European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called on Thursday for Hungarian authorities to allow an LGBT pride parade to take place.
“I call on the Hungarian authorities to allow Pride to take place in Budapest without fear of criminal or administrative sanctions against organisers or participants. To the LGBT+ community in Hungary and beyond: I will always be your ally,” she wrote on social media.
Meanwhile, Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán told the head of the European Commission to mind her own business in response to her call to allow LGBT parades in Budapest:
“…I strongly urge the European Commission to refrain from interfering in the law enforcement affairs of Member States where it has no role to play. I also urge the Commission to focus its efforts on addressing the pressing challenges facing the European Union — in areas where it does play an important role and bears responsibility, and where it has made serious mistakes in recent years, such as the energy crisis and the decline in Europe’s competitiveness.”
Ban on parades
Last week, the Budapest Police Headquarters banned a gay pride parade in the centre of the Hungarian capital.
However, Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, who was elected from the opposition, said the parade would go ahead anyway, as it was a “municipal event” that did not require special approval from the authorities.
The reason for the police ban on the LGBT parade is amendments to the Hungarian Constitution and the law on assemblies, which were passed by parliament. The new provisions in the document place the rights of children “above everything else, except the right to life” and introduce a ban on public events that “demonstrate deviations from gender identity acquired at birth, as well as gender reassignment or homosexuality.”
At the same time, the document notes that there is no complete ban on such events, the amendments only restrict where they can be held. Thus, it is unacceptable to hold gay pride parades in crowded places in the city centre, but they are permitted in remote, preferably restricted areas.
