The Hungarian government has announced that Budapest Pride, the LGBT pride parade, "will not take place in public" this year, Reuters reports.
The government's announcement comes after days of speculation about what Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban meant when he announced in a speech last weekend that he would advise LGBT parade organizers "not to bother preparing their parade for this year" because "it would be a waste of time and money."
As for whether that meant banning the parade, Gergely Gulyas, the minister responsible for Orban's cabinet, said on Thursday that it meant banning the march from public places.
"There will be no Pride in the public form we have known it in recent decades," Gulyas said at the government's weekly news conference. "We believe that the country should not tolerate Pride parades through the city center."
Guljas told the press conference that the ban on the LGBT parade was in line with a proposed constitutional amendment stating that "the right of children to physical, mental and moral development is inalienable", although he could not clarify why organizing Budapest Pride would violate such a right.
"This should be decided by the court or the police, if necessary,", Guljas said in response to journalistic questions. "I don't know if only a constitutional amendment is needed or if other laws need to be changed, but as we said, Pride in its current form will not take place."
Asked if banning the parade would mean restricting the fundamental right to freedom of expression, Gulyás said that Hungary's move "would not mean deprivation of rights".
"If there is a conflict between fundamental rights, it must be resolved", he said.
In response to a question about why he claims that Pride parades are harmful to children, Gulyás said that "it is common sense".
"A family man usually doesn't go near Pride, he avoids that part of the city," the minister said, adding that any application of the law is based on common sense.
We recall that on December 1, 2020, Hungarian MEP from Orban's Fidesz party resigned after a scandalous party in Brussels. Police raided the party after receiving a report on November 27 at around 9:30 p.m. about a mass gathering that violated quarantine.
József Sayer was detained by police when he tried to escape from arrest for violating quarantine.
There were rumors about the party in question being a gay orgy, in which MEPs and other politicians also participated. The uniformed officers found at least 25 men, some of whom tried to escape through windows.