Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 1989 (1. évfolyam, 1-24. szám)
1989-06-09 / 14. szám
AMERICAN Hungarian Journal WHEN WILL THERE BE ELECTIONS IN HUNGARY? Famous Hungarians (Continued) There he eloped with the commandant’s daughter. After criss-crossing the Pacific he settled down in Madagascar where he organized an army which conquered the entire island for France. The natives, impressed with his deeds and personality, elected him Viceroy of Madagascar. Another Hungarian count, Samuel Teleki (1845-1916) also contributed in a small way to the history of Africa. In 1888, he undertook an expedition with a friend, Louis Höhnel, to East Africa where he discovered the salt lakes without outlets which he named Lake Rudolf and Lake Stefánia, and an active volcano which in turn, was named after him. Teleki’s travels in Africa covered 3,000 kilometers over a most difficult terrain where he discovered that, between the Great Lakes and Abessynia, there were no Moon Mountains as previously believed. The majority of Hungarian explorers, however, were more fascinated with Asia than with any other continent. Lajos Lóczy (1849-1920) was the first to make a geological survey of the Trans-Himalaya mountain chain that was to be fully explored later by the famous Sven Hédin, who conducted his exploration on advice received from Lóczy. Sir Aurel Stein (1867-1943), hailed as the "Sven Hédin of England", was also a Hungarian by birth. After receiving his education in Budapest, Dresden and Vienna he moved to Tübingen and later to England where he devoted himself to Asiatic studies. In London he did intensive research into languages, the history and the antiquities of Asian countries. After doing archeological explorations in India and Kashmir, Aurel Stein crossed the Himalayas in 1900 to excavate the ancient ruins in the deserts of Chinese Turkestan. During his second expedition there (1906- 1908) he explored the region of Lop Nor, traced the Great Wall of China, and opened up the Church of the Cave of the Thousand Buddhas, which had been brought to his attention by Lajos Lóczy. Aurel Stein was one of the few honorary members of the British Geographical Society. Stein met his death while traveling in Kabul, Afghanistan. While these explorers may have been drawn to Asia subconsciously as the home of their early ancestors, Sándor Kőrösi- Csoma (1784-1842) was one man who purposefully went to Asia to find the legendary homeland of the Magyars, a goal that had been lingering in the minds of Hungarians for centuries. (Cf. Brother Julian and his search for Magna Hungária as described in the chapter about the Mongolian invasion of Hungary). Kőrösi-Csoma originally set out from his home in Transylvania to find traces of the Magyar tribes lost before the Conquest, but being diverted from his goal by circumstances, he went to Tibet instead. In his first three visits to Tibet he spent more than five years in various monasteries conducting a monk-like existence. After five years, he emerged with the world’s first Tibetan dictionary (containing 40,000 words) and grammar book which were published in an English edition in 1943. Tragically, on his fourth journey to Tibet, having at last obtained some information about the Yougar people (a race possibly related to the Magyars) he was fatally struck with malaria and died in Darjeeling, without finishing his long search. Kőrösi-Csoma is buried in Darjeeling, his grave marked by a monument erected jointly in 1910 by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the Transylvanian village of Csomakőrös and the Asiatic Society of Bengal. (This chapter is partly based on a study prepared by Joseph Hamvas.) They say that the internal politics of Hungary are in a fluid state. Only national elections can bring about significant change and the formation of more realistic lines of force. The opposition is looking forward to Election Day with barely concealed excitement, while the former ruling party is less eager. Yet it seems that the tactics aimed at bringing forward the date of the elections originate from the official political leadership. This diligence seems peculiar, but there is a simple explanation to it: if the opposition does not get enough time to prepare for the elections, they will obviously be disadvantaged against those who already have their well-oiled machinery in place. There was an interview in a Budapest paper with András Tóth, "elections expert" of MSzMP. The reporter asked him:- Are the elections going to be held this year or next year?- Several representatives of the opposition suggested early elections, while others would prefer to have them later since there is The ambassador of Czechoslovakia to Budapest criticized certain publications regarding Czechoslovakia that had appeared recently in the Hungarian press and that may have influenced the otherwise friendly relation of the two countries. Vlastimil Ehrenberger provided information about political issues to reporters on Friday. The ambassador mentioned, among other things, that the Hungarian press had taken over reports of the alleged defection of former Prime Minister Strougal without confirming their veracity. He added that in his opinion the Hungarian press does not always handle the issue of ethnic minorities in an objective manner. One of the participants of the conference, Professor Juraj Zvara, little time to prepare and to develop the election campaign. The so-called historical parties would rather have the elections next year. MSzMP would not mind going ahead this year.- What kind of an elections system would be acceptable to the Communist Party?