The Szabadka Holy Trinity statue may also be regarded as a symbol of the Hungarian community in Vojvodina as it has sustained a number of attacks over the course of years, as has the community itself. Numerous attempts have been made to foil its very existence; yet, it has been able to survive, and has therefore served as an example for the Hungarian community in the Carpathian Basin, Péter Szilágyi, Deputy State Secretary for National Policy at the Prime Minister’s Office stressed on Sunday in Szabadka where the 201-year-old, refurbished Holy Trinity statue was reconsecrated.
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The monument was Szabadka’s first statue in a public space which was erected by the residents of the city in 1815 in the central location of the open-air market at the time out of gratitude for the fact that they succeeded in draining the swampy foundations of the city and building the core city centre.
The Baroque statue, the work of Karl Salzer from Zombor, was transported from the centre of the city to the square next to the St. Theresa Cathedral in 1964, during the communist dictatorship. The removal and restoration of the statue began in 2014 at the initiative of the Vojvodina Hungarian National Council. The restoration works were funded by the Hungarian National Council, the Municipality of Szabadka and the Hungarian Government.
In his ceremonial speech, Mr Szilágyi highlighted: „The Hungarians of Vojvodina have come furthest on the path leading to autonomy. This is where the first economic development programme was launched, with the aid of which unprecedented developments and projects may start. The Hungarian community has taken an enormous step forward, but we also believe that this is only the beginning of the road. The homeland would like to give every assistance on this path, and the Hungarian Government therefore continues to fully back its strategic partners, the Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians and the Hungarian National Council.”
The Deputy State Secretary for National Policy pointed out that the symbols – the cross, the pen and the anchor – which were removed during communism have also been restored to the figures of the statue. The cross symbolises affiliation with Christian civilisation, the anchor represents the perseverance of the inhabitants of the city, while the pen stands to symbolise that the city is the region’s intellectual and cultural centre which has followed the European path over the course of the centuries.
The statue symbolises the cohesion and unity of Szabadka’s population, the period when the city’s swampy area was filled up with manual labour, Jenő Maglai, Mayor of Szabadka reiterated.
Jenő Hajnal, the President of the Hungarian National Council highlighted that the relocation of a statue in a public space conveys a special message. „As the removal of the statue from this place symbolised the beginning of something, so may its relocation mark the beginning of a new era. In our case, we hope this to be the beginning of a new era which will give this city, this region and this community strength and faith, and will enable us to consider the future in the Europe of the 21st century as a reasonable discourse. The future which seemed to be lost so many times during the 20th century, for instance, at the time when this statue was removed from this place”, the President of the Vojvodina Hungarian National Council said in his ceremonial speech.
Mr Hajnal finally quoted writer Ildikó Lovas, the person who initiated the restoration of the statue to its original place, who believes that „the statue of the Holy Trinity symbolises our affiliation with Europe and Central-Europe, and a set of values which stand for inclusion, acceptance and understanding, rather than exclusion”.
(Cabinet Office of the Prime Minister/MTI)
