GENEVA – The UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief, Nazila Ghanea, will conduct a country visit to Hungary from 7 October to 17 October 2024. This is the first time the mandate is visiting Hungary since it was created in 1986. The expert will seek to get an in-depth understanding of freedom of religion or belief in the country, to identify existing and emerging obstacles to the enjoyment of this right and to present recommendations to overcome any such obstacles, in the light of international human rights standards. Ghanea said she deeply appreciated all engagements with her mandate in advancing this objective. During her visit, the Special Rapporteur will meet with Government officials, civil society organisations, representatives of religious or belief communities, faith-based actors and academics. She is due to visit Budapest and Debrecen. At the end of her visit on Thursday 17 October 2024, the expert will share her preliminary observations at the Mercure Budapest City Center Hotel at 16:00 local time. Access will be strictly limited to journalists. Ghanea will present a comprehensive report on her visit to the Human Rights Council in Geneva in March 2025. Dr. Nazila Ghanea is the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council"s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organisation and serve in their individual capacity. For more information and media requests, please contact: hrc-sr-freedomofreligion@un.org. For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts, please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (dharisha.indraguptha@un.org) or John Newland (john.newland@un.org). Follow news related to the UN’s independent human rights experts on Twitter: @UN_SPExperts.