  |
 |
Winston Churchill, the British Prime Minister, referring to the aerial “Battle of Britain,”
said, “Never in history have so many people owed so much thankfulness to so few.” He was thinking of the pilots of the Batle of Britain and of those hundreds or thousands of british and Polish pilots who won this aerial battle no only for England and freedom, but also for the free world. The truth is that earlier in history, there were also events when a large number of people owed thankfulnewss to very few.
The message of the 1956 Revolution and War of Independence was that the Soviet Empire and System would soon be over. This message might not have been understood by everybody and we also were not totally certain about it. How and in what circumstances it would happen depended on later events. Today the essential events which changed the system seem to be history. There were different encounters. There are some who say that the basic process of the changes started in Rome when the Cardinals elected a Polish Cardinal to be the Pope. There are some who say that the most important events happened in the shipyard of Gdansk. Some also say that Gorgachev’s unsuccessful improvisations were the roots. He may also have had the feeling that things had to be changed. Some say that the thoughts of the Central European intellectuals were essential to the decisions. Others say that the nations of the empire wanted to be free and their national self consciousness was the most significant factor. Others think that the apearance of the freedom of press and speech was the clearest fact, especially when Viktor Orbán delivered his speech on the 16th of June, 1989.
However, it is inevitable that the events of the 19th of August, 1989, not far from here, were absolutely essential to the change of the system.
Let us go back for a minute to the summer of 1989. The world and part of the Hungarian public did not know that the system would change, or that it had already been changed. Mr. Orban’s speech was deliveired on the 16th of June. There were by-elections in the country, and in four cases, the candidates of the Hungarian Democratic Forum won.
There were three-sided negotiations. The demolition of the system started. Probably the most significant thing was that the rights of freedom appeared, not only on paper and in the constitution, but also in real life. Freedom of speech really did apear, just like freedom of assembly, and a great number of people started to realize that they were free individuals, capable of any activity. Our strength seemed to be a bit stronger and we could look into each other’s faces.
There were the facts which were felt by people abroad. This was felt by the so-called East German citizens although they might not have been conscious of them. This was why they came here to jump through to freedom. For many of them it was successful, partially because here in Hungary there were some courageous people, with enthusiasm, vocation, who influenced the lives of some dozens, hundreds, thousands and millions on that day. This was the Pan European Picnic which resolved a big contradiction. This contradiction was that we had a new content in an old shape. All the institutions of the party state were still in effect, including the militiamen, international contracts, and our duties stemming from them. For outsiders not much seemed to be changed, but we and the picnic organizer knew that the basis was changing and he had to find our way out of this conflice. We had to go straight on and the way out was shown by the Pan European Picnic. The way was followed by the political leadership of that time in a sober, clever, and courageous way. This must be said, but what is more important is, that the initiative belonged to those who organized the event and to those who died in the Revolution and War of Independence of 1956 who kept the national consciousness awake, and started the process of changing the system.
So much about history, but we should also talk about something else. We should see what it means right now and for the future. Nine years have gone by. The unification of Germany became real a few months after the picnic we are celebrating. The idea of the national state operated very well. Automatically, German unification came to life, because everybody knew that the German nation is one nation wanting one state and only one. The same idea did not seem to be so natural when talking about European unification. However, from the first second we said and the government in 1990 also siad, that we would like to be full members of the European Union, but the answer was not unambiguous. We also know that there was some hesitation concerning our wishes, but later the strategic decision was made saying that we could be a member of the European Union. Of course we know this is not an easy process. This idea of European unification is not ripe enough. It is not in the air, not in every politican’s head, or in the heads of the public.
That is why I think that the Pan European Picnic is not only the message and symbol of the political changes, but also the root of the unification of Germany. The Pan European is also the message and symbol of the formation of a united Europe. We are certain that we have a seat around this table, but we are not impatient, knowing we have to fulfill lots of conditions, and we also know that we will be one of the members of a united Europe. We represent this with the same vocation and desire as those who organized the picnic at that time who later influenced the lives of thousands and milions. To me this is the special message of the Pan European Picnic. That is why we celebrate it every year. That is why we believe that this day must be part of our national and European history. Thank you for your attention.
l9th August, 1998,
Fertõrákos Cave Theatre
|
|