Security Advisor: no dangerous people smugglers, only drivers were released by Hungarian government

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Chief Security Advisor states that no dangerous people smugglers have been released following the government’s 2023 decree. However, the approved releases have helped reduce prison overcrowding.

György Bakondi, the Prime Minister’s chief advisor on internal security, spoke briefly to RTL News at the Bálványos Summer University in Băile Tuşnad (Tusnádfürdő), Romania, about the recent release of several human traffickers from Hungarian prisons. According to him, no dangerous individuals have been set free, only those who participated in smuggling as drivers.

The Hungarian government has released thousands of people smugglers in the past year

As DNH reported earlier this month, HVG noted that by early July, over 2,000 human traffickers had been freed from the Hungarian prison system, made possible by an emergency decree issued by the government in 2023. The decree allows those involved in people smuggling to be released with 72 hours to leave the country.

The implementation of the measure, which allowed a total of 2,297 people to be freed, caused serious tensions between Austria and Hungary, leading to the Hungarian ambassador in Vienna being summoned and Austria imposing stricter border controls. As we explained in a previous article, one of the biggest problems with the decree is that “the Hungarian state does not monitor whether these people leave Hungary and return to their home country to serve their sentence there.”

Prime Minister’s advisor says dangerous criminals remain in prison

.“Those who committed more serious offences, those who tried to run someone over or used a weapon, they are not among those released; they are in prison,” György Bakondi said in response to questions from RTL. He stated that only people who were involved in people smuggling as drivers for money were allowed to leave the country.

Viktor Orbán’s Chief Security Advisor asserted that there is no security risk in releasing the individuals involved in such crimes. Quite the contrary, he believes that it would be a much bigger problem “if thousands of people, say for driving a car, were kept in prison for long periods of time, thereby creating prison overcrowding.”

”RTL’s reporter also asked why Hungarian citizens were not released from prison instead, as they could be more easily kept under surveillance by the authorities. Bakondi replied that the people released “already pose a low level of social danger.”

The reporter then went on to say that “one of the main objectives of the government is to fight against people smugglers and migration,” asking, “What is the reason for the decision to release the smugglers?” However, the PM’s advisor did not answer any more questions.

bakondi people smugglers tusnadfurdo — György Bakondi at the Bálványos Summer University.
Photo: MTI/Veres Nándor

Hungarian Helsinki Committee: this is not the solution to prison overcrowding

As we wrote here, when it was made public, the government decree that allows for the release of human traffickers was justified as a measure to reduce prison overcrowding.

An expert from the Hungarian Helsinki Committee told RTL that they are pleased the government has recognised that overcrowding is a problem in the Hungarian prison system. However, they do not believe that releasing people smugglers will help matters. Lili Krámer, a criminologist at the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, said:

“I ask you, [with regards to] detention for misdemeanours, for example, for parents whose children have missed 30 hours of school. [How are they] more dangerous to society than human traffickers?”

Moreover, the Committee also pointed out that the 2023 decree does not distinguish between different types of people smugglers. For this reason, the expert said, she did not know on what basis the Prime Minister’s adviser could claim that only drivers were being released.