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The Budapest Police Headquarters banned the Budapest Pride event scheduled for next Saturday, with a decision published on the police website on Thursday.
The published document states that the police, acting within their authority to regulate public gatherings, have banned the event from taking place from City Hall Park, along Károly Boulevard, through Astoria and Museum Boulevard, passing Kálvin Square and Customs House Boulevard, across Fővám Square and Liberty Bridge, ending at University Quay between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. on June 28.
There is no right of appeal against the decision, but it may be challenged by filing a lawsuit with the police authority that issued the decision within three days of its notification, addressed to the Supreme Court, according to the decision.
The document states that the organizers of the gathering are the Budapest Municipal Government and the Szivárvány Misszió Alapítvány (Rainbow Mission Foundation); the leader of the gathering is Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony, and the purpose of the gathering is the Budapesti Büszkeség (Budapest Pride event).
After evaluating the available documents and statements regarding the planned event, the authority concluded that the event qualifies as a public assembly subject to the Assembly Act.
“This conclusion is based not only on the official communication of the event, but also on the public statements made by the Mayor and the content of the official letter sent by the chief clerk,” the police wrote.
The authority also took into account Gergely Karácsony’s announcement on his Facebook page on June 16, according to which the event organized by the municipal government of the capital is called Budapesti Büszkeség, “but the announcement clearly refers to the Pride event, its international context and social content.”
In his post, the Mayor emphasized that the event’s “English name is Budapest Pride,” which appears as part of communication with international visitors. All of this refers to elements that carry the characteristics of public expression within the meaning of the Assembly Act, according to the statement.
The Budapest Police Headquarters (BRFK) wrote that in his official letter to the authorities, the Mayor stated that the event is “not Pride,” that there will be “no trucks, no dancers, and no sexuality in any form.” According to him, the purpose of the event is “simply to show that the nation’s capital is free.”
In the opinion of the assembly authority, “this statement is not consistent with the Mayor’s public statement” and raises the possibility of a violation of the prohibition of deception. As explained, the event falls within the scope of the Assembly Law in terms of its essential content, as it serves to express opinions in public, in a public space, on a matter of public interest.
“The content of the event is not determined by its formal name or the procedural tools used, but by the intention and actual social function that can be inferred from public statements and messages,” the police said.
Based on the statement published by the Mayor and several press releases that have since been made available to the public, the BRFK’s position is that “it can be reasonably assumed that the previous Budapest Pride events can be considered precursors to the gathering affected by this decision.”
Based on the images attached as an appendix from previous Pride events, the police concluded that they depict scenes that clearly support, as documentary evidence, the position of the assembly authority that the acts depicted in the images would, under the current legal framework, constitute a violation of the provisions of the Assembly Act prohibiting “the promotion or display of deviation from gender identity and homosexuality.”
According to the decision, it was also necessary to take into account that the presence of persons under the age of 18, whose interests under the Assembly Act could potentially be harmed, could not be excluded along the route.
If it cannot be stated with complete certainty that the content will not take place in the presence of persons under the age of 18, the assembly is in violation of the Assembly Act,”
the BRFK pointed out.
They stated that based on its assessment of the evidence, the authority could not have made any other lawful decision than to ban the assembly in question.
Via MTI; Featured photo: Pixabay