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37 Suffolk Transnat'l L. Rev. 135 (2014)
Housing over Handcuffs: The Criminalization of Homelessness in Hungary

handle is hein.journals/sujtnlr37 and id is 149 raw text is: HOUSING OVER HANDCUFFS: THE CRIMINALIZATION OF HOMELESSNESS IN HUNGARY I. INTRODUCTION If you sleep on the street in Hungary, you become a crimi- nal.' The Hungarian government has criminalized the actions of its homeless population in an attempt to clear them from its streets.2 In 2010, Hungary enacted legislation that authorizes lo- cal governments to criminalize homelessness and, in doing so, has violated its commitment to human rights.3 When the Con- stitutional Court of Hungary rightfully overturned the legisla- tion, the government refused to revoke it, amended the Constitution to permit promulgation of such laws, and most re- cently, under its newly established authority, the Parliament passed an amended version of the original law (2013 Anti-home- lessness Law) to permit fining and imprisoning of the homeless.4 There are different perspectives regarding the causes of home- lessness and these perspectives have policy implications: the per- spective that homelessness is a choice leads to harsher and less sympathetic policies against homelessness, including criminal- ization.5 The perspective that homelessness is not a choice, but rather a crisis cause by factors often outside of one's control, leads to more positive approaches to homelessness, such as af- fordable housing programs.6 These approaches to homelessness 1. See infra Part II.B (discussing Hungary's recent legislation which criminalizes sleeping and storing one's belongings in public spaces). 2. See infra Part 1I.B (explaining Hungarian government is developing criminal- ization of homelessness). 3. See infra Part II.B (discussing recent anti-homelessness legislation and its im- plications for Hungarian homeless population). 4. See Palash Ghosh, Sleepless in Budapest: Hungary Again Criminalizes Home- lessness, INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TIMES (Oct. 2, 2013), available at http://www.ib- times.com/sleepless-budapest-hungary-again-criminalizes-homelessness-activists- condemn-new-laws-1413208 (explaining passing of 2013 Anti-homelessness Law); in- fra Parts II.C-D (discussing Hungary's controversial refusal to revoke its anti-home- lessness law). 5. Balint Misetics, Criminalization, Discourse and Symbolic Violence, HOMELESS IN EUR., Winter 2012/2013, at 12, 12 (analyzing varying perspectives on homelessness and how they affect policy). If the public believes people are homeless by choice, it will be less inclined to challenge policies criminalizing homelessness. Id. 6. See id. (discussing exterior causation for homelessness leads to more positive approach).

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