Canada

Two Hungarian wins at Montreal World Film Festival

Curtiz, Eternal Winter (Örök Tél), Montreal film festival

The Montreal World Film Festival took place this year between 23 August and 3 September. Congratulations are in order, as Index reports that Tamás Yvan Topolánszky’s biopic Curtiz won Best Film, while the Best Director was announced to be Attila Szász for Eternal Winter.

Casablanca is easily one of the best-known films ever made, directed by a Hungarian man, Mihály Kertész, also known as Michael Curtiz. He was the first Hungarian to receive an Oscar as Best Director, and about whom Tamás Yvan Topolánszky’s latest film, Curtiz, is. Curtiz is portrayed by Ferenc Lengyel, the female lead by Evelin Dobos.

Curtiz won first prize in the category Grand Prix des Amériques, or in Best Film – World Competition.

Eternal Winter (Örök Tél), directed by Attila Szász tells the story of those women who were dragged away in stock cars for forced labour by the Soviets on the winter of 1944 to one of the lagers in Ukraine. Marina Gera is in the lead role, who meets an already adjusted prisoner at the labour camp. The male prisoner portrayed by Sándor Csányi shows her the tricks to surviving the camp.

[button link=”https://dailynewshungary.com/hungarian-film-won-the-internation-critics-prize-at-cannes/” type=”big” color=”silver” newwindow=”yes”] There was a Hungarian win recently at the Cannes Film Festival too, have you heard about it?[/button]

Altogether eight Hungarian productions were competing at the Montreal World Film Festival, including the short film Varjúháj (Crow’s fat) by Pici Pápai, Remélem legközelebb sikerül meghalnodJ (I hope next time you will successfully kill yourself) by Mihály Schwechtje, Nyitva (Open) by Orsi Nagypál, Vándorszínészek (Troupers) by Pál Sándor, Világlátó Baltazár (Lend Me Your Eyes, Baltazars) by Dóra Elek, and Jövő szerdán (Next Wednesday) by Norbert Molvay.  

featured image: imdb.com

Syrian-Canadian performer harrassed at Hungarian Sziget Festival

danny ramadan sziget

Danny Ramadan, a gay activist and author, born in Damascus has been seriously beaten at Sziget Festival in Budapest. As Nlcafé.hu reports, the abused author was a performer of the festival.

Danny Ramadan is a Syrian-Canadian author and gay activist who was born in Damascus. He got to Lebanon as a refugee in 2012, from where he immigrated to Canada and became one of the Top 25 Immigrants to Canada in 2017.

He is a powerful speaker and columnist who stands out for LGBT rights and gay refugees. He participated at Sziget Festival as a speaker, but unfortunately, he had to leave with a sad and dreadful experience.

He got beaten by a group of young, white males, who thought that he was Roma.

Following the incident, the Canadian ambassador, Isabelle Poupart stood up for the activist with a Twitter post and the #NotMySziget hashtag.


As the ambassador emphasised, the Hungarian Sziget festival is a place known for tolerance and inclusiveness – both organisers and visitors think the incident is entirely unacceptable. Last year Sziget joined an initiation (Take a Stand), which encourages cultural tolerance, solidarity towards minorities and openness to mutual learning. The campaign of Sziget 2018 included posters decorated with hearts and rainbows meaning that everyone is welcome at the festival regardless of their ethnicity, political or sexual orientation.

In their response to the incident, the festival’s management stressed that extremist opinions are not welcome at the festival. What is more, those are mostly rejected at the festival.

„We believe that far-reaching conclusions cannot be drawn of the whole festival from one single case. Although the incident did happen at Sziget, it is completely contradictory to the whole ethos and messages behind the festival.” – organisers said after the events.

This year Sziget was truly successful and set a new record with more than 500,000 people to join the festival from the whole world. Several celebrities were also present, such as Borat, Sacha Baron Cohen.

Featured image: www.facebook.com/pg/DannyRamadanPage

Progress made in re-opening shrunk export markets after swine fever

Efforts to re-open Hungary’s export markets shrunk because of African swine fever (ASP) show good progress, daily Magyar Idők said on Thursday citing the farm minister.

Hungarian pork can now be again exported to Hongkong, New Zealand, Canada, Macedonia and Georgia from areas not affected by ASP,

Imre Nagy said in response to questions submitted by MPs.

The farm ministry has held talks with thirty countries outside the European Union about trade opportunities and six high-level meetings were held in the past two months.

The only area affected by the ban now is Heves County in northern Hungary,

the paper said.

In addition to regaining markets, the farm ministry’s primary task is to prevent the virus from spreading to pigs. In Hungary ASP has so far only been discovered in dead wild boar.

