BUDAPEST, June 21, 2025 – Hungarian authorities have
ignited a major constitutional and civil rights crisis by banning the annual
Budapest Pride march scheduled for June 28th. In a defiant response, liberal
Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony has vowed the event will proceed as a
city-organized "Day of Freedom," setting up a high-stakes
confrontation between the capital, the LGBTQ+ community, and Prime Minister
Viktor Orbán's nationalist government.
Police
Ban vs. Mayoral Defiance:
Budapest police chief Tamás Terdik issued the formal ban, citing
the government's controversial March law restricting gatherings deemed to
violate child protection statutes by publicly promoting homosexuality. In a
16-page justification, Terdik argued the mere presence of underage bystanders
near the procession – regardless of participants' attire or banners – would
breach these laws.
Mayor
Karácsony immediately rejected the ban as illegitimate:
·
"Budapest city hall will organize the Budapest Pride march
as a local event on 28 June. Period," he declared.
·
He asserted police have no authority to ban the "Day of
Freedom," framed as a municipal event outside standard assembly rules.
·
Mocking the ban's rationale, Karácsony quipped on Facebook:
"They might as well try to ban a procession of unicorns."
Government
Crackdown & Legal Battles:
The ban represents the culmination of months of government pressure:
1.
February Threat: PM Orbán declared in his state-of-the-nation address that
Pride organizers "need not bother this year."
2.
March Legislation: Parliament passed a law enabling bans on assemblies
violating the 2021 Child Protection Act, specifically targeting LGBTQ+
visibility.
3.
Government Justification: "The protection of children
trumps all other laws... Pride is a festival... not suitable to be seen by
children," stated Fidesz communications chief Tamás Menczer, denying it
relates to freedom of assembly or expression.
4.
Legal Back-and-Forth: Organizers (Rainbow Mission
Foundation) planned decentralized events. Police attempted bans, but Hungary's
Supreme Court (Curia) twice overturned these
rulings, upholding assembly rights. Karácsony's "Day of Freedom"
announcement on June 16th was a direct response to this legal cat-and-mouse
game.
The
"Day of Freedom" Strategy:
To circumvent the ban, Karácsony and Pride spokesperson Máté Hegedüs
meticulously framed the event:
·
It is officially a city event celebrating freedom, not labelled
"Pride."
·
Karácsony explicitly told police it would feature "no
trucks, no dancers, no sexuality in any form."
·
Its stated purpose: "to make the nation's capital
free."
Risks
and Resistance:
The new law carries significant penalties:
·
Police can use facial recognition software to identify
participants.
·
Fines range from £14 to £420 per person.
·
Human rights groups like the Hungarian Helsinki Committee (HHC)
are advising participants:
o Refuse to pay any
on-the-spot fines.
o Demand in-person
appeals or court hearings for postal fines.
o Advocate mass
participation to overwhelm enforcement capacity: "The more people take
part, the less likely the police will try to attempt this."
Stakes
for June 28th:
Tens of thousands of Hungarians and international supporters are expected. The day
now represents far more than a Pride march:
·
A Test of Local vs. State Power: Can a mayor
successfully defy national police and government orders?
·
A Battle for Fundamental Rights: Does the right
to peaceful assembly survive under Orbán's "child protection"
justification?
·
A Moment of National Defiance: The event has
become a focal point for resistance against government overreach and
anti-LGBTQ+ policies.
Budapest
braces for a historic confrontation. The success or failure of the "Day of
Freedom" will resonate far beyond Hungary's borders, testing the
resilience of democratic freedoms in the heart of Europe against an
increasingly authoritarian state apparatus. All eyes will be on the streets of
Budapest on June 28th.
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