Hungarian prosecutors have filed charges against Budapest’s liberal mayor, Gergely Karácsony, for his role in organizing an LGBTQ+ rights march and are seeking to impose a fine without holding a trial, officials said today.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched in Budapest last June despite a police ban, turning the Pride march into one of the largest anti-government demonstrations in years against nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
Prosecutors stated that Karácsony violated the law by organizing and taking a leading role in a banned gathering. “The prosecution has proposed that the court impose a fine on the defendant through a criminal order, without holding a trial,” they said.
Karácsony had tried to bypass the ban by registering the Pride march as a municipal event, which he claimed did not require a permit.
The police, however, prohibited it, stating that it fell under the law on child protection. The march ultimately took place without any incidents.
