Prime Minister Viktor Orbán blames Ukrainian officers for fatally beating a Hungarian man during forced conscription.Continue reading
On Saturday, the State Secretary for Church and Ethnic Relations handed over the cultural center and library of the local Slovenian community in the Rábatótfalu district of Szentgotthárd (western Hungary), renovated at a cost of HUF 70 million (EUR 175,000).
Miklós Soltész emphasized that the renovated community center serves the residents of the district well, encouraging Slovenians in the region surrounding the Rába river to stay in the area and strengthen their ethnic culture and faith, which, in his words, also has the power to preserve the nation.
The State Secretary recalled that the Hungarian Government worked together with representatives of the Slovenes living in western Hungary to develop and launch a regional development program, thanks to which the cultural center in Rábatófalu could also be renovated.
In Soltész’s view, it is notable that no one in Hungary is scandalized when the Slovenian and Hungarian national anthems are played one after the other at a joint celebration, when the two flags fly side by side on a building renovated with joint efforts, or when the two national ribbons are cut at the same time.
He emphasized:
…this is what is normal, not what happened in Transcarpathia (western Ukraine) to one of our Hungarian compatriots, a father of two, who was simply beaten to death by military recruiters. What is happening there, in his words, is not normal, “the leaders there and the terrible war are piling crime upon crime.”
The National Slovenian Autonomous Minority Government proposed a project to renovate the cultural center building, for which they received cc. HUF 64,000,000 in support (EUR 160,000), supplemented by the municipality of Szentgotthárd from its own resources, contributing to the energy efficiency improvement of the building, replacing the boiler and the doors and windows, and modernizing the lighting.
He added that the project included the renovation of the roof structure and facade of the building, as well as the conversion of the attic, where an office space was also created for the National Slovenian Autonomous Minority Government. The building’s large hall was opened up towards the courtyard, which will facilitate the organization of larger events, and the library was given a new entrance.
Via MTI; Featured image: Facebook Miklós Soltész