Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is going to submit a law to the people in a referendum that should protect young people in education and in the media from information about homosexuality and gender surgery.
In doing so, he wants to counteract the pressure that the European Union is exerting to delete the controversial law. In many countries in the EU, the law is seen as discriminatory against LGBT people.
Sixteen countries, including the Netherlands and Belgium, issued a statement calling on Hungary to withdraw the law. Outgoing Prime Minister Rutte called the law “unacceptable” and “terrible”.
‘Future of our children’
But conservative Orbán, for his part, says the law is only intended to protect teenagers. “In recent weeks, Brussels has clearly attacked Hungary for its child protection law. Hungarian laws do not allow sexual propaganda in kindergartens, schools, on television and in advertisements,” Orbán said in a statement. a video on facebook.
He believes that the EU should not interfere with legislation in his country and that the union is committing abuse of power. “Our children’s future is at stake, so we can’t give up on this issue,” he says.
He did not say when the referendum should take place, but he did say that there will be five questions. Among other things, it is asked whether Hungarians think that workshops on sexual orientation should be given in schools without knowing it in advance. The prime minister also wants to know whether the population thinks that gender reassignment among children should be promoted.
Sanctions
Orbán says he is not afraid of the outcome of the referendum. The Hungarian parliament recently passed the law with a majority of 157 votes. The parliament has 199 seats.
The European Commission has not yet responded to the Prime Minister’s plans. Earlier, Brussels sent a warning letter and threatened sanctions, such as cutting EU subsidies.
–
