Hungary will not participate in next year’s Eurovision song contest. Amid speculation, the decision was made because the competition is “too gay” for the taste of the country’s far-right government and public media bosses.
This was stated in The Guardian’s latest article. Although no official reason was given as to why Hungary decided to withdraw from Eurovision, speculations believe that it is due to the increase in homophobic rhetoric, where the anti-migration Prime Minister, Viktor Orbán, has launched a “family first” policy aimed at helping traditional families and boosting birth rates.
Earlier this year, many homophobic statements could be heard from Hungarian politicians.
The speaker of the Hungarian Parliament compared same-sex adoption to paedophilia, while a pro-government television commentator referred to Eurovision as “a homosexual flotilla” and said not participating would benefit the nation’s mental health.
A source inside the Hungarian public broadcaster told The Guardian that while no reason was communicated for the decision to withdraw from the contest, the assumption among employees was that Eurovision’s association with LGBTQ+ culture was behind the move.
At the same time, the spokesman of PM Orbán, Zoltán Kovács, described the story as fake news but did not specify any other reason for Hungary’s non-participation.
Every year, the winner of the Hungarian pre-Eurovision show called The Song would go and represent Hungary at the song contest. From next year on, the rules of the show will be changed, and the programme will continue, but the prize will be a chance to appear on various domestic media outlets and at festivals.
Featured image: www.facebook.com/EurovisionDE
Source: www.theguardian.com
