(Budapest) The Hungarian government has announced that the provisions of its controversial new law against homosexuality will apply to churches and schools.
La « Loi contre la Pédophilie » a été adoptée en juin et visait à l’origine à durcir les sanctions contre les abus contre les enfants, mais des amendements ont été ajoutés pour interdire la “promotion de l’homosexualité” des moins de 18s years.
The government decree outlining the ways in which the law is applied regulates the “display or representation” of products that “express homosexuality” or represent “a perversion of identity proportional to the gender of birth.”
On Friday, the government said the sale of such products would be banned within 200 meters of churches as well as schools and childcare institutions.
When these products become available, they should be sold in airtight packaging.
The law created new tension between Hungary and the European Union.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called it a “disgrace” and the commission launched a violation procedure against Hungary, arguing that the measure violated EU rules on freedom of movement, expression, free trade and the provision of services.
PHOTO STEPHANIE LECOCQ, Agence France-Presse Archives
Ursula von der Leyen
This law is seen as part of nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s plan to turn Hungary into a so-called “illiberal” state, based on conservative Christian values.
Amnesty International’s Hungarian section responded to the latest announcement by emphasizing that the law “will collapse sooner or later”.
“In the meantime, it is the responsibility of all of us not to succumb to the government’s despicable incitement to hatred,” the NGO said on Facebook on Saturday.
Some analysts believe President Orban’s attack on the gay community is aimed at bolstering his conservative electoral base in preparation for next year’s elections.