European Commissioner for Equality Hadja Lahbib announced on Friday, June 27th, that the Commission intends to allocate a “robust” €1.5 billion to support LGBT initiatives across the EU.
Speaking at a press conference in Budapest—on the eve of Hungary’s Pride march on Saturday, which had been officially banned by the conservative Orbán government but went ahead anyway in a semi-legal format provided by leftist Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony—Lahbib said that the rights of LGBT community members must be “peacefully protected.”
The fact of the matter is that gays and lesbians are already protected in Hungary. The Orbán government’s motivation behind the banning of the Pride march—which has morphed into a rainbow-coloured, leather-clad display that has nothing to do with gay rights—was to protect children from being influenced by harmful ideologies at an early age.
Hadja Lahbib highlighted that the €1.5 billion package is intended to fund a range of projects, including anti hate campaigns, civil society grants, and educational programming. She explained that 5,500 NGOs are already registered in the programme and can apply for funding to “advance equality and rights.”
As the European Commission’s representative in Budapest, Lahbib joined forces with Budapest mayor Gergely Karácsony, announcing continued EU backing for Pride despite the ban.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has rightly criticised the European Commission and its president Ursula von der Leyen for openly and blatantly interfering in Hungary’s domestic affairs.
Government spokesman Zoltán Kovács said the opposition’s “real goal is to dismantle everything Hungary has built over the past 15 years—especially the measures that support families and protect children.”
It’s snow crystal clear: with Pride, the opposition incited against laws they don’t like, mocked Hungary’s sovereignty, and—with foreign backing—tried to force woke culture onto us.
