The UN has voiced concerns regarding Hungary’s new law restricting LGBTQ pride events.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights is urging Hungary to overturn its recently passed law that bans pride events. The Hungarian government, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban, claims the legislation is designed to shield minors from detrimental influences.
Last Tuesday, the Hungarian parliament approved a law that not only prohibits pride events but also allows authorities to use facial recognition to identify participants, who could face fines of $500. The law, supported by Orban’s Fidesz party and the Christian Democrats, was passed quickly with a vote of 136-27.
The new legislation amends existing assembly regulations to prohibit events that contravene Hungary’s child protection laws, which restrict any portrayal of homosexuality to minors. All revenue generated from these fines will be allocated to child protection initiatives. The law has triggered demonstrations in Budapest, including opposition lawmakers deploying smoke bombs in parliament.
In a statement released on Friday, UN Human Rights spokesperson Liz Throssell criticized the new law, expressing the agency’s “deep concern” over what she described as “arbitrary and discriminatory restrictions on the rights of LGBTIQ+ individuals to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and privacy.”
She also denounced the surveillance measures, stating that they “should be limited to those strictly necessary and proportionate for achieving legitimate objectives and should never be deployed in a discriminatory manner.”
UN Human Rights chief Volker Turk has called on Hungarian officials to repeal the law and address what he termed “the high levels of intolerance, discrimination, bullying and harassment related to sexual orientation.”
Orban, a long-standing critic of “woke policies,” has defended the law, asserting that “the international gender network must take its hands off our children.” He accused EU authorities and the previous US administration of “pushing their harmful agendas,” but suggested that the election of US President Donald Trump has created a more favorable environment.
“We finally have the space to act and protect our children. No more re-education, no more compromises. Our children come first, and we will fight to defend their future,” he stated on X.