William Penn Life, 1990 (25. évfolyam, 2-10. szám)
1990-02-01 / 2. szám
February 1990, William Penn Life, Page 5 Continued from Page 4 "parochialism” of the Hungarians. The first victim of this campaign was the Hungarian Bolyai University of Cluj (Kolozsvár). A mass meeting was held in 1957 at Cluj (Kolozsvár) where the "self-criticism” of the Hungarian intellectuals documented their "nationalism” and desire to support the "reactionary counterrevolution” in Budapest. A second meeting was then held to orchestrate the "merger” of the Bolyai University with the Rumanian Babes University. Ceausescu himself presided over this meeting, cajoling and intimidating the staff of the Hungarian university. The merger was immediately followed by the protest-suicides of three faculty members, including the well-known scholar and poet László Szabédi. The fate of lower-level educational institutions followed the same pattern: they were not eliminated outright but made subordinate parts of Rumanian-language grade schools or high schools and subjected to administrative restrictions that undercut their status and standards. These forced many Hungarian students to take their classes in Rumanian rather than in their mother tongue. Thus, since 1958, the educational system has become an unabashed instrument of Rumanianization. Other aspects of Hungarian cultural life were similarly restricted or circumscribed both by Gheorghiu- Dej and then after 1965 by his successor Nicolae Ceausescu. For example, the Hungarian Theater at Tirgu-Mures (Marosvásárhely) was merged with the Rumanian theater of that city, and the new adminstration was dominated by Rumanians. Only the Czechoslovak crisis of 1968 slowed this Rumanianization drive. From the summer of 1968 to about the end of 1972, a more relaxed policy prevailed in the treatment of the Hungarians. However, the assimilationist policies have been reinstituted and have become more and more intolerant since the signing of the Helsinki Final Act in 1975. Since 1975 the discriminatory practices have b^en extended to every corner of minority existence. Besides the cut-backs and erosion in the cultural realm, Ceausescu attempted to disperse the Hungarian population throughout Rumania. He did this by denying Hungarians the right to settle in cities or areas where the Hungarian population is proportionately higher than in the overall population in Rumania. Furthermore, Hungarian college and university graduates could find jobs only in areas settled predominantly by Rumanians, particularly in Moldavia or Oltenia. If such intellectuals or professionals refused positions in predominantly Rumanian inhabited areas, they would find jobs only as manual laborers. The intent of this tactic was to speed up the cultural "homogenization” of the Hungarians through inter-marriage with Rumanians. Apparently this has not been too succesful, hence the new policy instituted in the spring of 1988 of bulldozing entire villages and thereby forcefully mixing the populations in mass housing units within specifically designated "agro-industrial centers.” However, this latter policy was detrimental to all the inhabitants of Rumania and contributed to the overall alienation of the population from the Ceausescu administration. Unfortunately, Ceausescu’s long tenure in office provided ample opportunity for planting the seeds of intolerance and hatred in the hearts of generations of both the majority and the minority. He had used the Hungarians as a lightning rod to distract attention from the disastrous consequences of his own policies. This scapegoating became particularly pernicious during the past twelve to thirteen years. Ceausescu’s "cultural policy” taught the majority to view the Hungarians as "strangers” and "barbarians” who stood in the way of Rumanian greatness. Thus, the Hungarians were treated not just as a different subgroup in society but also as an enemy that lurks within and waits for the moment when it can subvert the order of the Rumanian political system. The everyday consequences of this scapegoating were brutal. It forbade the use of the Hungarian language in public places, shopping centers, schools, and street gatherings. It led to the harassment of Hungarian children on the playgrounds as "barbarians” and "foreigners” rather than "civilized Daco-Romans.” For the cultural leaders of the minority it also meant constant harassment. Many were arrested on trumped-up charges, many were beaten and publicly humiliated, and many others were "deported” to Hungary or put out of the way through contrived "accidents” and "suicides” while being interrogated by the Securitate. Although Ceausescu is no longer on the scene, many people who participated in implementing these discriminatory policies are still in influential positions. Therefore, it is incumbent on human rights activists to continue monitoring the treatment and mistreatment of Hungarians in Rumania. Furthermore, long-term assistance to Rumania must be preceded by a show of good faith to the minorities via the dismantling of the oppressive policies, decrees and "spoken secret directives.” The new Rumanian government must re-open all the minority schools which it eliminated during the past thirty years. It must re-establish the Hungarian Bolyai University in Cluj (Kolozsvár) and terminate all aspects of its settlement, housing and employment policies which have been used to disperse or disadvantage the Saxon and Swabian Germans and the Hungarians. It will also have to guarantee the right of minorities to use their languages in public discourse and in public places. Furthermore, it will have to rescind all those orders designed to destroy minority traditions, such as the confiscation of archival materials belonging to minority churches and institutions. Finally, it must punish all those who continue to sow hate against all or any of the minorities in Rumania. Hungarian-Americans can have a major role in monitoring this reform process. We urge the readers of the William Penn Life to get involved. If you feel you would like to write letters in support of the human rights of Hungarians, or if you would like to participate in a human rights workshop for a weekend in June, please write to the editors. NEXT MONTH Hungarians in Yugoslavia A correction to last month’s "Hungarians in the Soviet Union”: After World War I, Carpatho-Ruthenia was attached to the newly created Czechoslovakia by the Trianon Treaty to provide a geographic bridge for the "Little Entente” (Czechoslovakia, Rumania, Yugoslavia). While the heavy-handed policies of Ceausescu are a thing of the past, the future of Hungarians and other minorities is not yet settled. Although the new government under the direction of the 'Council of National SalvationIon Iliescu and the Rumanian Army has begun to dismantle the oppressive state-party structure, so far it has neither rescinded nor repudiated the discriminatory published and secret directives of the Ceausescu era. Hungarian leader outlines needs WASHINGTON — Hungarian Minister of State Imre Pozsgay met recently with Congressional leaders to outline steps the United States can take to help improve the economic and political situation in Hungary. The meeting with members of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission, took place against the background of rapid changes in Hungary and an ongoing debate in the administration and Congress over what kind of aid package the United States should offer to support continuing economic and political reforms in Hungary and Poland. The congressional package places heavy emphasis on the creation of "enterprise funds” to encourage investment in the private sector, the provision of technical training and aid in developing democratic institutions. Poszgay stressed that the Hungarian government should concentrate its efforts on creating a good climate for private investments, and that Western countries should, in turn, create a "unified concept” of how to aid Poland and Hungary. Poszgay also called for an easing of certain export controls to allow an upgrading of technology in Hungary and to stimulate entrepreneurship which, he said, is stymied when businesses can think ahead only one step at a time. He pledged that the Hungarian government would abide by all means of control and monitoring, including sanctions. Poszgay spoke proudly of Hungary’s renewed commitment to adhere to the Helsinki Final Act and the role of the Hungarian Socialist Party in peacefully reforming the system. Yet, as he praised the "open political engagement” which has come increasingly to characterize Hungary, he betrayed some uneasiness over some of the potential effects of democratization, worrying that' 'the public is being pulled in all directions.” Still, Poszgay expressed confidence in his country’s future. 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