The leader of Transylvania, Transcarpathia, the Highlands and Vojvodina also spoke at the CPAC Hungary conservative conference.
The Transylvanian Hungarian community was able to survive by always sticking to its traditions, roots, mother tongue, culture and faith for the past 104 years - RMDSZ president Kelemen Hunor emphasized on the second day of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC Hungary) event in Budapest on Friday.
"We were able to be successful in the last 34 years because we considered the values that are related to traditions to be the guiding principles"
said the politician during his round table discussion with other Hungarian leaders across the border. He stated that a national minority is always conservative, since it always adheres to the values that keep it in all circumstances. He does not see tradition as a shackle, but as a strong foundation and resource. And he sees freedom as a gift with which he can live within the framework of tradition.
László Brenzovics, the president of the Transcarpathian Hungarian Cultural Association (KMKSZ), spoke about how, in the circumstances of the war in Ukraine, traditional, conservative values give strength to Transcarpathian Hungarians, which enable them to survive. However, he called their situation critical in the war-torn Ukraine, whose population, as he pointed out, has halved in the past thirty years, and whose industrial production and economic development do not reach the 1991 level.
"All of this has an extraordinary impact on our community, which has also decreased in number in the past period, but despite everything, we are successful. Despite the war conditions, our schools continue to function, newspapers are published and television programs are produced"
he explained. He expressed his gratitude to Hungary for its solidarity with the Transcarpathian Hungarians.
"We trust in peace and that, as a result of this year's elections, forces will come to power in the world that will promote the creation of peace"
concluded the Transcarpathian politician.
Bálint Pásztor, the president of the Vojvodina Hungarian Association and parliamentary group leader, stated that the Vojvodina Hungarians understand the Subcarpathians because they experienced a similar period of war in the nineties. He emphasized that after the democratic revolution in Serbia, the Vojvodina Hungarians succeeded in enshrining their ideas into law. He added that for success it was also necessary for those who profess conservative values to come to power in Serbia.
"It has been proven that those who also think in terms of the nation are much more understanding of minority interests than those who profess left-liberal principles"
he declared.
Krisztián Forró, the president of the Hungarian party in the highlands, the Hungarian Alliance, pointed out that Slovakia's accession to the European Union and the abolition of the border between Hungary and Slovakia greatly helped the improvement of relations between the two countries. He agreed that sticking to traditions is what keeps the Hungarian minorities across the border.
"We will only be able to survive as Hungarians if we stick together, stand up for our traditions, culture and mother tongue, and along these lines we try to gain as much space as possible in local politics"
he stated.
MTI
Featured image: Kelemen Hunor, Bálint Pásztor, Krisztián Forró and László Brenzovics at the podium discussion in Budapest Photo: MTI/Zoltán Máthé