- In this colorful, transitory situation it is impossible to formulate a settled system of elections similar to those that representative democracies have been using for years. Therefore, a combination of individual elections and a general ticket seems most plausible to me. The communists of the County of Bács-Kiskún urged Károly Grósz in a letter to call a party congress befor the elections. Why? Trust is decreasing every day. The personal changes’ did not really solve any problems; there are hardly any programs, therefore a new unity could not be created. In any case, we should take bigger steps along the way of reforms, thus eliminating the reasons for uncertainty within the party. fc indicated the April 3rd program of Panorama on Hungarian TV as having contained intentional distortions possibly evoking nationalistic feelings in some viewers. Hungarian TV’s interview with Dubcek was also discussed at the press conference. Ambassador Ehrenberger stated that the events of ’68 need to be evaluated by knowledgeable politicians and historians. To the question whether the Czech party and state leadership is willing to cooperate with the political opposition, party historian Vaclav Cada gave the following answer: -We are not cooperating with an opposition not firmly rooted in socialism and engaging in activities aganst the regime. This page translated by Susan Jancso, member of the American Translators Association shareholder Hungarian Credit Bank for the shares. The Hungarian state still commands 8 percent of the Tungsram stocks. The present agreement is the first instance of creating an international shareholding company from a company belonging to a socialist country. At the press conference following the closing of the agreement the buyers informed the press that foreign managers will help Tungsram become more profitable so that in the next three years its profit will increase tenfold. Unpaid electric bills It happens at times that the average man cannot pay his electric bill on time. He is usually allowed a short period of grace - not too long - but if he does not pay even after the warning, they will mercilessly cut off his power supply. One Hungarian paper has some interesting information about unpaid electric bills. It is not the fact of being late with the payment that attracts attention - it’s only human - but the identity of the delinquents. Nitrogen Works of Pét is at the head of the list. It counts for a large enterprise in Hungary, with a billion-Forint capital at its disposal. The Coal Mines of Tatabánya and the Metallurgical Works of Ózd follow close behind. How can we pass judgement on the little people if these giants are also delinquent? Is the economic situation really that bad? Could all these companies be bankrupt? Maybe, but how do we interpret the following data? The headquarters of "the Soviet troops temporarily stationed in Hungary” owes the Hungarian Electric Company 170 million Forints in unpaid bills. Are they also out of money? That in itself would be a good sign, but why don’t they draw the conclusion from it? Whoever is short on money should not engage in occupation! Hungarian literature in Transylvania today In the last two decades a dramatic change for the worse has occured, driving much of Hungarian literature in Transylvania underground. An intolerant Rumanian chauvinism introduced by the Ceausescu regime seems determined to wither non-Rumanien cultural life. Only writers with explosive talent are able to keep themselves on the surface. These writers include András Sütő, the writer-poet who was awarded the internationally prestigious Herder Prize, Sándor Kányádi, a poet and educator whose allegoric poems strive to strengthen the Magyar spirit, the writer Tibor Bálint and Árpád Farkas, a young poet of explosive talent. About SÁNDOR MÁRA! Sándor Márai (1900-1989) was born in Kassa (now Kosice in Slovakia), the son of a cultured and well-to-do middle class family, (a polgár in Hungarian terminology). His writings reflect the mentality of an erudite patrician who watches the world from the ivory tower of his superintellect. Márai’s main interests are not social problems or politics, but man’s inner life, with his themes picked from both the modern and ancient world. Abhorrence of "isms" and regimes is clearly evident in his works. A prolific writer, Márai’s most successful works include the drama Kassai polgárok (The Polgar's of Kassa) and the novels Vendégjáték Bolzanoban (Guest Performance in Bolzano), Béke Ithakában (Peace in Ithaka) and Egy polgár vallomásai (The Confessions of a Polgár). A successful and much honored writer in the interwar years in Hungary, Márai chose exile after the Communist takeover. His book Föld, föld! (Land, Land!), written in Italy, reflects the atmosphere of Hungarian society in the early years of the Russian occupation. Márai’s greatest artistry lies not so much in storytelling but in the matchless imagination and exquisite style with which he blends dreams and substance in his fictional world. In reading his works one senses that Márai is a European "Bel esprit" (európai széplélek) whose work reflects the influence of various cultures, transcending his Hungarian background. Márai is often compared to Thomas Mann, who also spent much of his life in exile. Márai’s political message to the Magyars is: "Always go westward - but never forget that you come from the East." Living most of his life in solitude. Márai once wrote: "Solitude is a great venture in character building. But it is worth something only it is absolute. Solitude is like virginity; you cannot suspend it for a while." "Green" party formed in Hungary Don’t be mislead by the color definition "green". Environmentalists are creating a party in Hungary modeled on its Western counterparts. This is the first time in the history of Hungary that environmentalists form a political party so different from earlier party formations. The Independent Environmentalist Labor Party declares as its goal to break with the past and implement new ways for man’s self-realization by linking work and nature. The founders are all young people - the newspaper article mentions only three names: Piroska Lévai, Zoltán Nagy and Gábor Németh. "We count on all those who arrive to the idea of trying to take action to protect the environment and influence the decisionmakers with the political weight of a party behind them. We do not want to be a nostalgy-party; we would like to promote the new program of a young party." Half of Tungsram’s stocks in Western hands After many postponements, the important business agreement allowing 13 banking institutions belonging to the Austrian Girozentrale - among them, French, Luxemburgian, German and Liechtensteiner banks - to buy 49.65 percent of all the stocks of Tungsram Corporation. The banks paid $110 million to the former 92 percent ■H M 44 AMERIKAI Pffl Magyar Hírlap |Q h - - ---------WHAT THE CZECHS DONT LIKE
