{"id":78275,"date":"2021-06-16T01:07:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-16T05:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ifamnews.com\/?p=78275"},"modified":"2021-06-23T18:42:29","modified_gmt":"2021-06-23T22:42:29","slug":"hungary-passes-bill-aimed-at-protecting-children-s-innocence-and-moral-values","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ifamnews.com\/en\/hungary-passes-bill-aimed-at-protecting-children-s-innocence-and-moral-values","title":{"rendered":"Hungary passes bill aimed at protecting children’s innocence and moral values"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last updated on June 23rd, 2021 at 06:42 pm<\/p>\n

In December, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n had an emphatic message to radical LGBT activists: “leave our children alone.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This week<\/a>, they drove the point home once again with an overwhelming vote in favour of a bill ensuring the innocence of Hungary’s children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Tuesday, Hungary’s National Assembly voted 157-1 on a bill that establishes a wide range of measures aimed at protecting kids. In addition to doing things like creating a national registry for sex offenders (similar to the one in the United States), the bill also prohibits any sharing of content with minors \u2013 in, and outside of the classroom \u2013 that promotes a particular sexual agenda (rather than teaching kids simply about the biological functioning of the body and the reproductive act). The bill was tabled in May by Orb\u00e1n’s conservative ruling party Fidesz, which also holds a parliamentary majority. Fidesz began to revise child pornography regulations in August 2020 after Hungary\u2019s ambassador to Peru was handed down a suspended prison sentence<\/a> for possessing thousands of pornographic photos of minors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While one independent MP voted against the bill, other opponents altogether boycotted the voting session in protest. Human rights groups strongly denounced the law, arguing it conflates LGBT people with pedophiles. One political pundit equated it to “classical political pedophilia<\/a>“, accusing Fidesz of using the bill as a ploy to rouse their conservative base ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, Fidesz state secretary Csaba Domotor underlined that the protection of children is paramount, pointing to amendments in the law such as the one that introduces the searchable registry of convicted pedophiles. \u201cPedophiles won\u2019t be able to hide any more \u2013 there are similar solutions in other countries, too. The criminal code will be even more strict. Punishments will be more severe. No one can get away with atrocities with light punishments and parole,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the amendments \u2013 leaning on last December’s Fundamental Law of Hungary<\/a> \u2013 were largely accepted, there were protests surrounding some modifications<\/a> to the bill:<\/p>\n\n\n\n