The “homophobic law” will not modify the program of the Budapest Pride
The Budapest Pride festival started yesterday and will last for one month. Meanwhile, PM Viktor Orbán advertises his plans concerning how the European Union should be modified in paid advertisements in Western newspapers.
As we reported before, Fidesz members submitted a bill more than a month ago that would tighten the penalty for sexual crimes against children and make a list of perpetrators to help defend the younger generation. Later, they amended the anti-paedophile law, or, more precisely, a set of laws that aims towards the protection of children from sexual attacks, paedophilia and would implement stricter punishment if the perpetrator was an official and also forbids perpetrators to work with underaged people.
However, one of the amendments that caused the issue was that under the new proposal, the
promotion and presentation of homosexuality or gender reassignment would be prohibited for those under 18 years of age.
Many NGOs said it was a frontal attack on freedom of expression and children’s rights, but the parliament accepted, and President János Áder signed it this week.
Yesterday Johanna Majercsik, a spokeswoman of the Budapest Pride, said that the law would not modify their festival. That means they will let people under 18 take part in their programs. The event started yesterday and will end on July 24 with a march – hvg.hu said. Those interested can partake in hundreds of programs, exhibitions, contests, sports events, and forums.
RTL Klub tried to get an official standpoint from the government on whether the organizers have to prescribe an age limit for the partakers, but they refused to answer.
Meanwhile, PM Viktor Orbán advertises his plans concerning how the European Union should be modified in paid advertisements in Western newspapers. According to hvg.hu, the advertisements already appeared at least in one Danish and one Spanish newspaper. In the adverts, the Hungarian PM published seven propositions saying that Brussels currently tries to build a European superstate nobody voted.
PM Viktor Orbán cleared that he said ‘No’ to that plan. He would like Serbia to join the community, stated that the European Parliament is a dead end, and highlighted that European integration is not a goal but a tool. Unfortunately, the advertisement is full of grammar mistakes and typos. Before, Mark Rutte, the PM of the Netherlands, said that Hungary has no place in the EU because of the homophobic law its parliament accepted. The president of the European Council, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the bill was a shame.
The Hungarian foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, wrote about a man appearing behind the Hungarian national team with a rainbow-coloured flag before the German-Hungarian match in Munich. Szijjártó asked what punishment he received for that. He added that Bavarian authorities arrested 18 Hungarian fans.
On Friday evening, hundreds of Austrians protested in front of the Hungarian embassy in Vienna against the government’s homophobic law – 444.hu reported.
Source: hvg.hu, Daily News Hungary, Facebook, 444.hu, Twitter