The 20th century’s two most devastating dictatorships were equally anti-human and anti-God. The survivors of these dictatorships had the opportunity to experience first hand that those who want to create a godless world are capable of the most inhumane deeds. Yet, today we observe that some politicians in the West and in Hungary – who describe themselves as responsible and progressive – resort to double standards and make a shameless distinction between one dictatorship and another, Dr Csaba Latorcai, Minister of State for Public Administration of the Ministry of Human Resources said in his speech delivered at a conference organised by the International Society of Gulag Researchers which was held in the Upper House Hall of the Parliament Building on the memorial day of Soviet-deported Hungarian political prisoners and forced labourers.

The Minister of State said what serves best the restoration of the order of justice is if we remember the innocent victims who died violent deaths, experienced torture, persecution and exclusion, or sustained any other injury with similar frequency and with a similar degree of mourning as those who showed solidarity, helped them and rescued them.

At the same time, with the means of remembrance policy we are able to contribute significantly to strengthening the identity of Hungarian communities, to enhancing their self-esteem and ultimately to preserving their spiritual health. This is why it is important that we should never stop remembering the some 800,000 Hungarian citizens who were forcibly taken away from the country occupied by Soviet troops as well as from the territory of historical Hungary in 1944-1945, the Minister of State of the Ministry of Human Capacities pointed out.

Our compatriots destroyed in forced labour camps served life both in suffering and in death. They, too, give us strength so that amidst the challenges of the 21st century we Hungarians should not only find ourselves again, but should fulfil our mission in cooperation with the countries and peoples of Central Europe, with the Visegrád Four in it, Mr Latorcai said in conclusion.

From the autumn of 1944 onward, almost 800,000 people were taken from Hungary to the Soviet Union as prisoners of war or internees for several years of forced labour or were exiled for terms of 5 to 25 years. Tens of thousands of political prisoners and innocent people picked up from the streets were taken to the prisoner camps of the Gulag with the effective assistance of the Hungarian authorities, based on fabricated charges. The first group of survivors could return to Hungary almost an entire decade later on 25 November 1953. In 2012 Parliament declared 25 November the memorial day of Soviet-deported Hungarian political prisoners and forced labourers.

(MTI)