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Tensions over the exhibition surfaced last month when the
far-right Mi Hazank (Our Homeland) party initiated a government
inquiry over the issue. It cited a 2021 law that bans the
"display and promotion of homosexuality" in books and films
accessible to under-18s.
The law, which Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government says
aims to protect children, has come under fire from the European
Union and human rights groups.
Following the government inquiry, the museum said it had no
right to ask visitors for ID to determine their age but it
included a message on its website calling on under-18s not to
visit the exhibition.
The Minister for Culture and Innovation said in a statement on
Monday that Laszlo Simon, the director of the museum, had been
dismissed for failing to comply "with the legal obligations of
the institution".
Simon acknowledged his sacking in a Facebook post but denied
that the museum had deliberately violated any laws. He said the
museum had immediately flagged the age restriction on its
website "without delay".
The ministry of culture and the government spokesman did not
reply immediately to Reuters' emailed questions.
Simon - a former lawmaker in Orban's conservative Fidesz party -
had ironically thanked My Homeland in an earlier Facebook post
for giving the exhibition publicity as long queues formed
outside the museum over the weekend.
Earlier this year some Hungarian booksellers were fined for
selling books depicting homosexuality, which were not wrapped in
plastic as required by the legislation.
(Reporting by Boldizsar Gyori; Editing by Gareth Jones)
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