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European Parliament Joins Attack against Child Protection Law

Mariann Őry 2023.03.22.
European Parliament

The European Parliament’s committee on legal affairs voted in favor of parliament joining the European Commission’s case against Hungary over the child protection law on Tuesday. 

French liberal MEP Pierre Karleskind called the vote a “landmark decision (…) a clear message to national leaders: if you attack the values, you will find the European Parliament in your path.”

John Morijn, a law and politics professor at the University of Groningen told the EUObserver that “it is extremely rare for the European Parliament to intervene in a case where it does not have a direct stake.” “It is a political decision to take a different line and to support the EU Commission and a number of member states in this case to highlight the significance of it,” he added.

While the Western mainstream media calls it an “anti-gay law,” the act is not in the least about restricting adults from expressing their sexual orientation and exercising their rights. The child protection law – adopted in June, 2021 – has broadened the scope of action against pedophile offenders, for instance, banning advertising that depicts sexuality for its own sake, or promoting and displaying deviation from the identity of the sex of birth, gender reassignment, and homosexuality, all from being made available to children under the age of eighteen.

Hungary is committed to protecting children. We believe that the right to sex education of children belongs exclusively to parents. With the adoption of the Child Protection Act, we have stopped all sexual propaganda at the fences of schools and kindergartens,”

Justice Minister Judit Varga said last month. The law enjoys broad social support, according to a recent survey, with most Hungarians in favor of tightening child protection rules.

Last week, István Hollik, the communications director of Hungary’s governing Fidesz party, sharply criticized Katalin Cseh, a Momentum MEP from the liberal Renew group, for campaigning in the EP for the institution to join the lawsuit against Hungary.

Ireland, Portugal, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg are all set to back the commission at the court, and present their arguments supporting the case against Hungary, the website noted.

Earlier, Justice Minister Judit Varga filed a counterclaim at the court.

Justice Minister Files Counterclaim at EU Court of Justice on Child Protection Act
Justice Minister Files Counterclaim at EU Court of Justice on Child Protection Act

The government upholds that education is a national competence and that parents have the right to decide on the upbringing of their children.Continue reading

Featured photo via European Parliament


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