About 70 MEPs intend to show solidarity with the LGBTQ+ march after the Hungarian prime minister tried to prohibit him.
March pride to Budapest photo: Profimedia
Dozens of European deputies are expected to participate this month at the Pride March in Budapest, challenging Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who tried to ban the event.
During a debate in the Strasbourg European Parliament, MEPs from Liberal, Left and Ecologist groups have committed to be present in Budapest on June 28, in the parade, to show their solidarity with Hungarian homosexuals, writes The Guardian.
The promises came after the mayor of the city stated that the event will take place, circumventing a law that allows the police to ban the LGBTQ+marches. Gergely Karácsony said on Monday that the march will be a municipal event -and a feast of freedom so that “No authorizations are required by the authorities ”.
“In this city, there are no first or second -class citizens … neither freedom nor love can be forbidden, nor Budapest Pride can be forbidden.” Karácsony said.
Iratxe García Pérez, the Spanish leader of the Socialist Group in the European Parliament, was directly addressed to Gay people in Hungary during Wednesday's debate: “We see you, we hear you on June 28, we will marry you in Budapest, next to each other, proud and loud.”
Tuke Strik, a Dutch MEP from the green, who recently led a delegation of parliamentarians in Hungary, said she and 70 European deputies will be in Budapest. “Me and 70 colleagues will do what the Commission will not do. We will come to Pride. We will show the Hungarians that they are not alone. ”
The mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, and a lower -rank Dutch minister have also said that they will attend the event, according to the local press.
The European Commissioner for Democracy and Justice, the Irish politician Michael McGrath, who took part in the debate, did not respond to repeated requests to participate in the Budapest event.
McGrath has confirmed that the Commission examines the Hungarian law that prohibits the Pride marches from the point of view of its compatibility with the EU legislation and the provisions on fundamental rights. “The European Commission is ready to use all its tools to ensure that EU law is respected throughout our Union.”he said.
The Commission has already initiated an action against Hungary because of a law in 2021 that prohibits the content of LGBTQ+ in schools and at the time of maximum audience, which means that students who wonder about their sexuality cannot have access to help, while the shows or ads that reflect tolerance topics can be impossible during the time.
In an important step, a high -ranking lawyer – known as general lawyer – from the European Court of Justice was on the side of the Commission, considering that the Hungarian law prohibiting the content of LGBTQ+ is based on “The prejudice that the homosexual and non-tenta (transgender) life does not have the same value.”. The Court follows the opinion of the general lawyer in most cases.
Kinga Gál, a member of Orbán's Fidesz Party and vice-president of the Extreme Patriots Group for Europe, said the debate is not “Nothing new ” and “It fits perfectly in the witch hunt and the hysteria we have been facing for many years. ”
In the right -wing Parliament, Hungary received the vocal support of far -right and nationalists from France, Italy, Spain and Germany.
Christine Anderson, from the Alternative Für Deutschland Party, said: “Where you see scandal, I see reason, common sense and decency ”, at the same time accusing the commission to lead a “Inquisition”.
The European-right deputies were reserved in terms of supporting homosexual rights, focusing on concerns about freedom of meeting and democratic standards. “The opposition is increasing in Hungary, and Orbán is clearly afraid ”said Tomas Tobé, a Swedish member of the European People's Party (PPE). “It does everything possible to limit the freedom of expression, to restrict the freedom of meeting and to prevent people from determining their own future.”
The PPE is an ally with Péter Magyar, a former Fidesz member who is considered to be the most serious electoral challenge for Orbán since his return to power in 2010.
