“I am here during Budapest Pride week in solidarity with the Hungarian LGBTI communities, in respect for and celebration of their members in all their diversity, but also in repudiation of the violation of their human rights”, said the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, Michael O’Flaherty at the Budapest Pride 30 International Human Rights Conference on 25 June 2025.
At the Conference (read the speech), Commissioner O’Flaherty expressed strong solidarity for LGBTI people and civil society in Hungary. The Commissioner, who has previously voiced concern over legislation permitting the banning of assemblies relating to LGBTI equality, expressed deep disappointment at the decision to prohibit the Budapest Pride March, due to take place on Saturday, 28 June. He also emphasised that Hungary is unfortunately not alone in this regard – similar bans exist, in law and practice elsewhere. Where marches do go ahead, they are too often met with hatred, violence, mass or arbitrary arrests.
The prohibition of Budapest Pride is the latest in a series of repressions against LGBTI people in Hungary, following the introduction of the so-called anti-LGBTI propaganda law in 2021, which is currently subject to infringement proceedings before the Court of Justice of the European Union.
“We must stand united against these egregious threats to human rights. The ability to gather peacefully, to express oneself, and to be treated equally and with dignity, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, expression, or sex characteristics, has nothing to do with ideologies or favours to particular groups. It is a cornerstone of healthy, human rights-based democracies and a measure of the functioning of the rule of a law in a country. Failure to defend these rights risks undermining the very foundations of our law-based societies. Dismantling the human rights of some simply does not happen in a vacuum, eventually it hits everyone.
The crackdown on LGBTI people in Hungary must be seen in a wider context. Over the past year alone, I have reacted to successive constitutional and legislative amendments that appear aimed at silencing civil society organisations and independent media, by restricting the space in which they can operate and stigmatising them in campaigns that are fuelled by disinformation. Civil society actors face intimidation and harassment in relation to their work of defending human rights or exposing corruption. I remain deeply concerned by the Draft Law on Transparency in Public Life which, in the version pending before Parliament, fundamentally undermines civic space in Hungary.
This weekend will mark the culmination of Pride month in Budapest. Many will come together to celebrate and stand up for the equality and human rights of everyone. I call on the Hungarian authorities to enable peaceful participants to march safely, without fear of reprisals, prosecution or violence. Law enforcement officers should guarantee a protective space for participants.
More broadly, the authorities should reverse those steps that serve to undermine civil society. They should create an enabling working environment for human rights defenders, in line with binding international human rights standards”.