St. Melania's Day Ukraine - J a n 1 3
Saint Melania the Younger (also Melanie; born in Rome c. 383, died in Jerusalem on December 31, 439) is a Christian saint and Desert Mother who lived during the reign of Emperor Flavius Augustus Honorius, son of Theodosius I. She is the paternal granddaughter of Melania the Elder. The Feast of Melania the Younger is held on December 31. In Ukraine, Malanka ("Melania's Day") is celebrated on January 13, the eve of the new year of the Julian Calendar. Born to Valerius Publicola or Poplicola (son of Valerius Maximus Basilius and wife Melania the Elder) and Caeionia Albina, born ca 368 (daughter of Caeionius Rufius Albinus and wife), she was married to a paternal cousin, Valerius Pinianus, at the age of thirteen. After the early deaths of two children, she and her husband converted to Christianity, maintaining a celibate life thereafter. Upon inheriting her parents' wealth, she gave it all away to the poor. Melania and Pinianus left Rome in 408, living a monastic life near Messina(Sicily) for two years. In 410, they traveled to Africa, where they befriended Augustine of Hippo and devoted themselves to a life of piety and charitable works. Together they founded a convent of which Melania became Mother Superior, and cloister of which Pinianus took charge. In 417, they traveled to Palestine by way of Alexandria, living in a hermitage near the Mount of Olives, where Melania founded a second convent. After the death of Pinianus c. 420, Melania built a cloister for men, and a church, where she spent the remainder of her life.
HUNGARY Hungarian operational mentoring and liaison team ends mission in Afghanistan
Restructuring of the education is one of the greatest acts: Viktor Orbán's
New Year (Orthodox) Worldwide - J a n 1 4
The Old New Year or the Orthodox New Year (Russian: Старый Новый год, Ukrainian: Старий Новий рік, Belarusian: Стары Новы год, Georgian: ძველით ახალი წელი, Armenian: Հին Նոր Տարի, Serbian: Српска Нова година or Srpska Nova godina, Macedonian and Bulgarian: Стара Нова година, Greek: Παλιά νέο έτος, Romanian: Anul Nou pe rit vechi) is an informal traditional Orthodox holiday, celebrated as the start of the New Year by the Julian calendar. In the 20th and 21st centuries, the Old New Year falls on January 14 in the Gregorian calendar, 13 days after its New Year.
Russia In Although the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic offi-
cially adopted the Gregorian calendar in 1918, the Russian Orthodox Church continued to use the Julian calendar. The New Year became a holiday which is celebrated by both calendars. As in most countries which use the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day in Russia is a public holiday celebrated on January 1. On that day, joyous entertainment, fireworks, elaborate and often large meals and other festivities are common. The holiday is interesting as it combines secular traditions of bringing in the New Year with the Christian Orthodox Christmastide customs, such as koleda. The New Year by the Julian calendar is still informally observed, and the tradition of celebrating the coming of the New Year twice is widely enjoyed: January 1 (New New Year) and January 14 (Old New Year). Usually not as festive as the New New Year, for many this is a nostalgic family holiday ending the New Year holiday cycle (which includes Eastern Orthodox Christmas on January 7) with traditional large meals, singing and celebratory drinking.
Serbia In The most common is called Serbian New Year (Српска Нова година/Srpska Nova godina), and sometimes the Or-
thodox New Year(Православна Нова година/Pravoslavna Nova godina) and Julian New Year (Јулијанска Нова година/Julijanska Nova godina). Serbian Orthodox Church continue to celebrate their feasts and holidays according to the Julian calendar. It is located primarily in Serbia (including Kosovo), Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro. A part of the population celebrates Serbian New Year in a similar way as the New Year on January 1. This time, usually one concert is organized in front of either City Hall or the National Parliament (in Belgrade), while fireworks are prepared by the Serbian Orthodox Church and fired from the Church Cathedral of Saint Sava, where people also gather. Other cities also organize such celebrations. Restaurants, clubs, cafe's and hotels are usually full-booked and organize New Year's celebrations with food and live music. A traditional folk name for this holiday as part of Twelve Days of Christmas is Little Christmas (Мали Божић/Mali Božić). Some families continue with the procedures of Serbian Christmas traditions.
