Following international criticism of a law on dealing with homosexuality and gender reassignment, Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced a referendum on Wednesday.

"The future of our children is at stake, so we must not give in on this issue," he said in a video posted on Facebook.

The referendum will include five questions, including whether to show content without restrictions that could affect a child's sexual orientation.

It should also be asked whether gender reassignment should be advertised among minors.

Orbán did not mention a date for the referendum.

Niklas Zimmermann

Editor in politics.

  • Follow I follow

Thomas Gutschker

Political correspondent for the European Union, NATO and the Benelux countries based in Brussels.

  • Follow I follow

Hungary's head of government rejected the latest criticism from the EU Commission and the European Parliament.

Orbán said the EU attacked his country because of its “Child Protection Law”.

"The Hungarian laws do not allow sexual propaganda in kindergartens, schools, on television or in advertising." The government in Budapest has been confronted with sharp criticism from other EU member states for weeks.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte brought Hungary's exit from the EU into play.

The European Parliament also condemned the law.

The EU Commissioner for Gender Equality, Helena Dalli, recently referred to the possibility of cutting EU funds for the country.

Distraction from Pegasus Affair?

The law provides, among other things, that minors are not given access to content that allegedly encourages homosexuality or a change of gender. It has also been criticized by human rights activists and the opposition in Hungary. Even the chairman of the once right-wing and now conservative opposition party Jobbik recently announced in an open letter to EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that the law would be changed in the event of a government takeover next year.

Observers speak of the referendum announcement as an attempt by Orbán to divert attention from the latest revelations about the espionage software Pegasus, which is said to have been used against journalists critical of the government in Hungary. “The referendum initiative is nothing more than a distraction from the biggest wiretapping scandal in Hungarian history,” says Zoltán Kész, director of the Budapest think tank Civitas, of the FAZ Bulcsú Hunyadi from the think tank Political Capital that Orbán is pursuing a strategy similar to that of 2016: “ When his government came under heavy criticism, he initiated a referendum on migration quotas, which ultimately failed because of the low turnout. "

It remains unclear how much Orbán can count on the support of the Hungarian people for his politics in the referendum.

Zoltán Kész says: “The vast majority of Hungarian society - regardless of political orientation - shares Viktor Orbán's position on the LGBTQI issue.

The result of the referendum is therefore predictable. ”The only question will be whether the minimum participation of 50 percent of the electorate will be achieved.

Asselborn calls for a referendum on Hungary's exit from the EU

The top of the EU Commission initially did not react to Orbán's announcement of a referendum. "Our legal position is clear: The LGBTQI law violates European law and must be changed," said the spokeswoman for Commission President von der Leyen of the FAZ. She referred to the two infringement proceedings that the Commission initiated against Hungary in this matter last week . The government in Budapest has two months to respond to the objections from Brussels. How she organizes her will-formation, whether through a national consultation or a referendum, is a matter for the Hungarian government, the spokeswoman said.

Luxembourg's foreign minister expressed himself on Wednesday much more sharply than the EU commission. Jean Asselborn has launched a referendum on whether Hungary will remain in the EU. "You should hold a referendum in the EU on whether you want to tolerate Orbán in the EU," Asselborn told the news magazine Der Spiegel. He is convinced that the result would be a resounding no.