Several Irish politicians have pledged to attend Budapest Pride this weekend in a show of solidarity with the local queer community and in defiance of Hungary’s ban on LGBTQ+ gatherings.

While Pride parades have been held in Hungary for over 30 years, a law introduced by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party earlier this year has prohibited the event. Hungary is now the first country in the EU to enforce a nationwide ban on LGBTQ+ Pride celebrations.

In addition to the ban, the State now allows authorities to use facial-recognition software to identify participants. The move has been condemned by activists, who described the changes as a “significant escalation” in the government’s slide toward authoritarianism.

Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony has vowed to defy the ban, stating that he would allow the parade to take place as a municipal event. The mayor said he has been threatened with imprisonment over his role in supporting Pride, but vowed to protect the rights and dignity of the LGBTQ+ community in the country.

The Hungarian government and police have responded by threatening fines or imprisonment for participants and organisers. Amid such threats, several Irish politicians, including Green Party TD Roderic O’Gorman, Fine Gael MEP Maria Walsh and Fianna Fáil MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurcú, are travelling to Budapest to attend Pride.

Speaking to The Journal, O’Gorman said: “I’ll be missing my first Pride in Dublin for about 20 years, but I think it was important to stand with the LGBT+ groups in Budapest.

“I hope the day goes off peacefully, and I hope that there’ll be a big attendance. I expect there will be, because I think it has galvanised a lot of Hungarians in terms of an obvious attempt by the government to distract from the poor state of the Hungarian economy at the moment.”

MEP Maria Walsh said she received a safety briefing in the European Parliament ahead of Budapest Pride. “Carrying ID, making sure we don’t connect to WiFi, making sure we travel in groups of people and not as individuals, and as soon as the Pride protest is done, all forms of rainbow colours and any protest gear has to be removed,” Walsh told The Journal.

“That is out respect for making sure community members are safe and sound, which is vastly different to the privilege we experience in Ireland.”

Walsh spoke about having taken part in Budapest Pride a few years ago and described how different it was compared to events in Ireland due to the Hungarian political climate. “In comparison to what we had in Mayo a couple of weeks ago, what people in Dublin will see this weekend – Pride is still very much a protest in Hungary,” she said.

MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú is also among the Irish politicians who will attend Budapest Pride. In a recent statement, she said that Hungary’s Pride ban is “a blatant attack on our civil liberties within the European Union. The Hungarian Government’s repeated violations of the rule of law and EU treaty principles is setting a dangerous precedent.

“Can you imagine being an 18-year-old gay or lesbian person watching this unfold on the news? It sends a chilling message of fear and shame.”

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