In reality, the realization of opportunity is not inevitable,
but a question of effort and goodwill

(István Bibó)

The broad frame of our history is a big historical drama. It is within a Russian town called Yalta. This name defines our drama during the past 40 years. It also means the theft of Central and Eastern Europe and the brutal introduction of a Stalinist Soviet system. Our sub-region which has always been “Europe Occidental “ (Western Europe) followed a Western European social and historical pattern which was stolen from us. We had to start and Eastern style so called state socialist system of tyranny. One of the symbols of the system was the iron curtain. It divided Europe from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean.

While the fortunate Western nations associated the iron curtain with a theatre, in the mean time, it meant the terrible reality of every day life for the nations of Eastern Europe.

We were the members of a camp, the so-called peace camp. Hungary was only a barracks in it. They might even have called it the jolliest barracks. However, those who tried to look in the background, did not find the country of renegades and happy corpses really merry. We who were within the iron curtain lived a life with few merits, especially in comparison with the generous life of our ancestors and our historical and cultural traditions. Being locked out of a real and believable future, instead we got some terrorization, false awareness, violence, infantilism, and false power. We also got some paid employment, some so-called collectivism, and a communal utopia as a religious bonus.

On the other hand this expensive system became really tired at the end of the 1980s and those who were “different thinkers” really did not think the end of the game would come soon.

The end of the game started in Poland and along the River Danube.

Nowadays we know more about the decisions of politics, about discussioins behind the scenes and about the deals that were made, but we also know that the rapid collapse of the Soviet Union and its satellite countries, which were compared with the Roman Empire, was not foretold by any political scientist or Kremlinologist.

In the end, on the 19th of August, 1989, the iron curtain was torn down next to Sopron in Hungary. This was the result of the activity of a few dozen of amateaur organizers and politicians. Their activity was well intended.

All those who have lived and still live next to the West, on the border of Hungary and Austria have experienced what the rion curtain was. It was a sort of over-secure protection all along the border, just a few hundred meters from the real Trianon which is the Hungarian-Austrian border.

There was a tall strong wire fence with a trail in front of it and a lower barbed wire to prevent the attack of wild animals. There were also border guard sentinals, controlling points and electrical alarms. There was also a live fire maneuver on those who tried to escape from the barracks.

Sopron, this wonderful city from the Middle Ages with a fascinating surroundings was a “Border Defending Outpost.” Up to the end of the 1980s, it could only be visited with a special permission. People traveling toward Sopron were bothered by special investigators, especially on the trains.

1989 was “the year of wonders”

“We do believe that something is going on in the the world in a parallel way with the forces of contradiction and death which overshadow the history, the strength of life and persuasion also emerges, the vast movementof human rising, which we call culture, and which is the creation of free association and work.”

(Albert Camus, The Blood of Hungarians, 1957, Paris)

These lines faithfully express the hope which lasted from the 1956 Revolution to 1989. The historical example was the Reform Age of the 19th century and the War of Independence of 1848-49. The precursor was 1956 which rose again in its symbols as well.

The year 1989 was a star, the morning star of Eastern European Nations, a sort of late historical jurisdiction. We could feel the heart beat of history. Does anybody living outside this country understand us, or understand me? It is disputable.

the “Breakthrough”

“Thank God it could not have been organized better” (former organizer).

“To be a democrat means not to be afraid.” It was István Bibó the great political thinker of this century in Hungary, and also the Minister of State during the 1956 Revolution, who wrote these lines . At that time we tried to encourage one another if we were still afraid.

In June, 1989, when the theory of the Pan-European Picnic was born. The state Socialist Eastern Europe had started to collapse but it wasn’t over yet. There was some time behind us withhope trust and belief. We were brave, and the age created our best and most wonderful characteristics. No doubt it was the time of history.

The disintegration and the historical low altitude flying In the Soviet Union started in the confusion of the unsuccessful uskorenie , which was followed by the Gorbachev style perestroika and glasnost. Let us not forget the fact that temporarily (?) the southern armed forces of the Soviet Army stayed in Hungary for 45 years. The Westernmost part of the troops were 20 kilometers form Sopron (Hungarian-Austrian border) where I spent my childhood. The presence of Russians was an every day phenomenon.

Central and Eastern Europe was given up by the Soviet Union, but we could not be sure if the “Comrades” were serious or not. On of the posters of the HungarianDemocratic Forum, there was a picture of the back of a Russian soldier’s head with the slogan “Tovaritschi Konyets” (It’s over, Comrades).

