 "Why are same-sex families under threat in Hungary?")
Hungary is taking fresh aim at same-sex families. Lawmakers have passed a bill allowing citizens to anonymously report same-sex couples that are raising children, according to Bloomberg. The development comes a week after Germany and France joined a European coalition to take on Hungary’s anti-LGBTQ measures. Let’s take a closer look: What happened? The bill lets citizens report couples that contest the “constitutionally recognized role of marriage and the family” and those who contest children’s rights “to an identity appropriate to their sex at birth,” according to Bloomberg. The bill will now be sent to Viktor Orbán’s office, as per Pink News. Orban, the authoritarian leader of Hungary who presents himself as a defender of traditional family Catholic values, is expected to sign the bill into law.
In 2020, Hungary changed its constitution to exclude transgender and other LGBTQ individuals from the definition of families.
It defined the basis of the family as “marriage and the parent-child relationship” and declared that “the mother is a woman and the father is a man.” While same-sex marriage is outlawed, civil partnerships are recognised. Hungary-EU at odds over LGBTQ Hungary in 2021 banned the dissemination of content in schools deemed to promote homosexuality and gender change. This, despite Europe’s top rights watchdog warning that the law risks discrimination against LGBTQ people. That same law declares that only married couples may adopt children unless granted special permission by the family affairs minister. This effectively barred same-sex couples or single individuals from doing so. [caption id=“attachment_12294862” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]
Same-sex couples have been barred from adopting children in Hungary. Reuters[/caption] “This constitutional amendment should not be used as an opportunity to withdraw existing laws on the protection of individuals who are not heterosexuals, or to amend these laws to their disadvantage,” it said in an analysis and opinion on the laws. The commission said that clear criteria should be established to limit “the new discretionary power” of the minister to provide or refuse consent for adoptions by single people. This, it said, would help stop discrimination, including on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. It also found that the laws make “the legal recognition of gender of trans and intersex people unconstitutional and therefore impossible,” and that this “is incompatible with international human rights standards.” According to Luxembourg Times, Hungary has stopped receiving funds from the European Union after this law passed. The law was criticised by human rights groups and international watchdogs as discriminating against LGBT people and labelled a “disgrace” by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. In 2022, the European Commission referred Hungary to the Court of Justice of the EU in mid-2022 over the law. According to the commission, the measure contradicts EU internal market regulations, fundamental human rights, and EU values. According to the German government, 14 EU member states have now joined the proceedings: Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Portugal, Ireland, Spain, Malta, Austria, Sweden, Slovenia, Finland and now France and Germany.
According to Pink News, some are arguing that Hungary be expelled from the EU.
If four-fifths of Hungary’s 26 EU partners agree “there is a clear risk of a serious breach” of the bloc’s values, Budapest could lose its voting rights. [caption id=“attachment_12311462” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]
Some have called for Hungary to be expelled from the EU. Reuters[/caption] The EU’s treaty says the bloc “is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities.” Others like Czechoslovakia that haven’t joined the lawsuit have declared their support for it. Czech foreign minister Jan Lipavský said, “Children are not threatened by seeing such characters on TV or in books. They are endangered by the artificial stirring up of hatred or the concealment of information.” Hungarian foreign affairs state secretary Tamás Menczer responded tersely:
“Keep your hands off Hungarian children.”
“What happens in the Czech kindergartens and schools is a matter for the Czechs, none of my business. In Hungary, only the decision of the Hungarian people matters and Hungarians have clearly decided that the children must be protected.” Ironically, public opinion polls say otherwise. Pink News in 2021 quoted pollster Ipsos saying that 66 per cent of Hungarians think same-sex marriage should be allowed and 60 per cent thinks same-sex couples should be allowed to be parents. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .