“In fighting for the rights of Hungarians living beyond the borders, we can take as our starting point and shore up our position with what we provide to the nationalities living with us in Hungary. Let us add that the members of nationalities living in Hungary often have multiple identities, which is a major asset, and a continuation of the inclusive traditions of Hungary that have existed since St. Stephen.” – Gergely Gulyás
to the nationalities living with us in Hungary. Let us add that the members of nationalities living in Hungary often have multiple identities, which is a major asset and a continuation of the inclusive traditions of Hungary that have existed since St. Stephen. Already when the first Orbán government was in office, the Prime Minister said once that the members of nationalities living in Hungary would become good Hungarian citizens if they remained good Slovaks, Serbs, and Romanians. I would like to live to see the day when I could hear the same coming from the leader of one of the neighbouring countries.
József Szájer: It is a gift from God that a lot of nationalities live in Hungary, yet we have not paid enough attention to them. Parliamentary representation has not yet been resolved and debates are held over every single penny to be spent, down to the details of tiny amounts of money, about minority self-governments, or a museum in a local house dis-playing everyday objects typical of the region or school, and this subject deserves much more attention. In my opinion, Hungary has not in the least been guilty of window-dressing. The Fundamental Law tries to in-troduce a new approach, and this is why I would grant more powers to minority self-governments, which are in the process of being transformed into nationality self-governments and in fact represent the cultural autonomy of particular ethnic groups. Indeed, also in order to demonstrate that it is possible to pursue a policy that can serve as an example for others to emulate in relation to ethnic groups which due to their modest numbers and degree of assimilation are otherwise more vulnerable than the larger Hungarian communities in neighbouring countries. If modesty did not forbid it, I would say that during the negotiations laying the groundwork for the Fundamental Law, the nationalities were almost unable to ask for anything that would not have been included in it anyway.
–Did they not support, for example, the retention of the ombudsman’s office specifically dedicated to minorities?
József Szájer: The minority ombudsman’s position has not disappeared, it will be incorporated into a consistent system which is still in charge of dealing with the same area. However, as the result of an amendment to the National Avowal the text now states that the State should be able to protect not only Hungarian culture, but also the culture of the nationalities living with us. I deem it important However, as the result
of an amendment to the National Avowal the text now states that the State should be able to protect not only Hungarian culture, but also the culture of the nationalities living with us.
now that those declarations have been made in the constitution for us to match the words with deeds in everyday life as well. However, rights should be granted in Székely Land in Transylvania and in Slovakia based on universal human values, and not because Slovaks and Romanians living in Hungary also have rights. This is also why we have to resolve the issues of the parliamentary representation of nationalities, which we have been dragging on over the last 20 years.
– The Fundamental Law is not particularly clear on that issue either; it confines itself to stating that the participation of nationalities in the work of Parliament will be regulated in a cardinal act. This might mean that speakers with consulta-tion rights only will be sitting in Parliament, or that MPs from the respective nationalities will not be able to vote on the candidates for Prime Minister.
József Szájer: This issue has not yet been exhaustively discussed, but in my opinion, as there are no first or second class citizens, there are no first or second class MPs either.
– There have to be two categories, because without positive discrimination, the Hungarian Ruthenians would not be able to elect a representative, given their low number.
József Szájer: The method of election is indeed an issue: as to whether all rec-ognised nationalities will be automatically entitled to delegate a representative, or whether the numbers will be an important factor after all and several nationalities will have to co-operate to obtain a seat, will have to be regulated in the electoral law.
Gergely Gulyás: In general there is a misconception here, which was pointed out by constitutional lawyer András Jakab. Parliament is
not breaching the Constitution by default in relation to the parliamentary presence of nationalities, because the issue of ensuring that they are represented was resolved in 1993 when the system of minority self-governments was established. Nevertheless, it is a fact that coming up with a solution to their parliamentary
presence, maybe even with the help of a preferential quota, is in our national in-terest, especially with regard to those minorities whose parent country grants the opportunity for Hungarians to obtain seats under preferential conditions.
This issue has not yet been exhaustively discussed, but in my opinion, as there are no first or second class citizens, there are no first or second class MPs either.
– Article XXVI on Freedom and Responsibility declares that the State shall strive to make use of the latest technological solutions. Do I understand this correctly to mean that the foundations of a functional electronic public administration will be put in place at long last?
Gergely Gulyás: Public administration must always be versatile, but on the other hand, dealing with official business cannot be based fully on the Internet, because this would end up excluding a large number of citizens from carrying out their official transactions as a result of their age or social circumstances. To date, every government has set itself the goal of making it possible for official business to be conducted effectively, swiftly, accessibly, via a one-stop shop that should encompass all types of transaction. I think that in their more sincere moments (and please consider that particular choice of words as a gesture of good will on my part), even opposition MPs are obliged to acknowledge that the present government has pro-gressed the furthest on the road toward those goals within a short time by setting up government offices and government contact points. Public administration is synonymous with the State in the eyes of its citizens, and because there are many different kinds of people, it is worth the effort for public administration to adapt to that reality in the interests of greater effectiveness. Teenagers of today can manage all of their affairs on the Internet, so it is practical to give them the opportunity to do so. On the other hand, you cannot expect a pensioner to sit in a computer course first if they need a new driving licence. It is extremely infuriating that in football it is still the linesman who decides whether or not the ball has fully gone