There was some distressing news from neighboring Romania. While at the beginning of May, 1989, on the Hungarian-Austrian border, the collapse of the iron curtain started along a 350 kilometer section, in Romania, the Ceaucescu Regime started to construct zones and make villages disappear. They also started to build wire fences onthe border and shot their escaping citizens, both Romanians and Hungarians.

The late German Democratic Republic wanted to start to celebrate its 40th anniversary.

They had the slogan “Vierzig Jahre Erfolg” (40 years of success). In the meantime, their citizens wished to leave the “fairy tale” country. Many of them came to Hungary to Lake Balaton, even in 1989 to meet their West German relatives and acquaintances. They felt the changes in their nerves and did not want to go back to the land of “40 years of success,” especially the youngsters and the slowly campsites and guest houses were full of them.

On the 12th of July, 1989, George Bush, the President of the U.S.A. delivered a speech in front of the representatives of the opposition parties at the Marx Károly University of Economics.

The world was revolving with and around us just like here as I recall the events of ten years ago.

The pictures of the album are about the historical events about the border opening ten years ago. In some of them we can also see ourselves. The era was irretrieveable and really worthy of rememberance.

Now let us see the “story.” It was a kind of icy spring time with some romanticism, thes start of the spring of nations. The slogans were “solidarity, patriotism, Europeanism, love cordiality, and courage.”

The theory of the Pan-European Picnic which became the tearing down of the iron curtain, was born in Debrecen in Eastern Hungary. It happened punctually on the 30th of June, 1989, on a hot Friday afternoon, at a restaurant called “Régi Vigadó” where there was a meeting of the opposition Hungarian Democratic Forum.

The creators of the idea were Ferenc Mészáros, the Debrecen architect Mári Filep, and the Sopron main organizer László Magas.

The idea came to us when Otto Hapsburg visited Debrecen: Let us organize a happy friendly meeting, a real picnic, on the spot of the iron curtain for all those who are participants in the “camp of community of fate,” and for those intelectuals and politicians who arrive from almost all the countries of Eastern Europe. The patrons should be: Otto Hapsburg, who is the representative of the European Parliament, and Imre Pozsgay, the Reform Communist Minister of State who did a lot for the democratic reformation of Hungary.

The enthusiastic amateurism, the feelings that ran very high, and certain tricks were characteristics of the era. Politicians in spite of themselves , a dispatcher, an engineer, and an economisit organized the meeting. Mária Filep wrote at that time “At the workplace of Feri (Ferenc Mészáros) telephoning became more difficult, and at home we did not have a telephone a typewriter or a fax machine. The centre of the organization became my office. Unfortunately longdistance calls were cut off from my office telephone set and this was a difficult obstacle to overcome. With some unbelieiveable ingenuity, we created connections with Pozsgay, Sopron and Vienna. One of my colleagues called her mother and asked her to reverse the charges. We actually “stole the city line.”

The members of the Debrecen Hungarian Democratic Forum formed an alliance with the Sopron opposition concerning the idea of the Pan-European Picnic. On the 4th of November, 1988, the Sopron Hungarian Democratic forum had their first very successful public meeting and in two weeks time it was officially formed. the Sopron opposition round table (Hungarian Democratic Forum, Alliance of Free Democrats, Alliance of Young Democrats, and Independent Small Holders’ Party) were the second to form in the country, following the example of Budapest.

At the initiative of the Sopron Hungarian Democratic Forum, everybody worked together to organize the Pan-European Picnic. At that time their common purpose was to demolish the one party state. The two strongest opposition forces were not working against one another: Hungarian Democratic Forum and Alliance of Free Democrats.

The local opposition attracted the country’s attention with some different initiatives. On the 15th of June, 1989, they organized a touching memorial service in the prisoners’ graveyard of Sopronk?hida. This event was one day before the Budapest funeral of the 1956 Prime Minister Imre Nagy. In Sopronk?hida, the bodies of eight executed martyrs had been secretly buried. One of them was Attilá Szigethy, who was the president of the Transdanubian National Council, who officially was said to have committed suicide. During the memorial service where they had their funeral rites after 33 years, there were some thousand people participating.

After that this tiny group together with the people from Deberecen organized this meeting of several thousand people on the 19th of August, 1989, just beside Sopron at Sopronpuszta.