In Macedonia
The holiday in Macedonia is known as "Old New Year" (Стара Нова година). The night of January 13th, people gather outside their houses, in the center of their neighborhoods where they start a huge fire and drink and eat together. Traditional Macedonian music is sung. For those who stay at home, it is tradition to eat home made pita with a coin inside. Whoever finds the coin in his part is said to have luck during the year. Macedonians around the world also celebrate the holiday, especially in Australia, Canada and USA where the Macedonian Orthodox Church has adherents.
Other countries
The tradition of the Old New Year has been kept in Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Montenegro,Moldova, Ukraine (Malanka), Wales and Switzerland (as alter Silvester). In the first half of the 20th century, segments of the Scottish Gaelic community still observed the feast and today, groups such as Edinburgh's Am Bothan see this as a convenient date for Gaelic events.
art In The Old New Year tradition has received mention in Russian art; the playwright Mikhail Roshchin wrote a comedy
drama called The Old New Year in 1973, which was on stage in the theaters for many years. He also made it a screenplay for the TV-film which was played by famous actors and featured music by Sergey Nikitin, with the poetry lyrics by Boris Pasternak; the film was released by Mosfilm studios in 1980.
Ratification Day U.S. - J a n 1 4
Ratification Day in the United States refers to the anniversary of the ratification of the Treaty of Paris on January 14, 1784 at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland by the Confederation Congress. This act officially ended the American Revolution and established the U.S. as a sovereign entity.
Proclamation of Congress The Journals of the Continental Congress reports that the
Confederation Congress issued a proclamation on April 11, 1783, "Declaring the cessation of arms" against Great Britain. The preliminary articles of peace were approved by Congress on April 15, 1783, and the Treaty of Paris was ratified on January 14, 1784. An excerpt from the proclamation of ratification: By the United States in Congress assembled, a proclamation : Whereas definitive articles of peace and friendship, between the United States of America and His Britannic Majesty, were concluded and signed at Paris, on the 3rd day of September, 1783 ... we have thought proper by these presents, to notify the premises to all the good citizens of these United States ... Given under the seal of the United States, witness His Excellency Thomas Mifflin, our president, at Annapolis, this fourteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-four.
(Online 11 Jan) The Hungarian Defence Forces’ Operational Mentoring and Liaison Team (OMLT) deployed in Afghanistan has ended its current mission. The joint Hungarian–American mentor team working at Khilagay has been serving with a modified task system since mid-December, and will redeploy to a new base in the spring of 2013. The emphasis will shift from training and mentoring the
Afghan soldiers to giving advice, and the name of the unit will change to Military Advisory Team (MAT). With the withdrawal of the PRT (in spring 2013), they will continue mentoring the Afghan army in the town of Mazar-i-Sharif. The OMLT started operating in Afghanistan in 2009; its main tasks were to participate in training an mentoring the Afghan National Army (ANA) – responsible for law and
order in 14 districts of Baghlan Province – and to maintain contact with NATO forces. Composed of Hungarian troops and the members of the Ohio National Guard, the OMLT assisted the training of an 800-strong Afghan battalion (kandak), with around 60 mentors. The MAT has started working with a staff of 50 soldiers.
N AT O r a d a r t o w e r c o m p l e t e d in Medina (Online 11 Jan) The 28-meter tall concrete tower of the NATO radar station has been completed in Medina, Tolna County. According to plans, the radar equipment will be installed in the complex in August, the Ministry of Defence told Hungarian News Agency MTI. 1,166 cubic meters of concrete and 205 tons of concrete steel are used for the complete construction of the radar tower and the service facility. The total cost of the project is HUF 1.05 billion, of which the cost of building the ferroconcrete structure amounts to HUF 360 million, the MoD Press Office wrote. According to the press release, the construction of the truncated sphere, the socalled radome protecting the radar is to start in March 2013, and together with it, the height of the building will
be over 45 meters, while the radar itself will be built into it in August. Earlier, the Ministry of Defence announced that instead of the currently operating Russian-made radar, the 3D equipment of the Italian company Selex Sistemi Integrati would be installed. The deadline for handing over the complex is January 31, 2014. The new radar is scheduled to enter into service in April 2014, the Press Office stated. The Ministry of Defence informed MTI that with respect to the L-frequency band used in the decimeter wavelength, the acquisition range of the radar to be installed at the Medina location is confidential data, but with respect to the S band used in the medium range, it significantly exceeds the 270-300 kilometer acquisition range of the currently
operated P-37M Russian acquisition radar. The press release states that the existing radar types, however, cannot be compared with the devices to be installed because only the old radar systems can be compared with the new ones replacing them. The 3D radar station in Medina will be the third element in the air surveillance system of Hungary, the other two 3D radar stations are operated in Bánkút and Békéscsaba. The Ministry has confirmed that the three radar stations would be augmented with mobile radars in special situations. Due to the terrain features of the Transdanubian region, Medina will be the base of a mobile radar group, the Press Office of the Ministry of Defence wrote.
