The European Commission has initiated infringement proceedings against Hungary due to the recently adopted law, which prohibits or restricts access to content for those under 18 years of age that promotes or depicts "deviation from the self-identity corresponding to the sex at birth, gender reassignment or homosexuality". as well as due to the mandatory disclaimer in an LGBT-related children's book.
According to the European Commission's information on Thursday, on June 23, Hungary "published a law prescribing numerous restrictive and discriminatory measures".
They reminded: the new law prohibits or restricts access to content that promotes or displays "difference from the self-identity corresponding to birth sex, gender reassignment or homosexuality" for those under the age of 18.
In justifying the decision to initiate the infringement procedure, the EU committee stated above all: the protection of minors is a legitimate public interest, which the European Union also recognizes and wishes to enforce. In this case, however, Hungary did not justify why the display of LGBT content would be harmful to the children's well-being or why it was not in line with the child's best interests, they wrote.
The European Commission has decided to send a letter of formal notice to Hungary because it believes that the law violates many EU rules. In his opinion, Hungary has violated the Audiovisual Media Services Directive with regard to audiovisual content standards and cross-border audiovisual media services, as it is implementing unjustified restrictions that constitute discrimination based on sexual orientation and are disproportionate.
Some disputed provisions also violate the e-commerce directive, namely the country of origin principle, as the law prohibits the provision of services for the display of content for minors that depict different sexual orientations, even in cases where this service originates from another member state.
Furthermore, Hungary did not justify the restriction of cross-border services related to the information society, nor did it notify the European Commission of some of the disputed provisions in advance, despite the obligation stipulated in the directive on the transparency of the single market.
The European Commission believes that Hungary violated the principles of the freedom to provide services and the free movement of goods, as it failed to demonstrate that the restrictions were sufficiently justified, non-discriminatory and proportionate. Some of the disputed provisions violate the right to data protection established in the General Data Protection Regulation and the relevant article of the Fundamental Rights Charter. Finally, the committee believes that in the areas covered by EU law, the Hungarian provisions violate human dignity, freedom of expression and information, the right to respect for private life, and the right to non-discrimination, as these rights are enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union records.
Regarding the other case, the European Commission recalled that on January 19, the Hungarian consumer protection authority obliged the publisher of a children's book featuring LGBT people to state in the form of a disclaimer that the book depicts "behavior different from traditional gender roles".
The EU Commission stated that such an obligation constitutes a limitation of the right to freedom of expression and non-discrimination, enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and violates the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.
The European Commission has therefore decided to send a letter of formal notice to Hungary, because it believes that by requiring the provision of information on deviations from "traditional gender roles", Hungary limits the freedom of expression of authors and book publishers and implements unjustified discrimination based on sexual orientation. Hungary did not justify the restriction of these fundamental rights, nor why the display of LGBT content would be harmful to the well-being of children or why it is not in line with the best interests of the child.
Hungary has two months to respond to the arguments put forward by the European Commission. If this is not done, the Brussels body can decide to send a reasoned opinion or, as a final step, refer the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union.
MTI
Photo: NLC.hu / Márton Neményi
