Itt-Ott, 1982 (15. évfolyam, 1-4. szám)
1982 / 1. szám
now realized many, perhaps most of the goals they set themselves 25 years ago, and they have done so by peaceful means, not by contesting the Soviet military might, but by ignoring it in every way possible. If peace is maintained, more improvements will surely be forthcoming. In 1982, Hungary's currency is to become convertible. Travel restrictions should be eased further. Business with the West — now accounting for more than half of Hungary's substantial export — is sure to expand. Hungarian agriculture, which already produces more per capita than that of any other European country, East or West, will become more efficient. All this does not mean that Hungary will quickly catch up with the West in every way, but it does mean that conditions will continue to improve, and that the country will thereby gravitate — in certain respects — not necessarily closer to the West, but certainly farther and farther from Soviet domination — barring another catastrophe, which may God spare us all. What 1956 represents, then, is a turning away of the Hungarian nation from the pursuit of idle dreams, oflookingfor salvation from abroad and through others. Since 1956, Hungary, working against impossible economic odds, has made a limited success of itself in spite of the Soviet presence. The nation has learned that, to survive, it has to become self-reliant, and to compete, on its own, with some of the biggest and the best. And a strange, even amusing thing has happened: whereas not very long ago at every sign of difficulty the Hungarian leadership rushed to Moscow for help and advice, it is the Soviets who often come to Budapest now for counsel — in agricultural matters, for example, and, increasingly, in questions relating to business management in general. And that, more than any other fact, perhaps, shows that 1956 was not only the end of Stalinism, but also the beginning of a new era, in which the Soviet Union would not always have the final word in everything. What this view means is that the events of October—November, 1956, were not an isolated development in Hungarian history, not an incident that began on October 23 and ended sometime after November 4 of that year, but that they mark the beginning of an historic process that is still going on, even now, and not only in Hungary. October 23, which the President of the United States recently declared "Hungarian Freedom Day", is therefore not merely an anniversary for remembering and celebrating bygone events, but a living symbol, and one that does not belong to Hungarians alone. The Revolution of 1956 continues still, but by other means. For Hungary, and for its sister nations in the Eastern block, it will not be complete until the last Soviet soldier has shaken their dust from his boots. I am convinced that that day, too, will come; let us anticipate it with patient work and with quiet faith, for, as the Hungarian example shows, these virtues represent a greater human strength than all the^ missiles and contermissiles of the mad, mad world of the superpowers. ---21
