[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 56 (Tuesday, April 8, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E699]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[[Page E699]]


                    TRIBUTE TO CAPTAIN LASZLO OCSKAY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MAURICE D. HINCHEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, April 8, 2003

  Mr. HINCHEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor posthumously Captain 
Laszlo Ocskay, a courageous and righteous individual whose actions 
saved the lives of thousands of Jews during the Nazi occupation of 
Budapest, Hungary in 1944-1945. I am not the first to recognize Captain 
Ocskay's outstanding humanitarian service on this floor, and I proudly 
add my voice to those who have paid tribute to this remarkable man's 
life. Much of the recognition of Captain's Ocskay's historic 
contributions has fortunately come to light in recent years thanks to 
the research and writings of Dan Danieli of Riverdale, New York.
  Captain Laszlo Ocskay served in the Austro-Hungarian army as an 
officer during World War I, during which he suffered wounds to his leg 
that left him ineligible for active service in the post-war Hungarian 
army. Captain Ocskay remained on inactive reserve until 1944 when he 
requested to be reactivated to the 101/359 Labor Service Battalion. 
Despite his injuries, Captain Ocskay was appointed to the post of 
Commanding Officer of Labor Service Battalion, assigned the task of 
collecting and warehousing clothes.
  At great risk to his personal safety, Captain Ocskay sought and then 
used this position to protect and sustain more than two thousand men, 
women and children who were threatened by the Hungarian Arrow-Cross's 
increasing violence against Jews in Budapest. Against official policy, 
Captain Ocskay allowed many escapees from other forced labor units, 
survivors of anti-Jewish campaigns, family members of the men in his 
labor service, and others facing persecution to join the ranks of the 
101/359 Battalion.
  Through his connections with sympathetic German military officials 
and his partnership with Section-T of the International Red Cross, 
Captain Ocskay was able to successfully shield these individuals from 
the increasing persecution of Jewish residents as well as provide them 
with food, medicine and other necessities. The Section-T was in fact 
quite dependent on Captain Ocskay, who opened his private home to be 
used as their headquarters, as well as a sanctuary for a small number 
of Jews in hiding. Raoul Wallenberg, the Swedish diplomat who rescued 
tens of thousands of Jews during this same period, is also known to 
have operated from Captain Ocskay's home and was hidden at his house 
shortly before being captured by the Soviet troops. Captain Ocskay 
persevered in his extraordinary efforts to protect the lives and safety 
of those in his labor camp until the Soviet liberation of the Labor 
Camps.
  Following the end of World War II, Captain Ocskay was arrested 
numerous times by the communists who alleged that he was an American 
spy. Captain Ocskay's position in an American oil company's Budapest 
office and his ties with Wallenberg and others who the Soviets had 
disappeared may have made him suspect. After repeated arrests and 
releases, he escaped to Austria and then later moved to the United 
States to live with his son. Captain Ocskay died in 1966 in Kingston, 
New York, where he is buried. He is survived by his son, George Ocskay, 
his daughter-in-law, Helen Ocskay, and his granddaughter, Elisabeth.
  Captain Ocskay's outstanding humanitarian contributions were largely 
unrecognized during his lifetime. He was however posthumously awarded a 
gold metal by the President of Hungary, and the city of Budapest has 
honored him with a permanent public memorial. Certainly, Captain 
Ocskay's bravery and resolve in the face of the inhuman and brutal 
Holocaust perpetuated against European Jews stands as an important 
reminder of the difference that principled and moral individuals can 
make against even the most egregious manifestations of human hatred and 
bigotry.
  Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to join the Jewish Federation of Ulster 
County this April 27, 2003 in honoring the distinguished legacy of 
Captain Ocskay and in paying tribute to his surviving family members.

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