László Tőkés, an ethnic Hungarian former Reformed bishop and hero of the 1989 Romanian revolution, yesterday opened a conference and exhibition on the events that took place in Timisoara (Hungarian: Temesvár, Romania’s second city) in 1989 and the experiences gained in the quarter-century since the change of political system.
In his opening speech at the conference, named “1989: Unfinished Revolution?”, Mr. Tőkés, who is currently a MEP for Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party, looked back on the events that took place in Timişoara 25 years ago to conclude that they cannot be considered as belonging to the past but were rather the beginning of a process which continues to be under way. The struggle between the past and the future is characterised by restoration from time to time and renewing impetus, he said, pointing out that the transition to democracy should be made irreversible everywhere.
In his lecture, head of the Hungarian parliament’s foreign affairs committee Zsolt Németh also pointed out that the dual nature of events can be observed today too: autoritarian counter-forces continue to step up against tendencies towards freedom. Solidarity between the Hungarian and Romanian people played a key role in the events that took place in Timisoara in 1989 and the “moment of total ethnic reconciliation” set in. Nevertheless, a few months later Romanians could be instigated to attack Hungarians in Targu Mures (Marosvásárhely), he pointed out, saying that the two trends have been battling with each other ever since in Romania. The Fidesz politician described a recent court decision to renationalise the Székely Mikó College of the Reformed Church as “an open attempt at a coup to stop restitution”. He added, however, that the recent appointment of Klaus Iohannis to president may represent a new chance considering that he is a Transylvanian Saxon who obviously understands the difficulties minorities are facing.
via 3szek.ro / hungarymatters.hu
photo: kolozsvaros.ro