Tripartite seminar on youth employment (Online 09 Jan) The Hungarian Ministry for National Economy is organizing a tripartite seminar together with the International Labour Organization (ILO) on 11 January 2013 in Budapest, Hungary, to examine the challenges of labour market integration of young people and to present measures aiming to improve their employment situation. The labour market situation and unemployment of young people are major economic and social challenges of this decade. The long-term unemployment of young people will have lasting negative impact on their labour market and social integration. At a time of crisis, the labour market
situation of young people is a crucial issue in Hungary as well as in the European Union and elsewhere. The objective of the seminar, co-organised by the Ministry for National Economy and the ILO, is to raise awareness regarding the necessity and the urgency of measures and actions for improving the labour market situation of youth. The seminar will present initiatives of the ILO and the EU, as well as the strategies and measures of the Hungarian Government aiming at tackling youth unemployment. The seminar will provide an opportunity to become acquainted with international examples of best practice, and also to discuss
the role of the social partners and civil society in the improvement of the employment situation of young people. The main speakers will be Guy Ryder, the Director-General of the ILO, László Andor, European Commissioner responsible for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion and Sándor Czomba Dr., Minister of State for Employment. Other participants will be representatives of the Hungarian government, workers’ and employers’ organizations, civil society organizations, other national stakeholders and representatives of UN agencies located in Budapest.
Erzsébet programme to continue also in 2013
Debate Congressional Due to the severe winter of 1783–1784 (now known to be a consequence of the volcanic eruption of Laki in Iceland)
only delegates from seven of the thirteen states were present in Congress. According to the Articles of Confederation, nine states were required to enter into a treaty. One faction believed that seven states could ratify the treaty; arguing that they were merely ratifying and not entering into a treaty. Furthermore, it was unlikely that the required delegates could reach Annapolis before the ratification deadline. Thomas Jefferson's faction believed that a full nine states were required to ratify the treaty. Any less would be trickery which Britain would eventually find out, giving it an excuse to nullify the treaty. Jefferson stated that it would be a "dishonorable prostitution" of theGreat Seal of the United States.
Jefferson's Compromise
Reverend John Chilembwe (1871 – February 3, 1915) was a Baptist pastor and educator, and an early figure in resistance tocolonialism in Nyasaland, now Malawi. Today John Chilembwe is celebrated as a hero for independence, and John Chilembwe Day is observed annually on January 15 in Malawi.
