Hungary opens communist-era informer files in belated reckoning with Cold War past
The release covers about 60,000 names and includes redactions, while a second batch of 9,000 detailed dossiers is due in February 2027.
- On November 4, Hungary will begin publishing tens of thousands of communist-era informant records via a new online database. Prime Minister Peter Magyar called this a key pledge of the "2026 regime change," settling a 36-year debt to those surveilled or blackmailed.
- The release date marks the 70th anniversary of the Soviet suppression of the 1956 revolution. Hungary remains the last major former Soviet-bloc country in Central and Eastern Europe to fully declassify comprehensive secret police records.
- Gergo Bendeguz Cseh, director-general of the Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security Services, expects around 50,000 records to be published. However, only one in ten detailed files have survived due to historical looting and destruction.
- Prime Minister Peter Magyar urged citizens to approach the disclosures with understanding, noting people may find relatives among those named. He stated, "We must learn to ask the right questions, confront what happened and find the strength to listen to the answers."
- The release process will continue until February 25, 2027, the memorial day for victims of communism. Successive governments previously resisted opening archives, fearing the material could be used to discredit or blackmail political opponents.
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143 Articles
berlingske.dk
BTOn Wednesday, Hungarians were given the opportunity to search for names and information in a database from the Cold War.
The documents that now see the light also add details such as the activity of that person within the network, the reasons for his recruitment or what his code name was
Hungary has published the names and personal details of around 60,000 people who collaborated with the secret police during the communist regime, in an initiative that aims to shed light on one of the most sensitive chapters in the country's history. The documents have been made available through an online platform, including the real names of the informants, their secret pseudonyms, dates of birth, addresses and other personal details. The file…
Following the discovery of the archives of the Communist intelligence services, the Hungarian media discovered in the database the names of former government officials, television hosts, athletes and other public figures.
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