembly, and Mrs. Kosa Magda Kosacs, Chairperson of the Committee of the National Assembly for Human Rights, Minority Rights and Religious Affairs. He had meetings with representatives of national human rights institutions, including Mr. Jenö Kaltenbach, Parliamentary Commissioner for the Rights of National and Ethnic Minorities, Mr. Làzló Majtényl, Parliamentary Commissioner for Data Protection, and Mr. Péter Polt, Deputy Ombudsman. He also met Mr. Lorenzo Pascuali, Deputy Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Lastly, the Special Rapporteur had talks with representatives of Roma community associations and organizations for the protection of rights, and the rights of the Roma in particular. A list of the most important people with whom the Special Rapporteur spoke is contained in the annex to this report. 99. The Special Rapporteur would like to thank the Hungarian authorities for their warm welcome and their cooperation in the preparation and course of this visit. He would also like to thank the Deputy Representative of the High Commissioner for Refugees and all the associations and organizations with which he had talks. A. Overview 100. The changes which have occurred in the political and economic system are part of the upheaval that affected most of the communist regimes in central and eastern Europe after 1989. As a result, Hungary opted for a democratic system with institutions to guarantee the rule of law and human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the protection of the rights of minorities. Thus, in accordance with article 70 (a), paragraphs 1 and 2, of the Constitution, the State guarantees the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all persons on Hungarian territory with no distinction as to race, colour, language, etc. In accordance with paragraph 3 of the same article, the Republic of Hungary guarantees equality before the law and takes whatever steps are required to ensure equality of opportunity. 101. Hungary is a party to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Since it joined the Council of Europe in 1990, Hungary has been a party to the European Convention on Human Rights. In 1995, it ratified the framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.