The state is offering 100 percent compensation to farmers for livestock and equipment affected by the epidemic, Nagy said. Support can be requested from the European Union to cover 75 percent of the compensation and the ministry is assessing further possibilities for support to compensate for indirect damage, he added.

Farm ministry: Measures against African swine fever working

Hungary’s epidemic protection measures against African swine fever (ASP) seem to be working, Hungary’s chief veterinarian officer said on Wednesday.

The area affected by ASP in Heves County, in northern Hungary, has shrunk, said Lajos Bognár, who is also the deputy state secretary for protecting the food chain.

Hungary is consulting with 30 countries on amending the blanket import ban so that the ban only applies to affected areas, he told parliament’s agricultural committee on Wednesday.

Hungarian deputy PM Semjén does not tell who paid his hunts in Canada

Semjén

444.hu managed to obtain some licences allowing Zsolt Semjén, Deputy Prime Minister of Hungary to hunt in Canada. The papers were issued by the Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development of British Columbia in the North-Western Canadian Fort St. John. According to these, the Deputy PM hunted at least two times last year in Canada for bison, wolf and deer. According to 444.hu, he must have received these trips as gifts like the Swedish ones, because his salary would not have been enough to pay for them. However, he does not tell anything about who financed his hunting tours each worth at least 8,000 American dollars (2.2 M HUF).

Deputy PM Semjén’s hunt maze

As we already reported before, Magyar Nemzet received videos, photos and documents confirming that Semjén used to take part in luxurious hunts in Sweden for years in total secrecy. The price for the trips was horribly high, 4-5 million Swedish krona (EUR 500,000) for each. Furthermore, Magyar Nemzet discovered later that a Hungarian businessman,

József Farkas paid for his trips, who won many tenders after Fidesz came to power in 2010.

Moreover, one of his hotels was inaugurated by Deputy PM Semjén. In fact, József Farkas denies that he paid for the hunts. Finally, the owner of the reindeer Semjén hunted down last time claims that he did not permit him to kill his reindeer. Thus, he sued the Deputy PM and the case is on the table of the Swedish Prosecution Authority which they are investigating as theft.

Canada on Semjén’s hunting map

According to the papers 444.hu acquired, Semjén hunted for bison and wolf in January last year and for moose, elk and reindeer in September. Based on the license, 444.hu writes that he was accompanied by a Hungarian entrepreneur whose company offers such hunts

for 8,000 American dollars (2.2 M HUF).

Besides, there are some additional fees like licences to kill and travelling costs. For example, they paid 955 Canadian dollars for a license allowing hunting for moose, elk and reindeer. However, these were just preliminary permissions, if Semjén shot an animal he had to pay additional fees. Moreover, non-residents have to pay even royalty fee (200 dollars) and state tax.

In fact, Semjén told Békéscsaba TV before the elections that he hunted not only in Sweden but also in Canada. However, he did not share with them who paid for these hunts. Therefore, 444.hu tried to ask these questions from the Deputy PM himself. However, his spokesperson told that hunting is Semjén’s hobby and thus, it is part of his private life.

Who paid the bill?

444.hu suggests that instead of the Deputy PM

somebody else could have paid for the hunts like before in Sweden.

This is because his salary is not enough to pay them. Besides, his fortune increased between 2017 January and 2018 January. According to the law, Hungarian MPs have to include in their financial statement gifts worth more than 1/12th of their monthly salary. However, Semjén did not do so because he said that

he received these as a private individual not as Deputy PM or MP.  

According to him, the trips worth millions he received did not influence his work as a MP. He added that he receives these as a private individual.

As we reported before, Transparency International’s (TI) legal director, Miklós Ligeti turned to the parliament’s Committee on Immunity in Semjén’s hunt scandal. He asked the president of the committee to launch a process on the deputy PM’s financial statement since Semjén did not include the price of his luxurious hunts in Sweden. However,

János Hargitai who is member of Semjén’s party refused to do so.

Furthermore, the National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary (NTCA) issued a statement in which they claim that Semjén does not have to pay any personal income tax (PIT) or donation tax after his Swedish hunts paid by Mr Farkas.

Featured image: Magyar Nemzet

Christian churches often reluctant to bring up issue of persecution, says Hungarian government official

Daily News Hungary

Often even Christian churches are reluctant to bring up the issue of Christian persecution and acknowledge problems by their name, the deputy state secretary for aiding persecuted Christians said in an interview from Ottawa, Canada late on Thursday.

Tristan Azbej was in the Canadian capital to attend a conference on the persecution and aiding of Christians in the Middle East and Africa organised by the Hungarian embassy in collaboration with the human resources ministry. The conference also included an exhibition on the subject.

Speaking to MTI, Azbej noted that Thursday’s was not the first conference organised by Hungary on the persecution of Christians, adding, at the same time, that this forum explored new aspects of the issue.

One of the questions raised was why Christian churches are often reluctant to address the issue of Christian persecution.

“Western Christians feel a sort of guilt that shifts the blame for crimes committed during the Crusades and the era of colonisation to Christian churches, so they give in to the neoliberal principle suggesting that Christianity is an aggressive religion,” the deputy state secretary said.

Christian churches, he said, were “afraid” to point out that Islamic extremists were responsible for the persecution of Christians.

Azbej said the academics, researchers, diplomats, religious representatives and Canadian MPs in attendance at the conference had expressed their appreciation for Hungary’s “honest and straightforward” remarks on the issue of religious persecution and all that the government is doing to help persecuted Christians.

“It’s hard to narrow down the problem of Christian persecution to a single country or region,”

Azbej said. “They [Christians] currently face persecution in 80 countries, but most of the attention is of course directed towards the Middle East.” The deputy state secretary noted that over the last decade, Syria’s Christian population had shrunk from more than 2 million to 800,000, with most Christians living as internal refugees in their homeland. But the biggest population decline happened in Iraq, which went from 1.5 million Christians in 2004 to 300,000 today. “Even the number of Coptic Christians has been halved,” he added.

“The number one task today is breaking down the wall of silence,” Azbej said, adding that Christian Democrats should include the representatives of other religions in this mission, too. He said that at the conference, Muslims had also expressed their support for Christianity, and had clearly named Islamic extremists as those responsible for the persecution of Christians.

“One of the Shia Imams in attendance said the persecution of Christians was not the problem of Christians but that of Muslims and that all well-intentioned Muslims must stand up for Christians,” Azbej recalled.

He said the conference was also attended by Eastern Christian church leaders as well as Jewish leaders, all of whom had expressed their support for persecuted Christians.

Hungarian archer sets new world record by shooting across the Niagara Falls

According to hungarianambience.com, after shooting across the Verecke Pass, Archer József Mónus this time tackled the Niagara Falls.

“During the performance a beautiful rainbow has been formed above the waterfall, which pointed the way to my arrow. I’ve never seen such a beautiful natural phenomenon like that before” writes Mónus.

Photo: www.facebook.com/MónusJózsefLászló

Mónus and his team visited the United States and Canada to take part in a cash prize event offered by the Hungarian Archery Association.

“My son, László, in the extreme category broke my earlier world record! Now, the new world record in this category is 793 meters.”

“Overall, my two students’ – Kiara Prokaj, and László Mónus – world records in the 35 pounds category are unbreakable for at least 30 years. This is because we developed a style where the bow and the arrow are in perfect harmony with the shooter, which will be difficult to re-create on the world-class level by anyone.

Photo: www.facebook.com/MónusJózsefLászló

We won’t use this technique often in the future because I wouldn’t like anyone to copy the style as we have developed it by putting tremendous amount of work into this new technique” writes Mónus.

Featured image: www.facebook.com/MónusJózsefLászló

Air Canada Rouge flying whole year between Budapest and Toronto

Air Canada’s flight between Budapest and Toronto used to be seasonal, but this will change soon: Air Canada Rouge’s planes will travel during the whole year from the winter season, according to Bud Flyer. This novelty is justified by the increasing demand for the flight and its schedule that was getting busier regularly.

A dream came true for many passengers in Hungary and Canada as now they can travel between the two countries throughout the entire year. The first news about the new schedule arrived in February when discussions were held between Air Canada’s management and Hungarian representatives — including Kristóf Máté of Hungarian Tourist Agency and ambassador Dr Bálint Ódor. That was the first time when the demand for a whole-year schedule for the Toronto-Budapest flights was brought up.

The high utilization of the flights — which has been above 80 percent — convinced Air Canada.

The company was planning to abort the flights temporarily on 26 October, but this idea was cancelled. Three flight will fly between the two cities weekly from that day. The planes will depart for Toronto in Budapest on Monday, Thursday and Saturday, while the return flights will fly on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

For the flights, Air Canada Rouge is planning to keep using Boeing 767-300ER models. It is the third non-stop transatlantic flight of Budapest Airport. The increased number of flights between Hungary and Canada may result in growing traffic at the airport in the capital.

Air Canada is the fifth airline which agreed to provide flights during the entire year after LOT, Quatar Airways, Emirates and Air China.

This is the best year in this sense for Budapest Airport so far.

Photo: Facebook.com/aircanadarouge

Life across the ocean, a Hungarian expat in Canada – Interview

Leaving your home country to start a new (hopefully better) life somewhere else is one of the hardest choices someone makes in a lifetime. For Gina (pseudonym) however, it was not a choice since she was only a 14-year-old-teenager when her mother decided to leave Hungary and move to Canada to provide better opportunities for the both of them. Gina has been living in Canada for 17 years, and she shares her thoughts on culture shock, integration, life in a foreign country, and she even gives advice to those who might consider living that expat life. This is her story.

When did you move to Canada, which cities have you lived in, and where are you currently living?

I moved to Canada in 2001 and landed in Vancouver, British Columbia first. I’ve lived there for about 13 years. I also lived in Edmonton, Alberta for 3 years and currently residing in Halifax, Nova Scotia, West to the East of Canada.

When you first moved to Canada, did you experience culture shock or culture clash?

I was nearly 14 years old when I moved to Canada, and to me, it was just a complete excitement. At that age, it was all about meeting all these cool kids in class with different backgrounds. For the first couple of years, I was placed in an ESL class; which stands for English as a second language. I would say the culture shock appeared a couple of years later when I entered the culture of Canadian students. It was shocking for me to see how laid back Canadians are. It was a culture shock because I still didn’t speak English very well, I mean I knew the basics, but the accent and grammar issues were there. That part was a little challenging because I didn’t have my confidence to speak up in class or to make ‘Canadian’ friends.

Gina’s thoughts on cultural diversity…

It was definitely challenging to build friendships in a country where almost everyone had different cultures or traditions.

You have to be an open-minded person to live in Canada, which to me is an awesome way to live life in general. We are all unique in our own ways and that’s also what makes Canada such a peaceful country.

“Everyone is accepted here!” is a well-known quote Canada’s government often points out. I think the most challenging part of living in such a diverse country is to overcome the fear of getting to know another culture. A lot of times you’ll see Asian people sitting with only Asians, or South Americans with only South Americans.

Working in such a diverse environment is also really fun because you get to have pot lucks and try different types of meals from all over the world. In general, almost every second person has an accent of some kind, and so it’s almost natural that we all speak English with different accents.

What do you love most about living in Canada?

I think Canada has a great government system in place which provides a very comfortable lifestyle to most immigrants. The country allows immigrants to have nearly the same rights as Canadian citizens.

I also really enjoy the scenery and nature of the country, and how well it is taken care of. This peaceful view is just incredible.

Check out the following examples: Banff, Alberta / Peggy’s cove, Nova Scotia / Whistler, British Columbia / Vancouver, British Columbia. (just a few of many)

What is your general impression of Canadian people?

Canadian people are very polite and welcoming in general. I’ve had situations where Canadian couples would ask me so much about my ethnicity just to show their interest and make me feel more comfortable.

In what ways do Hungarian people differ from Canadian people?

In general, Canadians are definitely less critical and more hospitable. In general, people are pretty open-minded, but it does have a strict law in place to protect human rights. As a result of that, people are very cautious of others and how they are treated.

What do you miss most about Hungary besides your family and friends?

I really miss talking in Hungarian and making jokes that cannot be translated.

We do not have a huge Hungarian community in Eastern Canada, so it’s hard to socialise with Hungarian people.

What would you miss from Canada if you moved back to Hungary right now?

I would really miss the people with different backgrounds. It has grew into my life that I feel more comfortable when there is someone else who was once an immigrant. I can relate better.

Do you still speak Hungarian?

I still speak Hungarian with my mom. However, when it comes to formal words, I may not be as good at it. I think it’s extremely important to continue practising our mother tongue to ensure that it sticks around generations after generations.

What is your general impression of Hungarian people’s English?

I love how dramatically the statistics increased of the people in Hungary speaking English. I am so proud that people actually realise how important it is to know English, and you can always get around well if you speak it. The accent may be thick. However, that is a privilege to speak more than one languages.

Do you imagine yourself living in Canada for the rest of your life?

I love Canada and the opportunities that it offers. I also love where I come from and what traditions I was raised with. I would definitely say I will be retiring somewhere in Europe. To me, the beauty of this continent is incomparable to Canada.

Hungarian communities in Canada…

I used to know a lot of Hungarian people in Vancouver, BC. There is a huge Hungarian community there with their own cultural centre. I even met people from the hometown I grew up in. Because I, now, live on the East side of Canada, I can only keep in touch with fellow Hungarians through social media. There is no Hungarian community here in Halifax, NS. I often think about creating one. I feel confident that they do exist here, they are just not as open about their background.

How do people react when you tell them where you are from?

“Oh wow, gulyas must be very tasty!” 🙂

People, in general, are very curious about backgrounds. I have never really had a negative impression from anyone.

Do Canadian people know Hungary?

