The National Archives of Hungary (Budapest, 2006)

NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND SPECIAL ARCHIVES OF NATIONAL COLLECTION - The Historical Archives of the Hungarian State Security by Gergő Bendegúz Cseh

a research permission issued by the Archival board of Trustees which is regulated by the Act of Archives under Section 23. in the subsection 2-3. The act disposes of the researchable data in detail under Section 4. Citizens of foreign countries can research the Historical Archives regulated by the Act of Archives: Public data created more than fifteen years ago can be researched without any restriction if they are not classified. The condition of research in personal data is that a supporting attitude from the certain committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences or from the Research Institute has to be obtained. Furthermore, only the citizens of other countries are allowed to research that have the same kind of rules of personal data protection as Hungary. The person who does not have the permission of the board of trustees can research as a private researcher under Section 5 of Act III. of 2003. Under the rule of law anybody can obtain and publish the data maintained in the Archives in anonymous way but after the protected period expires the personal data can also be researched without limitation. Data registered in public programmes, public coming outs can also be published in anonymous way and also the data that has already been published justifiably and the information can be published that is needed for identifying people who take part in public, for identifying operative relations and professional employees. Researchers can get copies about documents in the research room. FURTHER SOURCES RELATED TO THE WORK OF STATE SECURITY SERVICES Since before 1990 each state security service was guided by the party (Communist party - the translator) data about state security services can be found in the former MDP and MSZMP documents - both at country and county level. (MDP= Hungarian Labourers' Party, MSZMP = Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party - the translator). It is reasonable for researchers researching the history of Hungarian churches to study the documents of the former State Office for Church Affairs in the Hungarian National Archives and the documents of the clerks of church affairs working in the counties. A state security department used to work within the Hungarian Police Department and the county police-offices thus, it is useful to study these documents, too. Several documents can be found in the Ministry of National Affairs that are somehow loosely related to state security because the former main division, division headquarters no. III. used to operate as a department of the ministry.