Mon Apr 14 18:15:15 UTC 2025: ## Hungary’s Constitution Amended to Ban LGBTQ+ Public Events
**Budapest, Hungary** – Hungary’s parliament has passed a constitutional amendment effectively banning all public events organized by LGBTQ+ groups, sparking widespread condemnation from human rights activists and legal scholars. The amendment, passed Monday with the support of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz-KDNP coalition, formalizes a law introduced earlier this year that already prohibited such gatherings, including the annual Budapest Pride march.
Critics argue the amendment represents a further step towards authoritarianism under Orbán’s government, effectively criminalizing LGBTQ+ expression in public spaces. While the government defends the legislation as protecting traditional family values and children, opponents contend it restricts freedom of assembly and targets a vulnerable minority. The amendment received 140 votes in favor and 21 against, securing the necessary two-thirds majority.
The amendment prioritizes a child’s “moral, physical, and spiritual development” over all rights except the right to life, a clause critics say is designed to justify restrictions on LGBTQ+ advocacy. It also enshrines existing “child protection” laws prohibiting the “depiction or promotion” of homosexuality to minors, and reinforces the constitution’s definition of sex as binary, prohibiting same-sex adoption.
The move grants the law constitutional protection, making it significantly harder to challenge legally, even within the European Union. The future of Budapest Pride, a major annual event, is now uncertain, with organizers yet to comment on the 2025 event. Ahead of the vote, clashes erupted between police and protestors who attempted to block access to parliament.
First Piper 