In a joint open letter sent on 23 June to European Commission’s President Ursula von der Leyen, Executive Vice President Henna Virkunnen and Commissioners Michael McGrath and Hadja Lahbib, ECNL and nearly 50 human and digital rights groups urge the European Commission to take action against a set of laws in Hungary which aim to criminalise LGBTQIA+ demonstrations and expand the use of biometric surveillance to identify protesters.
An unprecedented attack on the freedom of peaceful assembly in Hungary
In March 2025, three amendments aimed to criminalise LGBTQAI+ demonstrations and allow biometric surveillance to identify participants of banned assemblies were rushed through the Hungarian Parliament within 24 hours and without any public debate. According to our legal analysis, this law violates the prohibition of real-time biometric surveillance enshrined in EU Artificial Intelligence Act, as well as the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.
The European Commission must act to protect participants of Budapest Pride
With Budapest Pride expected just 4 days away, we urge the European Commission to take immediate action to ensure that Pride organisers and participants can safely exercise their right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression. The Commission should urgently assess and act on Hungary’s recent amendment package and the underlying legislation which criminalise the organisers and participants of Pride marches banned by the police.
This attack on the fundamental rights of people in Hungary targets the core principles of the Union, including the Treaties, the Charter of Fundamental Rights, and secondary legislation. These concerns have also been raised by several EU institutions, including the European Parliament, the Fundamental Rights Agency and the advocate general of the Court of Justice of the EU.
This case sets a worrying precedent, highlighting the urgent need to uphold fundamental rights within the European Union. If unaddressed, this can cause a domino effect where other Member States might feel emboldened to adopt similar legislation. The lack of an official reaction from the Commission, only a few days before the planned Budapest Pride, is very concerning.
ECNL, together with the Hungarian Civil Liberties Union, EDRi, Liberties and 43 civil society organisations, is calling on the European Commission to urgently assess Hungarian legislation in light of EU laws and take action, including by starting an infringement procedure against Hungary in case it’s established that the AI Act has been violated.