[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 117 (Friday, August 2, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1469]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HUNGARY'S RELATIONS WITH HER NEIGHBORS

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, August 2, 1996

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I want to bring to the 
attention of my colleagues the joint declaration adopted in Budapest on 
July 5 by representatives of the Hungarian Government and by 
representatives of Hungarian communities abroad--the so-called 
Hungarian-Hungarian summit declaration. The status of the various and 
sizable Hungarian minority communities in Romania, Slovakia, and Serbia 
is of considerable interest to many in Congress. How governments treat 
their minority communities is often a significant barometer of how they 
will treat their citizens as a whole, and a strong indicator of the 
progress of democratization in countries in transition.
  In fact, I remain concerned about the minority situation in each of 
these countries, and, as Chairman of the Helsinki Commission, have 
raised such concerns on a number of occasions. Many hoped the 
Hungarian-Hungarian summit document would provide some useful insight 
into the concrete concerns of Hungarian minorities.
  Unfortunately, the summit document adopted in Budapest does not 
address the kind of specific and concrete issues that are usually 
raised with the Commission, such as minority language schooling or 
electoral districting. Instead, the declaration stands as a broad and 
somewhat ambiguous endorsement of ``autonomy'' and ``self-government.'' 
Those terms--guaranteed to alarm those already afraid of alleged 
Hungarian irredentism--were unfortunately left undefined, fostering the 
perception in some quarters that the declaration represents only a 
thinly veiled effort by Budapest to extend its influence beyond current 
Hungarian borders and, implicitly, to turn back the clock to the days 
when Hungarians were united in a single country.
  I appreciate the Hungarian Embassy's willingness to clarify for the 
Commission the underlying intent of his declaration. In particular, the 
Embassy asserted that the word ``autonomy'' was in no way intended to 
signal ``territorial autonomy.'' I also believe the declaration's 
positive emphasis on the importance of the accession of all Hungary's 
neighbors into NATO and the European Union should not be overlooked 
and, indeed, is especially important in light of the recent 
congressional debate on NATO expansion.
  Nevrtheless, I believe that the declaration, through the use of 
wording that is ambiguous at best and, at worst, predictably 
inflammatory, stands in contradiction to Hungary's stated goal of 
pursuing ``good neighbor'' policies. Surprisingly, Hungary implies that 
its goal of gaining admission to NATO and other European organizations 
should be dependent on ``the fundamental interests of Hungarian 
national communities abroad''--a message that suggests a qualified 
interest in accession to NATO.
  Finally, I must note that concerns about this declaration were only 
heightened by the statement of the Hungarian representative to the OSCE 
in Vienna, Ambassador Martin Krasznai. In defending the use of the word 
``autonomy,'' Ambassador Krasznai presented the Basques, Catalans, and 
South-Tyroleans as positive examples of Europe's experience with 
autonomous movements. The irony of these particular references was 
probably not lost on the representatives of Italy or Spain--especially 
in the wake of the numerous terrorist bombings attributed to Basque 
separatists last month.
  Mr. Speaker, while a rare opportunity for discussion about real 
minority concerns may have been missed, I also see the Hungarian-
Hungarian summit declaration as an aberration from the current 
government's usually constructive approach. I will continue to follow 
the situation of minority communities in central Europe and the 
inseparable issue of the progress of democratization in general. As I 
do so, I hope that Hungarian representatives will join with the 
Commission in seeking to promote democracy for all the citizens of all 
the countries of the OSCE.

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