Hungarian PM to hold public vote on anti-LGBTQ law: ‘We cannot let Brussels have its way’
"The future of our children is at stake."
Words: Jamie Tabberer; picture: Wiki
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is to take his anti-LGBTQ law to the polls following EU legal pressure to scrap it entirely.
The legislation – an update to existing paedophilia laws – bans positive representation of LGBTQ life to under 18s, and was introduced this month by Orbán’s conservative Fidesz party.
The “child protection” referendum was announced three days before Budapest’s Pride march on Saturday (24 July 2021).
“The future of our children is at stake, so we cannot let Brussels have its way”
In a Facebook post, Orbán said: “LGBTQ activists visit kindergartens and schools and conduct sexual education classes. They want to do this here in Hungary as well.”
“The future of our children is at stake, so we cannot let Brussels have its way,” he continued.
According to the Guardian, one of the five questions in the referendum will be: “Do you support minors being shown, without any restriction, media content of a sexual nature that is capable of influencing their development?”
Zoltán Kovács, a rep for Orbán, added in a blog post: “The prime minister asked Hungarians to say no to these questions, just as they did five years ago when we stopped Brussels from forcing migrants on us.”
In a statement confirming legal action last week, EU boss Ursula von der Leyen said: “Europe will never allow parts of our society to be stigmatised: be it because of whom they love, because of their age, their ethnicity, their political opinions, or their religious beliefs.”
Orbán is facing elections in spring 2022.