Private history
One can have access to the documents kept in the Archives if one is
- the person in the files or a close relative after the person’s death,
- a scientific researcher,
- anybody, or
- another state institution.
The law makes a difference whether the person in the files is
- the person observed,
- a professional employee,
- a network person,
- an operative contact person, or
- a third party.
The person observed is a person who was the target of State Security activity, i.e. the victim.
A professional employee is somebody who was employed by State Security Organizations as a member of either the secret or the public staff.
A network person is an informer who, according to the document, meets at least one of these specifications: they sent secret reports under a cover name, signed a declaration of enlisting, their activity acquired advantages.
An operative contact person is any person, who was kept in records as “voluntary contact” or “occasional contact” by the organizations having produced the documents coming under the effect of this Act;; or a person who gave continual information as a volunteer without signing a declaration of enlisting.
A third party is anybody who does not fall into any of the above mentioned categories.
Access to the Files
The documents contain the names and posts of lots of people of executive power (e.g. detectives, policemen, judges, attorneys, party secretaries, KISZ (Union of Communist Youth) secretaries. These names are not kept anonymous as their names and positions are public data if not data of public interest.
The person observed can have access to the most data. They can read the documents kept about them and the documents necessary to identify the network person, operative contact person and employees who were in connection with their person.
A third person can find out about the data kept about them. After the death of the person observed or a third person these rights are the close relatives’ legal due. A close relative is a relative in direct line, a sibling, a spouse or life partner if the marriage or the partnership existed both at the time when the document was made and at the time of the person’s death.
An employee, a network person and an operative contact person can have access only to the data that is in connection with his or her person. Thus an employee is not entitled to see what they asked the victim during questioning, or whom and how they enlisted. Similarly, network persons cannot look at reports they made, as those are not their own data. Relatives of these people do not inherit the right to access. This rule has already caused conflicts. Namely, it must be separately decided in each case to which category the person involved belongs. A person may have been an employee in one period of his or her life and a person observed in another. It is more frequent for somebody to have been a person observed and an informer at the same time by the criteria of law.
The people affected can get a free copy of all the documents they are entitled to see. In these copies we have to make anonymous all the data they were not entitled to see.
Anybody can have access to and publish the documents that do not contain personal data. According to the main rule, personal data can only be made public after the time of protection expires. The time of protection is 30 years after the person’s death; if the date of death is unknown, 90 years after the date of birth; if this is also unknown, 60 years after the date of the document. In the case of some especially sensitive personal data the time of protection is lengthened to 60, 90, or 120 years. This data concerns race, nationality, minority or ethnic status, religion or other ideology, state of health, obsessions and sexual life. Written permission of the person affected can make exceptions from this main rule.
Within the above mentioned frames, anybody who turns to our Archives can not only look at one particular document but they can carry out scientific research as well. Research is free, but the copies of the documents must be paid for. Data that has been legally made public or that is in connection with public personalities are exceptions: anybody can have access to it.
Special rules refer to public personalities. No difference is made whether the person is a public personality now or used to be once. Anybody who has or used to have executive power, has been nominated for such position or has the task of forming the political public opinion is included. Anybody can turn to the Historical Archives to ask for data concerning the possible State Security past of such people; to find out whether the documents show the legal criteria of their being an employee, a network person or an operative contact person. In such cases, the Historical Archives has to ask the person affected whether they admit their being a public personality. This question must be put whether there are any documents about the person’s State Security past or not. (Otherwise the question asked would mean a judgement). If the person admits to his or her being a public personality, the Archives will answer the enquiry. If the person does not admit it, we have to deny the answer. The person who came up with the request may go to court and then it is the court’s decision whether the person affected is a public personality or not. The Archives will give or deny the answer according to the sentence.
