Hungarian Studies Newsletter, 1983 (11. évfolyam, 35-38. szám)
1983 / 35-36. szám
1 This is not a scholarly essay, yet it has val ue to students of East Central European history and social dynamics as a document of “true Marxist-Leninist” interpretation of two significant events. The author, after spending a few pages on defending revolution and the “dictatorship of the proletariat,” devotes the remainder of his booklet to the historical setting of the 1919 and 1956 “counter-revolutions." He recapitulates the resolution of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party of December 5,1956, which blamed the unsettling events squarely on the autocratic leadership of Ra'kosi; the opposition within the party led by Imre Nagy; the subversive activities in Hungary at large; and the activities of “international imperialists.” The reader is also informed of some yet unknown details such as “the entire Jewish population of Budapest.. .were driven on foot to extermination camps.” Or, “Béla Kiraly-. .fled to the West, taking with him an armed group which formed the basis of his so-called ‘Association of Hungarian Freedom Fighters,’ an organization drawing together all the armed terrorists who had left Hungary after the collapse of the counter-revolution. At I Kiraly’s suggestion, a section of his organization was taken into the auxiliary formations of the US Army in West Germany.” Varsányi, Julius, “Border is Fate: A Study of Mid-European Diffused Ethnic Minorities l-lI,” Revue de Droit International (Switzerland) 1981:4 (October-December) 241-286, and 1982:1 (January-March) 1-78. Published also in paperback by the Australian Carpathian Federation, c/o J. Varsányi, Dept, of Law, U. of Adelaide, S. Australia. This extensive study begins by investigating and defining pluralism, nation state, minorities, ethnic groups, and by touching upon the process of assimilation. Reaching into the historical background of the East Central European minorities, the author narrows down his subject matter as he lays the foundation of fieldwork, and illustrates his point by introducing seven tables of pertinent statistics. He then continues by distinguishing between “Compactly settled and diffused minorities,” and specifically describes his pilot study of four sample ethnic groups: (1) the Danish minority in Schleswig-Holstein; (2) the Frisians in Northwest Germany; (3) the Germans in North Schleswig; and (4) the Hungarians in Burgenland (Austria). The initial fieldwork was based on 280 interviews equally representing compactly settled and diffused minorities. The German language questionnaire inquired about the ethnic identity, occupation, language use, education, self-assessment, political identity and affiliation of each person, and included other determining factors of the essence of ethnicity. Results of the survey, analyzes and comparisons are sheding some light on the causes of similarities and differences in the behavior of these ethnic groups. In conclusion, the author attempts to define the concept of “marginal man” and to explain the shortcomings of various definitions, and finally, discusses the subjective and objective ways of classifying ethnic groups, and the question of ethnic autonomy. The study will prove to be of great interest to scholars and laymen alike. The author is research associate at the U. of Adelaide, Australia. (SMN) Volgyes, Ivan. THE POLITICAL RELIABILITY OF THE WARSAW PACT ARMIES: The Southern Tier. Duke U. Press, 6697 College Station, Durham, NC 27708, 1982. 115 pages. (In the Duke Press Policy Studies series.) $25.75 cloth. The purpose of this study is to assess the potential future behavior of the armed forces in Bulgaria, Hungary, and NO. 35-36, SPRING-SUMMER 19Ö3 HUNGARIAN STUDIES NEWSLETTER Romania. The study tries to do this with concern for the differences which exist between the thinking of the military elite (professionals) and the conscripts. After touching upon historical antecedents, the collapse of the interwar military establishment in Hungary, and the creation of the present party and Soviet controlled military forces, the study discusses the size, equipment, and training of the armed forces, the military doctrines, the Soveit control, and some aspects of social values and political socialization. The author enumerates seven instances when Soviet satellite governments called upon their armed forces to put down internal disturbances and were refused: Pilsen and East Berlin in 1953, Poznan and Budapest in 1956, Prague in 1968, Gdansk in 1970, and Lodz and Warsaw in 1976. He believes, however, that because of general satisfaction of the postrevolutionary military professionals with their position, prestige, and renumeration, the Hungarian army “at worst will remain neutral and.. .come to the defense of a belaguered leadership” if called upon. This feeling is not shared by the Soviet leadership which trusts the Hungarian military considerably less than its Bulgarian counterpart, and pursues Soviet goals and purposes through the formal WTO system and through the presence of Soviet forces on Hungarian soil. As far as US foreign policy is concerned, the author believes that the US should compete with the Soviet Union for influence in East Central Europe. The author is prof, of political science at the U. of Nebraska. Vucinich, Wayne S. ed. AT THE BRINK OF WAR AND PEACE: THE TITO-STALIN SPLIT IN A HISTORIC PERSPECTIVE. Social Science Monographs, Brooklyn Coll. Press, distributed by Columbia U. Press, 562 West 113 Street, New York, NY 10025, 1982. xi + 341 pages, map, tables $27.50 cloth. (Brooklyn Coll. Studies on Society in Change, no. 19; War and Society in East Central Europe, no. 10; and East European Monographs, no. 124). , The volume is one of monumental multiseries edited by Béla K. Kiraly of Brooklyn Coll. It deals with evolution and consequences of the rift between Moscow and Belgrade which 30 years ago nearly caused the first war between socialist states. The volume comprises 12 essays written by as many authors on a score of political, social and economic aspects of the crisis, which according to many observers was the most critical event in postwarcommunist history. Chapter 12 on the The Aborted Military Plans Against Tito (pp. 273- 288) was written by Kiraly, who at the time as a Hungarian army general was designated commander-in-chief of the Hungarian contingent to invade Yugoslavia. Thus, his essay is based on empirical participant-observation rather than library or archival research. Hungary was not only a staging area for the Soviet-controlled multinational forces that were to invade Yugoslavia but it was also designated to be an integral and fighting member of the contingency plans drawn up for the invasion. The author describes how the strategic plans unfolded in map war games in Budapest, and how preparation for war gave a new purpose (an enemy) to the Hungarian military. The account concludes with comments on the revitalization of the Hungarian armed forces, the political purges of which he also fell victim, and the impact of the Korean war on policy change in the Kremlin. He believes that had the U.S. and the U.N. not resisted Korea, “the war against Yugoslavia would surely have taken place.” Williamson, Samuel R. Jr., and Peter Pastoreds. ESSAYS ON WORLD WAR I: ORIGINS AND PRISONERS OF WAR. /Continued on Page 6) 5 !
