Hungary prohibits pride events and triggers protests

Von WOM

Budapest, Hungary-On Tuesday a new law was passed, the LGBTQ+events prohibited and allowed the authorities to use facial recognition software to identify the participants at the events. This new law led to a great demonstration on the streets of Budapest.

protests in Budapest

Several thousand protesting and chanting anti-governmental slogans gathered after the vote before the Hungarian parliament. Then they blocked the Margaret Bridge over the Danube, which brought traffic to a standstill, and ignored the instructions from the police to clear the area.

The background of the law

The procedure of the Hungarian legislators is part of an offensive against the LGBTQ+community, orchestrated by the nationalist-populist party of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who maintains close connections to Russia President Vladimir Putin and former US President Donald Trump.

The law, which was adopted in a vote with 136 votes and 27 votes, is reminiscent of similar restrictions on sexual minorities in Russia. It was brought through the parliament in the urgent procedure after it was submitted on Monday.

content of the law

The law changes the regulations on freedom of assembly in Hungary and makes it a criminal offense to take part in events or to carry out those that violate Hungary's controversial "child protection" law. This law prohibits the "presentation or advertising" for homosexuality towards minors under the age of 18.

For participating in a forbidden event, fines of up to 200,000 Hungarian Forints (about $ 546) threaten to forward the state to "child protection" initiative. In addition, the authorities can use facial recognition tools to identify people who participate in prohibited events.

reactions of the LGBTQ+community

In an explanation after the first submission of the law by the MPs, the organizers of the Budapest pride were that the aim of the law was to make the LGBTQ+community "scapegoats" in order to silence critical voices towards Orbán's government. They emphasized: "This is not child protection, that's fascism." The Budapest Pride Festival attracts thousands of visitors every year and celebrates the history of the LGBTQ+movement while at the same time confirming the equality of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people.

After the adoption of the law, Jojó Majercsik, a spokesman for Budapest Pride Pride, said that despite Orbán's decades of efforts to stigmatize LGBTQ+people, had a wave of solidarity and support.

government campaign against LGBTQ+rights

This new legislation is the latest step against the LGBTQ+community under Orbán, whose government has already passed other laws that are criticized by human rights organizations and other European politicians as repressive against sexual minorities.

In 2022, the European Commission filed a case against Hungary 2021 adopted Child Protection Act at the European Court of Justice. The Commission argued that the law "discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation and gender identity".

A look at the future

The methods of the Hungarian government resemble Putin's tactics, which in December 2022 Russia's ban on the "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relationships" from minors to adults, which effectively prohibits LGBTQ+activities.

Orbán, which has been in power since 2010, faces an unprecedented challenge through an emerging opposition party, while Hungary's economy is fighting with inflation and a crisis of living costs and increasing the elections in 2026.

Tamás Dombos, project coordinator of the Hungarian LGBTQ+right group Háttér Society, explained that Orbán's attacks on minorities were a diversion maneuver to distract the electorate from more important problems. The possibility of using facial recognition software for prohibited demonstrations can also be used against other protests that the government considers illegal.