Photo: Zsolt Burger (Online 08 Jan) The Erzsébet Programme will also continue in 2013; this year, too, tens of thousands of socially disadvantaged children, pensioners, large families and individuals with disabilities may go on holiday to a number of destinations around the country under highly
Early Life and the Influence of Joseph Booth Chilembwe was born near Chiradzulu in the south of what
make sure it operates smoothly. The Prime Minister mentioned the student demonstrations of the past few weeks, at which he recalled hearing similar statements to the ones he and his companions had also professed in the student movement they had organised in 1982. It may easily be the case, he said referring to the Fidesz party's student movement roots in 1988, that the current student movements "bring to the service talented people who might (…) eventually reach a position where they may be entrusted with large slices of our very important common issues, or even the whole cake". Moving on to the situation of people with foreign currency loans, Viktor Orbán stated that although the communists and post-communists put the state and the local governments in a state of debt, people were inclined to forget this. But in his view, now that debt is no longer a distant phenomenon but instead "knocks on the kitchen door every month" because of foreign currency loans, people will not forget and will never forgive the socialists. He however pointed out that 150 thousand such contracts had been successfully terminated through early repayment, increasing numbers of people are taking advantage of the exchange rate ceiling, and the cabinet was planning further measures to help families who had been cheated and were "trapped in foreign debt". In reply to a comment on the situation of those living in poverty, the Prime Minister confirmed that he continues to profess that work is the only way out of poverty and so people in need must primarily be provided with work opportunities. 160 thousand more people work today than when the Government took power, he indicated, adding that he feels there is a good chance that the plan to create one million new jobs over ten years may be realised. The Prime Minister said he was a "prudent reveller", and this is why the Government undertook
to realise this goal within a period of ten years, while secretly hoping that six or seven years might be enough, but the European crisis had made him more cautious. Mr. Orbán also spoke of defending Hungarian interests, stating that "In Brussels we don't push forward at all costs, but we always make a stand for Hungarian interests. If we can't get there from the right, we try from the left; if the door has been blocked, we climb in through the window." It is important that "our efforts should not be pervaded with the sweat of extreme struggle", but with Christian serenity, he added. However, the Prime Minister also stated that the fact that several Hungarian measures that had previously been taken exception to by the European Union, such as the levies on banks and multinationals, or the recently announced cut in gas and electricity prices, were being introduced into civil law by increasing numbers of EU member states was gratifying. "The Hungarian people would have deserved more support from Europe", said Viktor Orbán, adding that in his view Hungarian successes and achievements would help regain European support. The Prime Minister also took the opportunity to express his opinion that, as has been the case on several occasions through the course of history, renewal from the crisis once again requires that Europe return to its Christian roots. In his view, Christianity is a culture of action, and so "instead of speculation and instead of accounting tricks", Europe as a Christian continent must once again learn to respect value-creating work and build a workbased society. In summary, the Prime Minister stated that during the past two and a half years the Government had succeeded in reorganising Hungary to such an extent that there is now hope for economic growth in 2013.
Disbursement of the second phase of EU area-based agricultural funding has begun (Online 09 Jan) "Disbursement of the second phase of area-based agricultural funding due for last year has begun; farmers will receive HUF 140 billion during the following months", announced Minister for Rural Development Sándor Fazekas at a press conference in Tök on Wednesday. Those affected received HUF 141 billion during the first phase of payment from last October until the end of the year. The sum of HUF 294 billion, paid out in two phases, means in practice funding of some HUF 60 thousand per hectare. This is 30 percent more than two years ago, and the level of funding is expected to rise further, which is also an indication of the success of Hungarian agricultural diplomacy within the EU. Around 175 thousand farmers receive
funding at present, and as a result need to take on less loans and credit to begin spring operations, stressed Sándor Fazekas. President of the Agricultural and Rural Development Agency Péter Palkovics informed the press that the majority of farmers would already be receiving funding in January. However, around 3000 farmers will have to wait until March to receive their money; issues relating to land ownership are slowing their payments. Mr. Palkovics noted that village agronomists had also helped with the submission of applications, and accordingly the number of mistakes is several orders of magnitude less that in previous years, reaching only one percent last year. In reply to a question, Sándor Fazekas explained that food prices
are rising throughout the world as a result of last year's drought and the increase in the world population, and we should also expect a moderate rise in Hungary. The Government is taking steps to keep food prices in check and places great significance on the rekindling of old forms of selfsufficiency and the promotion of subsistence farming at home. The Minister also spoke about the fact that talks are underway within the EU with relation of the development of the funding system for the period after 2014. According to the Hungarian standpoint, the framework for funding within the agriculture sector must be retained and is required to enable farmers to make a living and for the production of healthy foods.
Navracsics spoke media about the district system and recent comments made by Zsolt Bayer
Jefferson was elected to head a committee of members of both factions and arrived at a compromise. Assuming that only seven states were present, Congress would pass a resolution stating that the seven states present were unanimously in favor of ratification of the treaty, but were in disagreement as to the competency of Congress to ratify with only seven states. That although only seven states were present, their unanimous agreement in favor of ratification would be used to secure peace. The vote would not set a precedent for future decisions; the document would be forwarded to the US ministers in Europe who would be told to wait until a treaty ratified by nine states could arrive, and to request a delay of three months. However, if Britain insisted, then the Ministers should use the seven-state ratification, pleading that a full Congress was not in session. In the event, delegates from Connecticut and South Carolina arrived at the last moment, and nine states ratified the treaty. Three copies were sent by separate couriers to ensure delivery.
