Magyar News, 2002. szeptember-2003. augusztus (13. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2003-07-01 / 11-12. szám
and eventually gained her independence from them. Tacitus: "We Hate Whom We Hurt\" In any society, the acid test of civilization is the respect for minority rights. The Great Powers attempted to guarantee these rights by making the successor states sign minority treaties, which outlined the language, religious, cultural and property rights of the minorities. For example, the minority treaty signed with Rumania on the 9th of December, 1919 in Paris, a treaty guaranteed by the United States, Britain, France, Italy and Japan, stated the following: Article 8: No restriction shall be imposed on the free use of any language. Article 9: Equal rights to establish, manage and control religious institutions, schools and other educational establishments. In Article 11: Rumania agrees to accord to the communities of the Szecklers (Hungarian Székelys) and Saxons in Transylvania local autonomy in regard to scholastic and religious matters. Article 12: Rumania agrees that the stipulations in the foregoing Articles, constitute obligations of international concern. Similar treaties were signed with the other successor states, but none were ever enforced. In fact, the Great Powers looked the other way while the successor states attempted to their minority problems, first through denationalization, then by ethnic cleansing through deportations, expulsions, transfers, dispersions and other forms of uprooting. Hungarians had to choose between their nationality and their property. Because of the savage oppression, intimidation and coercion, 350,000 Hungarians decided to leave all their possessions behind and flee to rump Hungary. The institutions and possessions of Hungarian communities were also target• ••••••• • • • • ' Cifra Magyar N Népitánc Tábor ^Fancy Hungarian Folkdance Camp^ Page 2 ed. In Transylvania alone, the Hungarian community lost 1,665 of her schools, including the world famous János Bolyai University, named after Einstein's predecessor, the inventor of the new (non- Euclidean) geometry. The Paris Peace Treaty On February 10, 1947, the Great Powers had another opportunity to enforce the until- then-disregarded minority treaties. This was expected because on August 14, 1941, the Atlantic Charter was signed, and it too (like the earlier Wilsonian principles) emphasized the right to self-determination and to plebiscites. Yet, not a single plebiscite was allowed. In fact, rump Hungary was further violated by the transfer of additional land to Slovakia. This transfer, later, made possible the Gabcikovo dam project which unilaterally and illegally transferred the Danube, Hungary's border river, onto Slovak territory (in 1992), thereby destroying Europe's oldest wetland region. The Lesson It takes time for historic events to reveal their consequences. It took nearly 80 years for the unnatural creations of Trianon, Yugoslavia and Czechoslovakia, to self-destruct. It took some 80 years to realize that it is the legacy of Trianon, which is destabilizing and balkanizing Central Europe. By now we see that Trianon did not eliminate the causes of the 1914 murder in Sarajevo and we also realize that no unjust “solution” can stand the erosion of time, and that Trianon did not provide justice. But what is justice? In this relativistic age, - when my terrorist can be your freedom fighter, when the life of one UN or NATO soldier can be more valuable than that of a thousand civilians, when the Chechen or the Kurd nations are less deserving of self-determination than some others, - it is desirable to remind ourselves of what justice is. On the pulpit of the Notre-Dame Cathedral, Father R. P. Gratry has put it this way: "Every nationVs homeland is sacred. If you destroy one of them, you mutilate the entire human race." Therefore, the main mistake of 1920 was that it attempted to satisfy the desires of a Benes and a Clémenceau, instead of attempting to apply just principles to solve the nationality problems of Central Europe. Unfortunately, this approach has not changed during the last 83 years. The only thing that changed are the names of the architects of injustice. Today, the goal of international efforts is to appease a Putin instead of establishing some general principles and applying them to everybody. The principles of a permanent ?solution?, must involve self-determination through plebiscites, autonomy for ethnic minorities and a Danubian or Central European Federation as the ultimate goal. The United Nations should declare that all national minorities anywhere in the world (exceeding some minimum number, say 100,000) have the right to hold UN supervised plebiscites and receive cultural and linguistic autonomy, if the majority so desires. It should make no difference how these minorities evolved, how long they lived in the particular area, or what their language or religion is. Regardless of all that, they all have the right to maintain their heritage and the right to determine their own cultural destiny. Once cultural autonomy is guaranteed, the main cause of tensions between Central European neighbors will also diminish. When the Hungarians enjoy the same autonomy in Rumania as the Rumanian minorities in Hungary, when the Serb, Russian, Roma, Turkish, Albanian, German, or other minorities of the region, are also treated equally, the tensions will disappear and the rebuilding can start. This wonderful camp is located in Canada just across the border from the USA. Árpád Park This facility is owned by the Niagara Peninsula Canadian-Hungarian Cultural and Sports Centre and has been in operation since 1978. It features 34 acres of land with an outdoor covered pavilion and stage. There are ample facilities for camping and recreational activities. Included is a small club house with cooking and shower facilities. Our new Árpád Hall has a seating capacity of 500 persons and is located on one comer of the property—only 10 minutes from Niagara Falls. During the children's camp the boys and girls are separated into two different camping groups placed in semi-circles with the creek, bed as a divider. Teacher and counselor supervision is 5 campers to one adult. A person qualified in first-aid is present at the camp at all times. All food is prepared by Hungarian cooks and volunteers and includes a variety of Hungarian and Canadian dishes as well. During the camp, the children will be learning about how the villagers in Hungary came together to work, similar to "working bees". The villagers entertained themselves with music, dances and games. They have three age groups: JUNIORS (7-12) July 6-13. $160.00 US INTERMEDIATE (12-17) JULY 17-27. $200.00 US ADULTS: JULY 3-6. $110.00 US For further information call: (905)353-9543, or E-mail to Marianna“^arpalotai@ridley.on.ca Mailing Address: Marianna McMaster 9301 Beaverdams Road - RR#1 Niagara Falls, ON L2E 6S4