With the border opening ceremony and with the wide publicity, the group made it possible for 600-800 citizens of the German Democratic Republic to break through into Austria at Sopron. the picnic, far above its original purpose exploded to fame, and accelerated the collapse of the state socialist systems. Partly because of this compelling effect, the Hungarian government had to open the Hungarian border for the East German citizens who were crowded into campsites and western embassies

“The official program was overturned, but as it turned out later, so did all of Eastern Europe”

(from somebody’s rememberance.)

After the border opening of August, 1989, the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party still wanted to be strong: They closed the roads toward Sopron and put workers’s militiamen at certain points who were shooting in the direction of East German citizens . (Next to Sopron, farmers working in the fields stopped soldiers from shooting).

Finally, on the 11th of September, the government officially opened the border and let tens of thousands of East German citizens escape to the West.

I don’t like exaggerating. As one of the organizers said, a little man gets into the wilderness of history in a way that he does not even realize.

The picnic organizers originally did not plan the breakthrough of the East German citizens. Even today they do not think that the event they organized was more than a pin prick into the system’s balloon. However, it really blew up. According to the domino theory all of Eastern Europe followed.

After a couple of weeks, the Germans knocked down the Berlin Wall with enthusiasm. Then in Prague, the Velvet Revolution took place and won. At the end of December, between Pozsony(Bratislava) and Hainburg, -four nations together- Austrians, Slovaks, Czechs and Hungarians, celebrated the collapse of the Czech iron curtain.

At Christmas, starting from Temesvár (Timisoara), the Romanian Revolution took place and won. This is the time of the recovery of the “stolen” Central-Eastern Europe. After a decade we can see that the re-building of democracy seems to be slow and difficult. The nations of Central-eastern Europe find their ways only with difficulties. Our enthusiasm might be lower, we might be more tired, but we still have our belief. This belief is about the political frame of democracy, about freedom which is sacred. We also want to live by our own rules and laws. This is more valuable than any tyranny whatever name and status it might have.

Now we can really say, even a thousand times, that we did what we could, and what we did was worthy.

“We thank life for all your pledges,
This has been a merry pleasure and a man’s work.”

(Mihály Vörösmarty)

What else could be added to this chronicle by a witness? The photos and the dramatic pictures of the breakthrough say it all.

Let us magnify some more pictures and let us cite some participants. A young German mother, while running, falls down and dorps her child. A Hungarian border guard picks the baby up and gives it back to the mother.

“By the time we lef the camp the gate was open. (The East Germans broke through at 3 p.m.) A German married couple asked on the meadow where the border would be opened. We told them t come with us. When they were close to the gate, the confessed that they would go through and never come back. They had their white Volkswagen in the camp. They told us to take the ignition key and keep it. My brother rejected it, but from the Austrian side, they were waving to us and they wanted to throw the key to us, but my brother did not accept it,” (one of the rememberances).

“The 19th of August has always been a family celebration for us, our wedding anniversary. From 1989, it has been a double celebration. There are lots of nice memories in front of me when I recall the day - the crowd, happy people, crying people, guys kissing the Austrian field, East Germans waving their passports. When it became obvious that they could cross the border with no prison sentence, they were delerious with happiness. The most heart breaking experience happened the following day when we got to the spot to clear up. There weredozens of unattended cars. On the back seat of a Trabbant, there was a little pillow and a puppet. After ten years, the owner of the puppet might be a big girl somewhere in Germany. I wonder if she can recall the day.” (one of the rememberances)

“In 1992, I spent two months in Göttingen with my husband. One day I went to the city museum where old East German relics were displayed. I hurried throughthe room and said to myself, ‘Who cares?’ But the museum guard called me: “Madame, why don’t you look at them. They are very intriguing.’ I answered I was Hungarian and had seen lots of similar things. He asked me where I was from and I said from Sopron. Then he turned to me in a friendly way, shaking my hands and crying. ‘I can thank you that I could see my sisters and brothers after so many years. You should know madame, that so far I have been praying for the Hungarians.’ I said to myself, if it is so, it is good.” (One of the rememberances)

“Break it down and take it with you” (Bau ab und nimm mit) was the slogan of the picnic. Iron curtains disappeared everywhere. The nations of Europe broke down the wire fences around them. What should we wish for ourselves and Europe? They should never be built up again, and I also wish that all that I have written down should be just history for the next generation, just a story in their history books - a story about the iron curtain and its collapse, somewhere in Europe at the former edge of West and East in Hungary at Sopronpuszta on a hot summer of 1989.
 
 

Copyright © 1997., ISE, Sopron

~sztoth