John Chilembwe Day Malawi - J a n 1 5
(Online 08 Jan) "The reorganization of the education system is one of the greatest acts of the past two and a half years", stated Viktor Orbán in an interview on Kossuth Radio's Sunday news and debate programme Vasárnapi újság on December 23. According to the Prime Minister, the education system must be run in and made to operate smoothly during 2013. He also stated that there is hope that the economy will begin to grow next year and there is a good chance that the plan to create one million new jobs over ten years may be realised. During the interview, the Prime Minister took time to provide a detailed explanation of the reorganisation of the education system, which he said was needed because of the many problems that had arisen within the public and higher education systems, and as a result of the system's poor organisation. He cited as an example that students often leave primary school at fourteen without having learnt basic skills, and often leave vocational schools without fundamental professional knowledge. He also mentioned that some high school graduates are unable to acquire the minimum points needed to continue in higher education, set at an extremely low 240 points. In addition, many leave college or university with degrees that they are unable to make use of in practice, while students often do not receive their diplomas because they lack the compulsory foreign language skills. "This is why two years ago I said that we must begin reforming and increasing the quality of the education system", he recalled, stressing that meanwhile Hungary is full of talented children, loving parents and devoted teachers who care about children as "the labourers of the nation". Accordingly, he called the practically total reorganisation of the education system the greatest act of the past two and a half years, adding that the task for 2013 is to run in the new system and
pose of the programme is to provide access for children to healthy food suited to their age, to improve their state of health as necessary for the acquisition of skills and to enable them to actively relax. The Erzsébet Programme draws on the available funds; it is implemented
as of August 2012, the Erzsébet Voucher is now available not only as a fringe benefit but also as a social benefit for the purposes of regular social support and regular child protection benefits. As of 2013, in addition to the meal and child protection vouchers, three new types of vouch-
from the profits derived from the distribution of the Erzsébet Vouchers. Consequently, it does not represent an additional burden on the Hungarian state budget. The revenue obtained from the distribution of the vouchers may only be used for the purposes of social holiday schemes, related services and other social programmes. The Erzsébet Voucher is a fringe benefit facility with some 30 thousand merchants which is enjoyed by 2 million people. The vouchers may be used for the purchase of ready-for-consumption meals and foodstuffs. As of 2013, instead of the earlier HUF 5 thousand per month, employers may provide vouchers as fringe benefits to the value of HUF 8 thousand. Thanks to a legislative amendment,
ers will also be available; these are gift, school and leisure-time vouchers. The gift vouchers may be used, amongst others, for the purchase of household electronics, home supplies, books, clothing, health preservation services and leisure-time activities. The school vouchers may be used for the purchase of textbooks, teaching implements and clothing. The leisure-time vouchers may be used for attending sports and cultural events, buying tickets or season tickets for exhibitions in museums and arts facilities, theatrical, dance, circus or musical performances and other cultural services offered by organisations engaged in public education as well as for buying library subscriptions.
became Nyasaland, probably in 1870 or 1871, and attended a Church of Scotland mission from around 1890. In 1892 he became a house servant of Joseph Booth, a radical and independently-minded missionary. Booth had arrived Africa in 1892 as a Baptist to establish the Zambezi Industrial Mission near Blantyre. Booth was critical of the reluctance of Scottish Presbyterian missions to admit Africans as full church members, and later founded seven more independent missions in Nyasaland which, like the Zambezi Industrial Mission, focused on the equality of all worshipers. In Booth's household and mission where he was closely associated with Booth, Chilembwe became acquainted with Booth's radical religious ideas and egalitarian feelings. Booth returned to Nyasaland in 1899 but left permanently in 1902, although he continued to correspond with Chilembwe. After 1906, Booth was strongly influenced by Millennialism, but the extent to which he retained influence over Chilembwe after 1902 and influenced him towards millennial beliefs is disputed, although he strongly influenced Elliot Kenan Kamwana, the first leader of the Watchtower followers of Charles Taze Russell in Nyasaland.
