The Hungarian government looks upon the situation arising from the geographical segmentation of the Hungarian community as a resource, the Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office stated on Thursday in Sátoraljaújhely, in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County.

In an address delivered at the Pan-Hungarian Camp of University Students, Gergely Gulyás added that if we succeed in raising Hungarian awareness in Hungarians who were born in other countries, or even on other continents, this could also benefit the Hungarian nation as a whole.

The Minister recalled that in nine years the number of Hungarian citizens has increased by more than a million, and continued to encourage everyone – should they feel the desire – to strengthen their bond with the motherland by taking advantage of this option as the opportunity is there.

Mr Gulyás highlighted that the country’s economy is gaining in strength, and proof of this is that ever more people are joining the middle classes. Family policy seeks to boost this process by ensuring that the decision to raise children should not lead to poverty, he said.

He added that if today a person in Hungary decides to have three children, they pay no taxes up to HUF 620,000, the equivalent of some EUR 2,000, and their children receive everything for free in public education and during most of their university studies. With this, the government sought to clearly demonstrate the type of social model they support, whilst giving everyone the choice to decide on the kind of life they wish to live, he said.

Before an audience of students coming from the Carpathian Basin and from scattered communities from around the world as well as students representing student groups from the motherland, Mr Gulyás also pointed out that the negative image depicted of Hungary in media outlets in Western Europe and in the United States is false. Most of these reports are generated by ideological debates which arise from the different processes of evolution in societies in Eastern and Western Europe.

In answer to a question regarding Hungary’s migration policy, he said in recent years Hungary has been affected more by the issue of migration than by the issue of asylum-seekers.

He added that by virtue of the fact that in 2015 the Hungarian government said no to mass migration, it did not only protect the country’s population from the related problems, but also made a responsible decision about the countries which qualified people choose to leave due to the difficult situation. In those countries, during reconstruction after a civil war those people will be sorely missed. Therefore, the problems that emerge must be resolved locally, or else those problems will spill over, the Minister stressed.

In answer to another question, Mr Gulyás said in evaluation of GermanHungarian relations that in the economy good relations are ongoing, and this is also confirmed by the major investments implemented by German-owned companies in Hungary. As regards politics, while due to the differences on the issue of migration there were tensions, at the event held on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the Pan-European Picnic, there were no signs of the “bad taste in the mouth” that were detectable earlier on the part of Germany from 2015 onward; at the event, not a single conflict-ridden issue emerged.

Some 300 young people are attending the Pan-Hungarian Camp of University Students organised by the Rákóczi Association. As part of the series of programmes that started on Wednesday and will last until Sunday, participants have the opportunity to attend lectures concerning political and social issues and to attend gastronomic and sports events.

(MTI)