Yes, most Canadians I’ve met always knew a little of Hungary. Canadian people are familiar with our World War history. I did have a situation (maybe even two) where I was in the Seattle, WA and someone asked me where I originated from. When I said Hungary, they basically gave me that confused look waiting for me to specify where it is located. It happens.

What is the worst/best thing about living in a foreign country?

The worst thing is living away from your family, missing all the family gatherings on special occasions, and growing up without your loved ones.

The best part is that you get to expand your knowledge in multi-culturalism right in front of your eyes.

What advice would you give to someone who is now considering moving away from their home country?

  • Do your research about the cost of living.
  • Learn more about diversity.
  • Learn the local language!
  • Prepare for the difficulties of possibly creating a family without your loved ones around.

Three of the best Canadian online casino providers that work in Hungary

There are many things that people think of when they consider Canada. America’s neighbour to the North is known for maple syrup, for progressive politics, for having a huge maple leaf on their flag, for hockey and more. It is a country that many people love and it has a great deal to offer people.

There are so many wonderful things about The Great White North that has people visiting in their droves and ensures that the worlds biggest country is becoming one of the most popular places to visit. In fact, according to list25.com, it is one of the most visited countries in the world.

There a number of things that link Canada and Hungary, as we recently looked at here at dailynewshungary.com, both Canada and Hungary’s passports are in the top ten most desirable passports in the world. There has been a strong relationship between the countries for a long time and now there is another one.

Casino providers in Canada are now looking to Hungary as a place where they can promote their games and provide people with great services. There are so many excellent sites in Canada, like those listed at canadascasinos.ca, that it can be difficult to work out the best ones to check out first. Canada has a really strong set of rules and innovative companies who keep churning out top quality casino games and providers of those games.

This can mean that when you try and find the best places to play in Canada your head can be left spinning by the options and it can be near impossible to find the best place to pick. We are here to help narrow down the choices and give you the lowdown on which are the best providers. We have selected our three favourites, they are by no means the only options but they are the ones we like the most and play ourselves. Here then are our three best Canadian online casino providers that also work in Hungary.

William Hill

While William Hill is technically a British bookmaker, it has worked hard to gain a foothold in Canada. William Hill has an extensive library of the best games that you can play wherever and whenever you want. William hill is a very grown up casino which only has the best of the best games. It is slick, easy to use and professional making it perfect for people who want a serious and mature online casino to play slots and other games.

It also has a bookmaking section so if you want to combine your love for casino games with your love of sports, you need only one account to bet on the latest sports matches while also playing any of your favourite online casino games. It is the perfect all-rounder.

Royal Panda Casino

Royal Panda has one of the best ranges of games of any online casino as well as having a number of different platforms you can play on. If you have an apple or an android phone you can play on the go while its desktop client is also easy to use and full of different machines and tables and always has superb deals and promos throughout the year, even for returning customers, which is something other places lack as they focus only on getting new customers in.

As with William Hill, it also has a sports book though it does place less focus on this and there are not always as many offers for sports betting customers.

Ruby Fortune

A smaller player than the other two on this list but by no means one that should be ignored. It has an excellent range of games with over six hundred and fifty different machines, tables and wheels to try out. The fact it is smaller also means they have excellent and quick customer service as well as short withdrawal times meaning you are always well looked after. It also has a lot of different monthly bonuses to reward long time customers and it has been around since 2003 which is an incredibly long time for an online casino. They have put all their years of knowledge into making the perfect place to play online casino games.

Starting next summer Air Canada will have flights to Hungary on a daily basis

Passengers prefer relevant, personalised, constantly contacted and uninterrupted travel experiences – reveals Travelport’s event, on which debuted Air Canada, which will operate with daily flights to Budapest from next summer on, and Hertz car rental.

According to turizmusonline.hu, Travelport and its two partners, Air Canada Rouge airline and Hertz car rental presented their planned innovations on a professional breakfast. Stanislav Fajkus, from the Canadian airline’s and the global car rental’s regional representative’s Globair’s Prague office told us that Air Canada celebrated its 80th anniversary this year. They fly 374 airplanes to 200 destinations.

The airline’s new brand, Air Canada Rouge debuted in 2012, which operates flights primarily to holiday destinations.

These can be found mostly in the US, in the Caribbean Region, Mexico, and Europe. In our area, besides Budapest, the airline flies to Prague and Warsaw during summer period. Boeing 767-300 type airplanes fly to Budapest, and these airplanes do not have a business class, but passengers can pick from two types of higher classes and one type of normal tourist seat and service package.

