Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 2013 (25. évfolyam, 1-50. szám)
2013-01-25 / 4. szám
AMERICAN Holocaust 2014 Memorial Committee founded The Hungarian Holocaust 2014 Memorial Committee held its first, founding session. The Hungarian Government set up the body, which is responsible for preparing the commemorative events marking the 70th anniversary of the deportation of Hungarian Jews in 2014. Permanent delegates to the Committee include Minister of Human Resources Zoltán Balog, former Prime Minister Péter Boross, President of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences József Pálinkás, as well as the President of the Federation of Jewish Communities Péter Feldmájer and the Ambassadors of the United States, Israel, Germany and Austria. The chair of the Committee, Minister of State heading the Prime Minister’s Office János Lázár, said in his address that the Government decided to set up the body because it regards it as particularly important to face the past, something which could not take place under the Communist regime, and to offer apologies as the Hungarian state was also guilty of the Holocaust. He added that the Government decided to set up the Committee at the initiative of Jewish organisations and would like its memorial events to be determined by civil organisations. The Committee considers addressing youth its main objective, the Minister of State explained. Minister Zoltán Balog also highlighted that education on the Holocaust has a special role in the national curriculum, and Jewish organisations contributed greatly to the elaboration of the teaching material. Deputy Prime Minister Tibor Navracsics also stressed the importance of the education of future generations. The importance of teaching Holocaust history was reinforced by Head of the March of the Living Foundation Gábor Gordon and Director of the Holocaust Memorial Centre Szabolcs Szita. János Lázár added that the Cabinet also seeks to inspire the world of science to reveal the past. Furthermore, the Committee intends to support settling the situation of some historic synagogues throughout the country. Péter Feldmájer expressed his gratitude to the Government for setting up the Commission, adding that this sign of solidarity means a lot to the roughly 8000 Holocaust survivors living in Hungary, and Head of the Jewish Heritage of Hungary Public Endowment György Szabó called the steps that the Hungarian Government had taken towards the Jewish community significant. International Jewish organisations also welcomed the establishment of the Commission, a sentiment conveyed by Director of the Federation of Hungarian Jewish Communities Gusztáv Zoltai. Israeli Ambassador Ilan Mor underlined his commitment to assisting the work of the Commission. American Ambassador Eleni Tsakopoulos Kounalakis congratulated the Government and promised to participate actively in the Commission’s work, while her Austrian counterpart Michael Zimmermann emphasized the importance of international cooperation in dealing with the Holocaust. Hungarian Consulate, Los Angeles Hungary to Ask Switzerland for Data on Hungarian Asset Hungary will ask Switzerland for data on Hungarian assets in the Alpine country with a view to imposing a penal 35% tax on such asset! as it battles against tax evasion, the Prime Minister’s chief of staff said. Hungary’s ailing economy is struggling to return to growth this year, as it strives to meet strict budget deficit targets. For that it also needs to increase the effectiveness of tax collection. Switzerland has been the long-term flagship of banking secrecy but the country has been in talks with Germany, the United Kingdom and Austria to support more transparency and act against tax evasion in the European Union countries. The Hungarian government allowed “escaped capital,” or assets that have fled the country, to be repatriated under benign conditions of a 10% tax rate over the past two years ending Dec. 31, 2012, Mr. Lazar said. “This was ample time, now we’re planning to impose a 35% tax rate on all assets currently in Switzerland,” Mr. Lazar said, adding he expects results in the near future, quoting that one or two years of talks between Austria or the U.K. with Switzerland yielded significant incomes for the countries. Hungary Economy Minister Favors Renationalizing Hungary’s Economy Minister György Matolcsy said the renationalization of companies that operate as monopolies would be beneficial to all parties. “Nobody would lose if the state re-gained the domestic monopolies, whose privatization was a mistaken step. The buyers have recovered [their investment] many times, and would pre-empt any future losses. It would be beneficial to everyone if the cost level of energy to telephone [services] were competitive,” Matolcsy said in his regular book review he writes for political weekly Heti Valasz. Hungary privatized nearly all its state-owned enterprises in the mid-1990’s. Most of the buyers were foreign firms such as Deutsche Telekom AG, German energy firm RWE AG, and Austrian bank Erste Group Bank AG. According to analysts, the resulting foreign direct investment and restructuring of the economy have driven economic growth prior to the euro-zone debt crisis. The country has levied special, sectoral taxes on energy, telecom, retail and banking sectors over the past two years to reduce its budget shortfall to European Union tolerance levels and maintain access to vital EU funds. The government claims it is taxing industries, in particular those that made outstanding profits prior to the crisis, instead of households. Critics of the measures say the extra burden may reduce the attractiveness of operating in Hungary. Január 25, 2013 Q) 242 Billion USD Have Been Transferred From Hungary To Offshore Tax Jiavens The Government wants to put an end to capital circumventing the Hungarian tax system, Government Spokesperson András Giró-Szász said on public television on Thursday. He noted that an estimated total of HUF 1,000 billion (EUR 3.4 billion) may be in Swiss offshore accounts, and some HUF 275-320 billion may have been transferred from Hungary in a single year. In addition, Hungary is on the global list of 20 countries, compiled by The Observer, in which capital flight is highest. According to their data, a total of USD 242 billion left the country between 1970 and 2010, twice the Hungarian national debt. Hungarian Olympic Medalist to Get Fair- Play Award Hungarian gold-medal winning swimmer Daniel Gyúrta gave a replica of his trophy to the family of his rival Alexander Dale Oen, who died shortly before last year’s Olympic Games. To hand over a slightly modified replica of the medal Mr. Gyúrta traveled to Norway and on Jan. 13 gave a speech in Norwegian at an event to an audience of 4,000 people. “Alexander was a great man. I’m sure he would have won the gold medal, so this medal symbolizes the achievement he would have made but for his death,” Mr. Gyúrta said. The Hungarian swimmer will receive the World Fair Play Diploma for this in September, said Jeno Kamuti, chairman of International Fair Play Committee. Orbán ple^ see upswi. In 2013 Hungary will begin to rise; . not sowing” said Prime Minister Viktor Ore Some important issues aside, such as the Lam the basic law with the electoral procedures law, the & will not debate any transformative bills, as the major c. for the country’s survival and competitiveness are already _ parliament, he said. “This year is about reaping the benefits,” he said. The achievements of the past two years include utility bill cuts, minimum wage and pension hikes, gradually improving employment figures, the job protection action plan and management of municipal debt, Orbán said. This years’ economic tasks will be implementing the job protection plan, possibly extending utility bill cuts to include water and waste bills, boosting employment and raising pensions further. He said the government will introduce a new action plan targeting wageearners in mid-year. “The facts clearly indicate that in 2013 Hungary begins to rise and turn power built up over the past two and a half years towards easing everyday life,” Orbán said. Hungary still “free,” Freedom House says US-based independent watchdog organisation Freedom House put Hungary in the “free” category in 2012, in its annual report on global freedom, released on Wednesday. In the political rights category Hungary was given the best grade on a scale of 1-7, while the country has retained its grade of 2 for civil freedom rights. In FH’s grading system, countries in the 1 to 2.5 range are considered “free.” Freedom is associated with open political competition, respect for civil rights, an active civil society and free media. Poland, Czech Republic, and Slovakia have earned the best grades for both their political and civil freedom rights, as did to Austria and Slovenia. 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