(Online 08 Jan) The Minister for Public Administration and Justice explained the launching of the district system on ATV television's Egyenes beszéd ("Straight Talk") programme on Monday. With relation to Zsolt Bayer's article on the Roma, published on Saturday, the Deputy Prime Minister stated that in his opinion the article makes fun of every democratic community principle that we believe in. Tibor Navracsics added that nobody may be classified into one category or another based on their ethnic origin; everyone must be measured according to their individual performance and individual acts, and this has nothing to do with where they may otherwise belong with regard to their ethnicity, religion, denomination or sex. He made it clear that anyone who believes that a group of people are animals has no place in the community.
With regard to the district system, he said that "The Government's goal is for things to be better for the country's citizens. (…) We wish to provide faster and friendlier administration in the 175 districts and 23 Budapest district offices." He added that the network of government kiosks, of which 300 will be opened by the end of the year, including at some main railways stations, would be built on the district office system. The goal of the government kiosks is to provide quick and modern administration. The Minister also explained that the Government had attempted to solve a 20-year issue through the new district system. In Hungary, public administration tasks that may be standardised and are very similar are currently performed in some 3200 local government offices, and these have now been reorganised into a new unit that makes the organisation and performance of these tasks much cheaper
and faster. Public administration procedures are also being made simpler parallel to the establishment of the new system, leading to shorter procedural deadlines. In reply to a question on the Government reshuffle, Tibor Navracsics stated that it was the Prime Minister's prerogative to decide who would become Minister of what field. "This following year that is left of our current term provides me with more than enough tasks, and so this is what I have planned and I would like to continue doing what I am doing at present." The Minister for Public Administration and Justice also stated that he thought it was a good thing that the proposed voting registration system had been given prior scrutiny, and in relation to the fact that registration would not yet be introduced in 2014 he said "In my opinion we have made the right decision."
St a t e s e c r e ta r y N é m e t h he ld t a lk s with the Pr e s ide nt of My a nm a r
US Education and relations with American and African Independent Churches In 1897 Booth and Chilembwe traveled together to the United States. Here, after parting amicably from Booth,
Chilembwe attended the Virginia Theological Seminary and College, (now Virginia University of Lynchburg), a small Baptist institution at Lynchburg, Virginia. The principal was a militantly-independent Negro, Gregory Hayes and Chilembwe both experienced the contemporary prejudice against negroes and was exposed to radical American Negro ideas and the works of John Brown, Booker T. Washington, Marcus Garvey and others. He was ordained as a Baptist minister at Lynchburg in 1899. After his return to Nyasaland, Chilembwe developed close contacts with independent, African-controlled churches, including Seventh Day Baptist and Churches of Christ congregations, with the aim of uniting some or all of these African churches with his own mission church at the centre. Chilembwe also had some contact with Watchtower followers, but the extent of these and the influence of Watchtower's millennial beliefs on him is minimised by most authors except the Lindens. Although the vast majority of those found guilty of rebellion and sentenced to death or to long terms of imprisonment were members of Chilembwe's church, a few other members of the Churches of Christ in Zomba were also found guilty.
Return to Malawi and Mission Work
In 1900 Chilembwe returned to Nyasaland, in his own words, "to labour amongst his benighted race". Backed financially the National Baptist Convention of America who also provided two American Baptist helpers until 1906, Chilembwe started his Providence Industrial Mission (P.I.M.) in Chiradzulu district. In its first decade, the mission developed slowly, assisted by regular small donations from his American backers, and Chilembwe founded several schools, which by 1912 had 1,000 pupils and 800 adult students. He preached the values of hard-work, self-respect and self-help to his congregation and, although as early as 1905 he used his church position to deplore the condition of Africans in the protectorate, he initially avoided specific criticism of the government that might be thought subversive. However, by 1912 or 1913, Chilembwe had become more politically militant and openly voiced criticism over the state of African land rights in the Shire Highlands and of the conditions of labour tenants there, particularly on the A. L. Bruce Estates.
