EU starts legal action over LGBT+ rights in Hungary and Poland

Ursula von der Leyen has called Hungary’s legislation a ‘disgrace’ to Europe

Demonstrators take part in the Equality March in support of the LGBT community, in Lodz, Poland June 26, 2021 (Agencja Gazeta via REUTERS)

The European Commission launched legal action against Hungary on Thursday over measures it said discriminated against LGBT people.

The move could have an impact on the EU’s post-pandemic funding for Budapest.

On the same day, the European Union's executive also opened a case against Poland after some of its regions and municipalities declared themselves "LGBT-ideology free zones".

The infringement actions are the start of legal proceedings meant to force member states to comply with EU law. Hungary and Poland have two months to respond, failing which the Commission may refer them to the EU's Court of Justice.

The Commission said, “Equality and the respect for dignity and human rights are core values of the EU and it will use all the instruments at its disposal to defend these values."

The Hungarian prime minister’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, said on Thursday that debates about the new law should not interfere with the handing out of Hungary's recovery funds.

But many of Viktor Orban's critics in the EU want the Commission to put maximum pressure on Budapest to scrap the law by threatening the disbursement of billions of euros in post-pandemic EU stimulus funds.

The EU's action against Hungary follows a law by Orban that bans schools from using materials deemed promoting homosexuality. Orban argued that the law is not aimed at homosexuals but is about protecting children whose parents should play the main role in educating them about sexuality.

Rights groups have rallied against the law, and the Commission head Ursula von der Leyen has called it a "disgrace".

There was no immediate reaction from Orban, who said the LGBT issue is a matter of national sovereignty. A few weeks back, he also accused the Dutch leader Mark Rutte of a “moral supremacy” rooted in the country’s colonial past.

Ahead of a tough election in April 2022, Orban has grown increasingly radical to defend what he says are traditional christian values from Western liberalism.

The European Commission said it acted against Poland over ‘LGBT-free zones’ because it it had not received sufficient information about the zones from Warsaw and it was concerned they may violate EU laws.

Poland's government has denied having laws that discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation. But the right-wing governing Law and Justice Party (PiS) says gay rights threaten traditional lifestyle in one of the most Catholic countries in Europe.

Includes reporting by Reuters