Swedish Liberal Party leader Nyamko Sabuni has called for the European Union to take a “hard-line” against Hungary and Poland over LGBT issues, “even if it means that authoritarian states leave the Union”.
Labelling both Poland and Hungary “authoritarian governments”, Ms Sabuni stated in an op-ed for newspaper Expressen: “European co-operation is based on a range of liberal values. These include freedom of movement, human rights, and the rule of law.
“If you cannot subscribe to these values, then you have nothing to do with Europe. You have punished yourself.”
Sabuni goes on to argue that the European Union should hold a special summit to deal with the two countries, saying: “One of the most important issues at the EU summit will be to draw up new, stricter rules on how countries can voluntarily withdraw from the Union and, if necessary, be forced into exclusion.”
She also called for EU cash to be cut off from Hungary and said: “Receiving money from the EU should never be combined with anti-LGBTQ laws or other human rights violations.”
The call comes after Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte stated in June that Hungary had no place in the European Union due to new anti-paedophile legislation which also included a ban on educators giving classes on transgenderism, alternative gender identities, and related LGBT content.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has insisted that “education in schools must not be in conflict with the will of parents; it must at most be supplementary, its form and content must be clearly defined and it must be subject to parental consent,” and that the question of whether or not LGBT content should be in Hungarian classrooms is not up to the EU in any case.
“The goal is to force Hungary to its knees regarding this issue. They have to understand that they are either part of the European Union and the community of shared values we are,” Dutch prime minister Rutte said of his push for the EU to punish Hungary for its education reforms.
Hungary’s Justice Minister Judit Varga stated she would stand up against “interference” from the wider EU.
“Hungary has been attacked on an unprecedented scale only because the protection of children and families is our priority, and in view of this, we are unwilling to let [the] LGBTQ lobby into our schools and kindergartens,” Varga said.