Hungary has made public tens of thousands of communist-era secret-police documents containing names, aliases and other information on nearly 60,000 former informants who monitored civilians between 1945 and 1989. The government launched a website where people can search the digitized files, which also include dates of birth, addresses, mothers’ names and the stated reasons for recruitment. Some details were redacted for privacy, and the database is incomplete because documents were lost or destroyed.

Prime Minister Magyar urged Hungarians to handle the material carefully, saying that many families would face painful information about deceased relatives. The publication fulfilled a promise made six months after his election. Information on about 25,000 additional recruited people is expected to be released next February.