Inflight WiFi can soon be used on each plane of the fleet. The airline has two collection and distribution centres, one of which can be found in Toronto and the other in Montréal. In Toronto, passengers to the US can undergo prior border and custom controls, so that when arriving in the US, they can go on as if they had arrived with a domestic airplane. At the same time, it is important to know that even transfer passengers need the so-called eTA in case of Canada, and ESTA in case of the US. ETA can be requested for only 7 CAD on ww.cig.gc.ca. They also provide a stopover program, which can be used if the waiting time exceeds 6 hours.

On board, travellers can enjoy a selection of entertaining programmes on their own laptops or tablets.

Next year the first flight from Toronto to Budapest will leave on the 5th of April, much earlier than this year, and the frequency of the flights will also be increased: first 3, then 5 flights a week, eventually, from the middle of June the flights will operate on a daily basis.

We found out in connection with Hertz car rental that global brands like 5Dollar, Thrifty or Firefly all belong to them. Travel agencies can find the rental’s offer in their GDS or on Yellow Mouse’s online reservation system. The company provides business travellers with special offers and discounts can be found in the Hertz Lite program.

Balázs Bíró, Manager of Travelport provided information on the company’s mobile developments, the goal of which is the enhancement of customer experience. As he mentioned, travel agencies face numerous challenges: routes are increasingly complex, new competitors appeared, such as OTB, Concur, the providers’ own pages, and intermediate operators (Travelfusion).  Fix costs are too high, brand loyalty is too low and the profit per passenger is declining. Therefore our goal is to “seize” the passenger and keep them on our own platform starting from search to the reservation and evaluation of the service after their return.

Travelport has entered the market with several new developments.

One of these is Branded fares, which provides a summary of the components of each available service package from 200 airlines on a graphic interface and, on request, shows them in one single matrix.

Agencies will prefer Travelport’s new EMD Manager function which makes it possible to take extra fees on a graphic platform and the new offer creation tool, called Trip Quote copy, which is easy to use.

Another new improvement is The Smartbutton application, with the help of which the agent is able to automatize recurring workflows. From December, Viewtrip Mobile application will be available for passengers to download. It can be very useful, since it sends messages about flight delays, cancellations, or any other changes without request, and additional services are also accessible.

Translated by Blanka Marianna Györgyi

Featured image: www.facebook.com/AirCanada

Ce: bm

The wave of violence in North America is shocking

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó said the wave of violence in recent days in North America was shocking in a statement to Hungarian news agency MTI on Monday, adding that according to information from the local authorities, no Hungarians are among the victims of the attacks.

Speaking in the name of the Hungarian Government, the Foreign Minister expressed his condolences to the United States and Canada with relation to the attacks.

“Regardless of motivation and regardless of the perpetrators, the Hungarian Government firmly condemns all forms of terrorism”, Mr. Szijjártó said, stressing that Hungary is continuing to cooperate with both countries in the global fight against terrorism.

An armed assailant killed over 50 people and wounded 400 others at the end of a country music concert in Las Vegas on Sunday.

The perpetrator committed suicide before police arrived on the scene.

Also on Sunday in Edmonton, Canada, a man ran over a police officer and then attacked him with a knife

before being apprehended by police following a high-speed car chase. According to information from Canadian police, the attack was committed by a Somalian asylum-seeker.

UPDATE

President Áder sends condolences to US counterpart over Las Vegas massacre

President János Áder on Monday sent condolences to US President Donald Trump over the massacre in Las Vegas.
“Please allow me to convey to you in the name of the entire Hungarian nation as well as on my own behalf the deepest condolences and sympathies on the occasion of the terrible massacre that took place in Las Vegas, in which more than 50 people were murdered and hundreds more injured,” Áder wrote.  
“Hungary strongly condemns this brutal act of violence. In these difficult times of grief our thoughts are with the families of the innocent victims who lost their lives in this unfathomable tragedy,” the letter said.

Photo: MTI/AP/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Chase Stevens

Lufthansa to increase capacity by one third between Frankfurt and Budapest

budapest airport-lufthansa-bud.hu

Lufthansa will modify its timetable and increase its number of flights between Budapest and Frankfurt. In the winter timetable, it usually has four flights a day between Hungary’s capital and Germany’s busiest airport. Starting from 11 December 2017, Lufthansa will fly on this route five times a day and will also have an adjusted timetable.

“We keep monitoring passenger needs and improve our services accordingly. This route has seen rising demand for years and the old timetable was suboptimal for many overseas passengers who failed to reach the 8:20 a.m. connection to Budapest from intercontinental flights landing in the morning hours. Our new flight from Frankfurt to Budapest will take off at 10:10 a.m. which ensures optimum connection to the passengers of nearly every long-haul Lufthansa flight”, said Gábor Antal, country manager of Lufthansa Group in Hungary.

