Budapest Mayor Gergely Karacsony found himself under police interrogation as a suspect linked to the organization of a banned LGBTQ pride march last month. Despite threats of legal repercussions from Prime Minister Viktor Orban's nationalist government, which imposed a law forbidding such gatherings, the event saw a historic turnout of 200,000 marchers who transformed the occasion into a powerful anti-government demonstration.
Donned in a rainbow T-shirt emblazoned with the city's coat of arms, Karacsony showed his defiance by declaring to supporters gathered outside the National Bureau of Investigation, "Neither freedom nor love can be banned in Budapest." If convicted of the charges, he could face a penalty of up to one year in prison for promoting and facilitating the march.
The mayor criticized the accusations as unfounded and announced his intention to file a formal complaint. He refrained from directly addressing police questions, providing them instead with a prepared statement. He insisted that Budapest city hall would claim jurisdiction over organizing the pride march as a lawful municipal event.
Previously, there had been uncertainty regarding the march's approval when the Hungarian government enacted a law in March 2023 that limited public gatherings based on alleged child protection concerns related to homosexuality. These developments are part of a broader trend of increasing restrictions on LGBTQ+ rights in Hungary, including the 2020 ruling abolishing legal recognition for transgender individuals and a 2021 law prohibiting the portrayal of homosexuality to minors.
In a surprising move last month, Hungarian police announced that they would not penalize attendees who had participated in the pride event, despite earlier discussions of imposing fines up to €500. The National Bureau of Investigation has since launched an inquiry against an unidentified individual suspected of facilitating the march, displaying the ongoing tension between the government and the LGBTQ+ community in Hungary.
