The Báthory-Bem Tradition Preservation Association has been working as an NGO for many years to nurture Hungarian-Polish historical relations. Dozens of joint meetings in Transylvania, Hungary and Poland prove the importance of the civil initiative. The leader of the association, Márton Okos, originally from Kalotaszeg, recently inaugurated the Turul statue at the Báthory farm near Warsaw. He considers his act a form of compensation for the Hungarian statue that was toppled on Munkács.

- When the Turul statue was toppled into the castle moat in Munkác, Subcarpathia, I decided that, until it could be restored, I would erect a similar statue myself without "Serpas and oxygen bottles" - Márton Okos describes the history to erdelyinaplo.ro . Not in Hungary or Transylvania - where this is no longer a problem - but in the former kingdom of István Báthory, on Polish soil, so that the two eagles proclaim the millennial soaring of the spirit of freedom.

It is Petőfi's commemorative year, and I really like that poem, which is the nightmare of many promising politicians:

"If you are a man, be a man, / And don't let your mouth proclaim this, / Actions speak better than Demosthenes."

So I asked Bartek Siedlar (after many years of friendship) the owner of Folwark Batorowka - Báthory's farm in the Campinos forest near Warsaw - if I could bring a statue of Turul to set up on the farm? He was happy with my suggestion.

Adventure travel

- The time constraint precluded the "fun" of the tender, because it is like a dog's dinner, so I bought a ready-made stone sculpture. The next problem to overcome was transportation as I only have an 18 year old Suzuki. I thought I would find an enthusiastic patriot who would transport the statue to Poland in a minibus or van - in return for reimbursement of the gas costs. It didn't work out, and renting a car was considered an expensive solution, so at the last moment a friend of mine came to my aid and lent me his trailer, so I set off with the statue.

Because of its open wings, the weight of the Turul statue is on top, so I could move very carefully and slowly. I spent the night in Jaroslaw, where the former prince of Transylvania, II. Ferenc Rákóczi rested his labors with Mikes Kelemen. It took me two days to get to the Báthory farm, located 35 km north of Warsaw - the head of the association recalls the initial difficulties.

- The "landing" of the turul was greeted with joy at the Báthory farm. We worked together to erect the statue on the trunk of a robust tree, as if it had landed on a tree on the Vereckei Pass. As part of a series of programs, the inauguration took place the following day, Saturday afternoon. At the Báthory farm, we first unveiled the commemorative plaque erected by the owner, which

thanks the Hungarian soldiers for the help they provided to the Polish population 80 years ago during the Volhynia massacre in the Second World War.

The Ukrainian extremists - the militants of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) - murdered about one hundred thousand Poles. The Polish parliament, the Sejm, recognized the massacre in Volhynia as genocide. Folwark Batorowka deserves a Hungarian state award for this sign as well. By the way, there are several such memorial plaques on the farm thanking the Hungarians for their help on various occasions, said Márton Okos.

Hungarian performers also performed at the statue unveiling in Poland

– In the yurt on the farm, we opened the Polish-language exhibition presenting the life of Áron Márton, which was created in 2016 in the Áron Márton Memorial Year. We have been working for years to ensure that Bishop Áron Márton posthumously receives the "Restituta Polonia" award presented by the Polish consul in Cluj, Tadeusz Stapinski, in 1939. I described the history of this in detail in one of my books. The unveiling of the Turul statue had a touching prelude to the fact that when the owner of the farm was looking for a white shroud, his mother took out a white textile that Bartek Siedlar's great-grandmother had sent from America for the farm owner's great-grandson's first sacrificial dress. We agreed that the heavenly sign sent by her great-grandmother means that her ancestors are also happy to support her efforts in building Hungarian-Polish friendship.

After the unveiling of the statue, I also handed over a small ore turul to my hosts with the recommendation that no matter how much some people try to destroy the turul and the Polish eagle, the statues and their message are indestructible.

The concert by singer Andrea Gerák and Zoltán Fábián, who is from Marosvásárhely, was a real treat for the locals who gathered for the statue's unveiling. Fábián had already started learning Polish, and his songs in Polish were accompanied by the crowd at his concerts.

Independent civilian diplomacy in the name of brotherhood

- When they want to use the peoples forced against each other by the great powers due to the geopolitical crisis, independent civilian diplomacy comes into play. For many centuries, this kind of relationship worked excellently between the Polish and Hungarian nations. Preparing for the installation of the Turul statue in Poland, I thought about the fact that many people on social media are already burying the Hungarian-Polish historical friendship or calling it an illusion. From this

I didn't experience any hostility in Poland, my old relationships live on, they love us.

For the Poles, István Báthory is a real hero

- For the Poles, István Báthory is a real hero, who defeated the army of the Russian Tsar Ivan the Terrible like few others since. Báthory is much better known in Poland than we are in Transylvania or Hungary, as a king he is highly respected. But

he is not only ingrained in the community consciousness, but he represents the real bond between Poles and Hungarians.

Hungarian gastronomy is an integral part of the festivities at the Báthory farm: lángos, Székely goulash and other Hungarian dishes. The farm, which embodies Polish-Hungarian friendship, is becoming more and more popular among Poles. Many people come from Warsaw with families and children. In addition to the historical inspiration, the farm is a beautiful place with animals, good service and delicious food. Anyone who comes here once cannot be fed political smears against Hungarians.

– The situation is similar with the perception of Transylvanian Hungarians in Hungary. Hungarian-Polish friendship is important for those who know and are aware of real history - and do not look at Poland based on ideological theories -. It is easy to mislead the superficially informed masses, as happened in Hungary during the 2004 dual citizenship referendum. Those who know the past like the Poles, but a lot of work still needs to be done to make the real historical facts known to as many people as possible. The Szent László Memorial Year initiated by our association for 2017, the Báthory Memorial Year announced for 2021, and the Szent Kinga Memorial Year initiated for next year, 2024, all serve the purpose of strengthening Polish-Hungarian friendship in addition to Hungarian-Hungarian unity. We have a lot of work to do, for which we also expect government assistance. It is reasonable to expect that when people hear about Transylvania abroad, it is not Dracula that jumps out at people, but, for example, István Báthory - emphasized the head of the Báthory-Bem Tradition Preservation Association.

The full interview can be read HERE

Photo: Báthory-Ben Tradition Preservation Association