The new flights will allow passengers arriving from Miami, Atlanta, Philadelphia, New York, Toronto and Washington in Frankfurt to change to a flight to Budapest with a short transfer time. The flight leaving Frankfurt at 10:10 a.m. will land in Budapest at 11:40 a.m. and it will take off in the Hungarian capital at 12:30 p.m. to reach the largest city of Hessen province at 2:15 p.m.

“Our return flight scheduled to take off at 12:30 p.m. is ideal for passengers who have a meeting in Germany only in the afternoon or want to transfer to an intercontinental flight leaving later during the day. Business travellers using this flight can spend their morning usefully in Hungary”, added Gábor Antal.

The new flight will be available every day of the week increasing the number of weekly Lufthansa flights between the two cities by 25% from 28 to 35. As a result, of all airlines serving Budapest, Lufthansa has the highest frequency on a single route.

Due to the use of Airbus A320, 320 neo and 321 higher-capacity narrow-body aircraft, seat capacity between Frankfurt and Budapest will increase to an even higher degree. As a result, Lufthansa will increase its capacity by nearly 40% on its flights between the two cities.

Also we wrote before, the new Budapest airport bus 100E will run along the Deák square-Kálvin square-Liszt Ferenc Airport II route in every half an hour, and the price is very friendly with 2.8 euros.

Check out the timetable here. 

Photo: bud.hu

Hungarian minister attends end of academic year event at Hungarian school in Canada

Hungarian school in Toronto

Human Resources Minister Zoltán Balog attended a celebratory event marking the end of the academic year at Toronto’s Szent Erzsébet Hungarian School, the largest Hungarian school outside Europe, on Saturday local time.

Balog told MTI by phone that it was “moving and uplifting” to witness that as far as some 8,000 kilometres from their country of origin, even second and third-generation Hungarians nurture their ethnic culture.

“These children represent the future of Hungary in Canada,” he added.

He gave a speech at the event and, on behalf of President János Áder, decorated the head of the school, Csilla Perényi, with the Hungarian Silver Cross of Merit.

On Saturday afternoon, Balog visited the newly opened Hungarian House of Toronto and his schedule for Sunday included delivering a sermon at the First Hungarian Reformed Church of Toronto.

Photo: facebook.com/Szent-Erzs%C3%A9bet-Magyar-Iskola-Toront%C3%B3-582850351802876/

Government to launch child support scheme for Hungarians around the world

The government will launch a child support scheme next year to help all Hungarians around the world, Human Resources Minister Zoltán Balog confirmed in Canada on Thursday local time.

Starting in January 2018, every Hungarian mother, no matter where they give birth, will be offered a “baby bond” which involves a one-off support and the possibility to take out a low-interest loan subsidised by the state until the child turns 18, Balog told a celebration marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in Niagara Falls.

“We are talking about Hungarian children and they are equally important as children born in Hungary,” he said.

In his speech, Balog cited Hungary’s constitution, which proclaims the state’s responsibility for all Hungarians around the world.

Balog told MTI over the phone that the event, organised by the Hungarian community in Toronto, was attended by more than 300 ethnic Hungarians led by 24 pastors from all around the world, including Australia, the US and Transylvania. The participants included Calvinists, Catholics, Lutherans and also Baptists, he added.

The minister called it symbolic that the organisers rented out a Catholic Carmelite monastery and guest house for celebrating the Reformation.

Photo: MTI

Hungary summons Canadian ambassador over remarks on higher education law

Budapest, May 5 (MTI) – Hungary’s foreign ministry has summoned the Canadian ambassador over a statement she issued in connection with recent legislation tightening regulations on foreign universities in Hungary and its perceived impact on Budapest’s Central European University (CEU).

The ministry quoted Ambassador Isabelle Poupart as saying in the statement published on the Canadian government’s website on Thursday that Canada’s government is “seriously concerned” about the impact the amendment would have on academic freedom in Hungary. She urged Hungary to change the law as soon as possible, just as Hungarian leaders made a “commitment” to do so on Saturday.

The ministry called the ambassador’s comments “untrue”, saying that academic freedom was “not under threat from anybody” in Hungary.

“Academic freedom is a right the Hungarian government has always stood up for and will continue to protect in the future too,” the ministry said.

It added, at the same time, that foreign universities must be expected to adhere to the same rules as Hungarian ones. “The Hungarian higher education law does not just apply to [US financier] George Soros’s school, the CEU, but to all 28 foreign universities” operating in Hungary, the statement said.

The ministry said that “not even Brussels has questioned” Hungarian academic freedom, adding that “the infringement procedure launched against Hungary on the matter is about the supposed violation of the free flow of services.” This is something the Hungarian government is of course open to discussing, the statement added.

