ADDRESS

 

by

 

H.E. Mr. Gábor BRÓDI

 

Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Republic of

Hungary to the United Nations

delivered at the opening of the exhibition

“1989, HUNGARY: THE YEAR THAT ACCOMPLISHED

WHAT 1956 STARTED”  

  

 

October 16, 2006

 

Mr. Chairman, Vice-Chair, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, dear

      Friends!

 

 

It is my great privilege to welcome you on this special occasion today. Let me express my sincere gratitude to the Honourable Zsolt Németh, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hungarian Parliament and His Excellency Amir Dossal, Executive Director of the United Nations Fund for International Partnership to open the exposition. Let me also give a warm welcome to my good old friend and colleague Ambassador István Gyarmati, Director of the International Centre of Democratic Transition.

 

This is a special occasion of a special commemorative year. The year 2006 is the marking of the 50th Anniversary of the Freedom Fight and Revolution in Hungary. In 1956 “The people of Hungary shed blood to show the world its devotion to freedom and truth” as the late István Bibó, the outstanding political thinker and than Minister of State put on paper in his heroic appeal to the international community in the building of the Hungarian Parliament, on 4th November, surrounded by Soviet tanks.

 

In 2006 we celebrate freedom, democracy, human dignity and the heritage of the freedom fighters of 1956. As an organic part of it we also pay tribute to1989, the year that accomplished what 1956 did started.

 

In 1990 the freely elected Parliament of Hungary at its first session, enacted its very first law, on the revolution of 1956.  In it: “The Parliament proclaims that, in accordance with the spirit of 1956, doing everything in its power to promote multiparty democracy and human rights and to protect the independence of the nation”. And supported by the peaceful efforts of the people, like us here today, a democratic transition has been accomplished.  As a result of it Hungary is a strong democracy and an empowered market economy, member of NATO and the EU. The journey we have made was not easy, but genuinely successful and miraculous.

I invite you, Mr. Chairman to provide your opening remarks to this exposition, attempting to capture this miraculous moments of the Hungarian History.