Freedom of assembly on the line in Hungary with new Pride ban
On 5 September, authorities in Pécs, Hungary, invoked Section 13/A of the Assembly Act to prohibit the Pride march.
Organisers are determined to go ahead on 4 October. Unlike Budapest Pride, Pécs Pride has no local support, putting organisers and participants at serious risk.
This ban highlights how Hungary’s Assembly Act is being used to restrict freedom of assembly, which is a fundamental EU right. Without action, these violations will continue.
We call on President von der Leyen and the European Commission to announce the opening of infringement proceedings and request interim measures against the Assembly Act. The safety and rights of Pécs Pride organisers and participants must be protected.
The European Commission must act now. Freedom of assembly is guaranteed under EU law and cannot be denied in any member state.
You can support the Pécs Pride by signing Amnesty’s petition and AllOut petition.
Read our letter to President von der Leyen
Slovakia pushes through anti-rights amendment, putting everyone’s freedoms at risk
Slovakia’s parliament has passed a sweeping constitutional amendment that enshrines in law the recognition of only two “biologically determined” sexes, bans surrogacy, blocks adoption for same-sex couples, and makes legal gender recognition impossible.
The amendment goes even further by including a dangerous clause that declares Slovak law superior to EU law on matters of so-called “national identity,” such as family and gender. The wording is so vague it could be used to block almost any EU safeguard of fundamental rights and freedom. In doing so, Slovakia has directly contradicted its international obligations..
We, together with our members and allies in the region, have worked tirelessly to stop this amendment. The fight is far from over, and we will continue to stand up for equality, dignity, and justice in Slovakia.
Watch our video about what just happened.
ILGA-Europe news
Join our Pride organisers’ summit
ILGA-Europe and Ljubljana Pride Association are inviting Pride organisers from Europe and Central Asia to join UNSTOPPABLE: a seminar for Pride organisers to gain a bird’s eye view, sharpen strategies for the future of Prides, and be in community with each other.
Rainbow Disc: When business backs human rights
Corporate solidarity isn’t optional, it’s essential. The Bodyotics partnership with ILGA-Europe is showing what it means to put values into action.
Through the Rainbow Disc, a menstrual care product designed for dignity and inclusion, Bodyotics is donating €2 from every sale directly to ILGA-Europe. That support strengthens the LGBTI movement across Europe and Central Asia at a time when rights are under real pressure. Business sponsorship like this sends a powerful message: companies can and should be part of shaping a safer, freer future. Use the code ILGA-EUROPE for 15% off on all products in the Bodyotics range!
We are deeply saddened by the passing of Tuisina Ymania Brown, friend, colleague and tireless advocate for trans and gender-diverse people worldwide. We’ll remember Ymania for her leadership, warmth and the generations she inspired. ILGA-Europe extends our deepest condolences to her loved ones. Her legacy lives on in the continued work she devoted her life to.
Latest news
BIAS-MOTIVATED violence
New briefing on cyberbullying and LGBTQI Youth
IGLYO, TGEU, ILGA-Europe, and OII Europe have put forward recommendations and priorities to protect LGBTQI youth from cyberbullying in a new policy brief.
According to the EU Fundamental Rights Agency’s 2023 LGBTIQ Survey, over one-third of LGBTQI minors reported regularly encountering online calls for violence.
CONVERSION PRACTICES
1 in 5 LGBTQIA+ people in Italy faces attempts at conversion
Meglio a Colori launched the first report on conversion practices in Italy: 1 in 5 LGBTQIA+ people have experienced at least one forced attempt to change their sexual orientation or gender identity, and of these, 30% actually underwent these harmful practices — higher than the European average of 24%.
FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
Kazakhstan must withdraw its plans to adopt anti-LGBTI laws
We express deep concern over recent developments in Kazakhstan, where authorities have announced further steps toward drafting and adopting legislation to ban the dissemination of LGBTI-related content.
HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS
Enes Hocaoğulları is free
On 8 September, the courtroom in Ankara was filled to capacity. Representatives from civil society, political parties, and parliamentarians came to observe the trial of 23-year-old human rights defender, LGBTI activist, and Council of Europe youth delegate, Enes Hocaoğulları. The judge ruled that Enes would be released pending trial, subject to monthly reporting at a law enforcement facility.
“Speaking about people exercising their constitutional right to peaceful protest and about human rights violations does not damage the country’s reputation; it honours and elevates it. What truly harms the reputation of Turkey is the failure to properly investigate these violations.”
Enes argued at the court hearing
EQUALITY AND NON-DISCRIMINATION
UN experts reaffirm central role of gender in advancing human rights and equality
A group of UN experts issued a joint statement reaffirming the centrality of understanding gender as a tool in the advancement of substantive equality and human rights for all.
LEGAL GENDER RECOGNITION
Landmark CJEU opinion demands legal gender recognition across EU
A new opinion from Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union says all member states must recognise the lived gender of their citizens, ruling out surgery requirements and stressing that passports and ID cards must match people’s identities.
Movement focus
Black Sex Worker Collective: dismantling housing injustice, racism and whorephobia
In Germany, new research carried out by Black Sex Worker Collective sheds light on how queer identity, migration status, race and sex work intersect to push their communities into homelessness.
“It’s easy to say, just decriminalise sex work. But at the end of the day, that’s only a small piece of the pie. We have to work on decriminalising people’s entire existence – blackness, queerness, womanhood, work itself. None of it can be separated.”
Akynos, The founder and director of Black Sex Worker Collective
Notice board
- Bi+ Equal hosting the Conference and Founding General Meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, from 20 to 22 October. Join the conference online.
- Equal Rights Association (ERA LGBTI) opens a call for proposals to support projects in Western Balkans and Türkiye. Apply here by 2 November.
- The European Endowment for Democracy is looking for Programme Assistants and a Deputy Programme Manager to join their teams. Apply here by 5 October.
