The government is making every attempt to ensure that historical commemorations become a communal experience that everyone can share, the Minister of Human Capacities stated in Mezőkövesd at the Tuesday introduction of the national teacher further training programme launched on the occasion of the centennial memorial year of World War I.
In his welcome speech Zoltán Balog stressed it seems that with emphasis being shifted increasingly in the direction of competitiveness, the role of humanities is on the decline, despite the fact that they are important competitiveness factors. In order to stop this process, we must change the methods and approaches which have been customarily adopted in history education and mentality in Europe to date. There is a demand for this, and there is also a receptive audience, said the Minister who believes that the thousands of teachers who enrolled in the further training programme refute the claim that Hungarian teachers are not interested in the world beyond the conventional approach to history.
“Hungarian schools are very much in need of new approaches and new energy, and it is important what we teach, how we teach it and whom we teach it to”, he said. He added that this effort will be successful if knowledge of the past also becomes attractive for the next generations and if they appreciate the significance of national cohesion and the survival of the Hungarian community.
“We must be aware primarily of who we are, where we came from and where we are heading because a society which does not care about its past will become easy to manipulate”, Mr Balog stressed.
He said World War I is the Hungarian nation’s fundamental trauma: together with those injured, the toll stands at some three million, and with the Trianon decision two thirds of the country’s territory and more than one half of its population were taken away. “We have every right to look upon this as a tragedy and a loss of country.” However, with the launch of the programme “Without Borders” and the act of declaring 4 June the day of national cohesion, by now these memories have become communal experiences, and also convey a positive message, Mr Balog underlined.
He further highlighted that when the government speaks about the reunification of the nation in a way which transcends borders, it also means that there is a need for a joint and united higher education platform in the Carpathian Basin. They are investing hundreds of millions of forints in creating this platform, but additionally they are also developing nursery schools and crèches beyond the borders from an allocation of HUF 60 billion, he pointed out, mentioning the Hungarian economic development programmes launched in Romania and Serbia as novel projects which testify to the success of Hungarian diplomacy. He observed that in the motherland HUF 106 billion is being used for the development of nursery schools and crèches.
These measures are adequate responses to the historic challenges we are facing and represent an investment in the future all at once, he said, adding that the purpose of these efforts is to ensure that the past, the present and the future as well as the fate of communities within and beyond the motherland become “our common ailment and our common pride”.
At the stage discussion that followed the welcome address, Mária Schmidt, government commissioner for coordinating World War I commemorations said World War I was the most important event of the 20th century, “the questions and dilemmas of that era are there on the table also today and continue to shape our lives”.
Without acquainting ourselves with the past, we cannot shape our present, and neither can we build a future, she said.
She stressed it is beyond dispute that during and after World War I Hungary sustained major losses, but by overcoming these the people were able to establish a stable country by founding a new state and were able to create national independence because they realised that they have to unite their forces in order to survive. “From this respect Trianon is a success story that we can be proud of, and one that shows we have strength, determination and acumen”, Mrs Schmidt said.
(MTI)
