Hungarian American Coalition News, 2003 (12. évfolyam, 1-2. szám)
2003 / 2. szám
Parliamentary Visit (continued from page 1) “We met with at least three or four State Department officials who, in the next few months, will be taking up new posts in Budapest.” Among the offices they visited: the Department of State; Congressional Budget Office; Senate Committee on Foreign Relations; Homeland Security Council; National Security Council; Small Business Administration; the U.S. Trade Representative; Department of Defense; Department of the Interior - Indian Affairs. In addition to formal presentations, the meetings included opportunities for frank give-and-take on current issues in Hungarian-U.S. relations. “We were able to meet with people and form direct working relationships, and I expect that from now on the dialogue will be a more regular and frequent one,” said László Kövér, Member of Parliament and Executive Vice Chairman of FIDESZ. “At the very least, we will avoid misunderstandings.” Delegates also participated in twice-daily intensive English language classes, focused on the political and economic vocabulary relevant to each day’s briefing. As a unique aspect of the program, participants were housed not in hotels, but at the homes of American families in the Washington area. This arrangement gave the Hungarians further opportunity to practice their English, receive help with English homework, and to commute using public transportation. “Our experiences have made us enthusiastic supporters of your program which is certain to produce very positive returns for the U.S.-Hungarian relationship over time. ”- Letter from a Host... Weekend activities, organized by the Hungarian American Coalition, included a fishing trip on the Chesapeake Bay, a river-rafting trip on Pennsylvania’s Youghiogheny River, and a visit to the Bethlen Home, owned by the Hungarian Reformed Federation. The program concluded with a weekend visit to New York City, facilitated by the Hungarian Human Rights Foundation, where the legislators toured the city sites and had an opportunity to meet local Hungarian- Americans in a relaxed setting. Many thanks to Coalition members and supporters for their invaluable contributions to the success of the program, including: • The 25 host families who generously opened their homes to the parliamentarians (and those who offered to) • Rev. Stephen Török, President and CEO of the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America, for providing classroom space at the Kossuth House during the entire seminar • H.E. Ambassador András Simonyi and Mrs. Simonyi for hosting the opening reception for the parliamentarians and their hosts, and for providing logistical support • The Hungarian Consulate-New York, which provided logistical help in New York City • The Hungarian Human Rights Foundation, which facilitated the program in New York City • Hosts of receptions and dinners: Mr. András Ábrahám, Mr. and Mrs. László Hámos, Mr. and Mrs. Sándor Károlyi, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Koszorús, Mr. Imre Németh, Rev. Imre Bertalan, The Bethlen Home (Ligonier, PA), Mr. Anthony C. Beke and Mr. Endre Csornán, the William Penn Association, and the Hungarian Cultural Club of Washington • Those who generously donated to help defray project expenses: the William Penn Association, the Hungarian Reformed Federation of America, Dr. Daniel McDonald of the Potomac Foundation, Mr. and Mrs. John Lauer, Mrs. Andrea Lauer Rice, Mr. and Mrs. Sándor Károlyi, Mr. Daniel Odescalchi, Mr. Szabolcs Szekeres and Mr. Maximilian Teleki. ITT-OTT Conference (continued from page 1): The conference then shifted to the realities of Hungarian life in Romania, with a presentation by Rev. Béla Kató, Associate Bishop of the Kolozsvár (Cluj) Reformed Church District and recently elected President of the Board of the Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania. Rev. Kató gave concrete examples of the problems facing the Hungarians of Transylvania today, and the mechanisms that can solve them. Later in the week, the Hungarian American Coalition held a roundtable discussion to sum up current debates in Central Europe which affect minorities: dual citizenship legislation, the Status Law, and consequences of joining the European Union. Leading the discussion were Rev. Kató and Coalition members Péter Kovalszki, Edith Lauer, András Ludányi and Zsolt Szekeres. Other conference speakers included: (continued on page 3) 2 - Hungarian American Coalition - September 2003