Budapest Airport doubles flights with Air Canada rouge

Budapest Airport has announced further development in its expanding summer schedule with another welcome frequency increase on Air Canada rouge’s link to Toronto Pearson. Announcing just last November that the Canadian leisure carrier would be expanding its existing three times weekly operation from 19 May, three weeks earlier than 2016, the airline has confirmed the frequency will now be doubled during the peak season, commencing a six times weekly service from 21 June.

Experiencing a highly successful first year of operation, Air Canada rouge’s additional seasonal connections will mean Budapest’s weekly Canadian capacity will increase by another 20%, seeing an extra 7,300 seats to Canada during high summer. The airline’s additional services throughout S17 will give Air Canada rouge a 50% year-on-year capacity increase.

Commenting on the frequency increase, Jost Lammers, CEO, Budapest Airport, says: “Being able to announce yet more capacity on our Canadian link, and still less than a year after welcoming the Air Canada brand into our portfolio, is a great sign of the significant success the airline has experienced with us.” He added: “We continue to commit ourselves to offering a series of North American connections, in both business and leisure sectors, and these extra services will satisfy real demand.”

Photo: facebook.com/aircanadarouge

Commemoration event marking Hungary’s 1848-49 revolution and freedom fight in Edmonton

Washington, DC (MTI) – Árpád János Potápi, the state secretary for Hungarian communities abroad, attended a commemoration event marking Hungary’s 1848-49 revolution and freedom fight in Edmonton, where he emphasised the importance of diaspora communities.

In his speech at the commemoration, Potápi said the Hungarian government would continue to devote close attention to diaspora communities. One of the main ways the government helps Hungarian communities abroad is by supporting their local schools, he said, underlining the importance of churches and schools in the lives of communities.

He also said it was important to attract the interest of young people with Hungarian roots to Hungarian history and culture.

The event was also attended by Bálint Ódor, Hungary’s ambassador to Ottawa.

Before travelling to Edmonton, the state secretary visited Vancouver, where he spent the March 15 national holiday with the local Hungarian communities.

Hungarian MEPs comment on CETA trade deal after EP adoption

Strasbourg, February 15 (MTI) – MEPs of Hungary’s ruling Fidesz party and the opposition Socialists welcomed the EU-Canada free trade pact CETA which the European Parliament adopted in a vote on Wednesday. MEPs of Jobbik rejected the deal.

József Szájer of Fidesz said that their group supported the agreement “at the request of [Hungarian] Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó in line with the votes of the EPP group” after amendments they had submitted had been incorporated into the final document.

The deal on dismantling barriers to free trade was in this form acceptable as it will serve the interests of Hungary as a country focusing heavily on foreign trade, Szájer said. CETA will help entrepreneurs and support job creation, he added.

“We understand concerns over the pact. But only time and experiences will tell to what degree the deal will fulfil the expectations attached to it,” Szájer said.

Tibor Szanyi, of the opposition Socialists, said that “as a result of pressure exerted by the left wing, the EP adopted a pact that can be supported in its final form”.

He said he could fully support CETA in its present form as a pact that “contains guarantees on enforcing EU achievements particularly important for the Socialists”.

These include enforcing welfare, environmental and health-care regulations and standards on a full scale, as well as representing the interests of job-holders and small entrepreneurs in all fields in the expanding trading and economic ties between the EU and Canada,” he said.

CETA was approved by 408 votes to 254, with 33 abstentions.

UPDATE

Jobbik – press release

The adoption of CETA promotes the interests of global corporations

After a heated debate, today the European Parliament approved of the EU-Canada free trade deal (CETA). Certain parts will enter into force even before the Member States ratify the agreement.

Jobbik MEPs rejected the deal because it endangers the Union’s environmental and food safety norms, labour achievements as well as the sustainable European agriculture, while the institution of a multilateral investment protection court curbs the sovereignty of Member States. When talking about CETA’s benefits, it is typically mentioned that the EU’s small and medium enterprises will have Canadian business opportunities. However, the reality is that 87 per cent of European small and medium enterprises work for the domestic market; they are not going to enter the Canadian market. Instead, Canada’s capital-intensive enterprises will use their dominant position to gain grounds in the EU market. Meanwhile, US-based enterprises will enter Europe’s market through their Canadian subsidiaries, enjoying the benefits provided by the CETA.

The EP’s website proudly announces that “the 751 members of the European Parliament represent you, the citizens.” It is a shame that the majority of this Parliament, led by the European People’s Party, approved of this agreement which promotes the interests of global corporations.

Zoltán Balczó, head of Jobbik’s EP delegation