State secretary: “All Hungarians can count on Hungary”

The Hungarian nation must be protected and Hungarians must be ensured security, the state secretary in charge of policies for Hungarian communities abroad said on Friday, marking the August 20 national holiday.

Presenting the Kallós Zoltán Award for Hungarians Abroad to individuals and organisations working in the cultural sector beyond the border, Árpád János Potápi said that in a world “that is becoming increasingly uncertain”, Hungarians could take comfort in knowing that “we look after each other”.

“Hungary is home to all Hungarians,” Potápi said. “All Hungarians can count on Hungary, the way we, too, count on every Hungarian.” The state secretary said that over “the last 12 years of nation-building”, the government had created a strong institutional system, strengthened “communities that look after each other” and helped people make a living and remain in their homeland. “The important thing now is to protect and preserve the fruits of our shared labour,” Potápi said.

“There is also the opportunity to reinvent ourselves and create something new,” he said. “The root of this can be nourished by the renewal of our national relations.”

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“Knowing that we are together is what our nation needs to overcome the current difficult times,” he said.

Hungarians are a resourceful people which always chooses to find solutions when faced with difficulty, rather than give up, Potápi said. “That is another way we must now use the strong bonds we have created,” he added.

“Let’s work in such a way that we can say in a year’s time that we managed to close ranks and think together,” he said. Potápi noted that August 20 was Hungary’s oldest national holiday. It is both a secular and a church holiday, and an important day for Hungarian ethnography, too, he added.

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“March 15, August 20 and October 23 are milestones that allow us to experience national cohesion together; to feel as individuals and as a community that we are not alone in the world, and that we can count on the support and love of our fellow Hungarians everywhere,” Potápi said.

Source: MTI