Colonial Grievences:
In the Shire Highlands, the most densely populated part of the protectorate, European estates occupied about 867,000 acres, or over 350,000 hectares, almost half of the best arable land. Relatively few local Africans remained on the estates when the owners introduced labour rents, preferring to settle on Crown Land where customary law entitled them to use (sometimes overcrowded) land belonging to the community, or to become migrant workers. However, planters with large areas of available land but limited labour could engage migrants from Mozambique (who had no right to use community lands) on terms that Nyasaland Africans found unacceptable. These were called "Anguru", a convenient term employed by Europeans to describe as a number of different peoples, mostly speaking one of the Makua languages, often the Lomwe language, who themselves used various names to refer to their places of origin in Mozambique. They left Mozambique in significant numbers from 1899 when a harsh new labour code was introduced, and especially in 1912 and 1913 after a Mozambique famine in 1912. In 1912, the British Colonial Office described them as working for such low wages as were “a record for any settled part of Africa”. Many of those convicted after the rising were identified as "Anguru". Conditions on the estates where the "Anguru" became tenants were generally poor, and Africans both on estates and Crown Lands were subjected to an increase in Hut tax in 1912, despite food shortages. P.I.M. was situated in an area dominated by the A L Bruce Estates, named after a son-in-law of David Livingstone. From 1906, A. L. Bruce Estates developed and started to plant a hardy variety of cotton suitable for the Shire Highlands. Cotton required intensive labour over a long growing period, and the estate manager W. J. Livingstone (a distant relative of David Livingstone) ensured that 5,000 workers were available throughout its 5 or 6 month by exploiting the obligations of the labour tenancy system called thangata, underpaying wage labour and by often violent coercion. W. J. Livingstone also refused to allow any mission work to be carried on or schools to be opened on the Bruce Estates, although the estate company provided free medical and hospital treatment for workers. Although this prohibition applied to all missions, P.I.M. was the closest, and became a natural focus for African agitation, and Chilembwe became the spokesman for African tenants on the Bruce Estates. Chilembwe provoked confrontation by erecting churches on estate land, which Livingstone burned down because he considered them as centres for agitation against the management and because they made potential claims on estate land.
Chilembwe's Reaction to Colonial System:
Chilembwe was angered by Livingstone's refusal to accept the worth of African people, and also frustrated by the refusal of the settlers and government to provide suitable opportunities or a political voice to the African "new men", who had been educated by the Presbyterian and other missions in Nyasaland or in some cases had received a higher education abroad. A number of such men became Chilembwe's lieutenants in the rising. Although in his first decade at P.I.M., Chilembwe had been reasonably successful, in the five years before his death, he faced a series of problems in the mission and in his personal life. From around 1910, he incurred several debts at a time when mission expenses were rising and funds from his American backers were drying up. Attacks of asthma, the death of a daughter, and his declining eyesight and general health may have deepened his sense of alienation and desperation.
Background to the 1915 Rising
The sources cited above agree that, after 1912 or 1913 the series of social and personal issues mentioned increased Chilembwe's bitterness toward Europeans in Nyasaland, and moved him towards thoughts of revolt. However, they treat the outbreak and effects of the First World War as the key factor in moving him from thought to planning to take action, which he believed it was his destiny to lead, for the deliverance of his people. In the course if this war, some 19,000 Nyasaland Africans served in the King's African Rifles, and up to 200,000 were forced to be porters for varying periods, mostly in the East African Campaign against the Germans in Tanganyika , and disease caused many casualties. One of the earliest campaigns, a German invasion of Nyasaland and a battle atKaronga in September 1914 caused Chilembwe to write an impassioned letter against the war to the "Nyasaland Times" newspaper, saying that a number of his countrymen, "have already shed their blood", others were being "crippled for life" and "invited to die for a cause which is not theirs". The war-time censor prevented publication of the letter, and by December 1914, Chilembwe was regarded with suspicion by the colonial authorities. The Governor decided to deport Chilembwe and some of his followers, and approached the Mauritius government asking them to accept the deportees a few days before the rising started. The censoring of Chilembwe's letter appears to be the trigger moving him to an actual conspiracy. He began organising a rebellion, gathering together a small group of Africans, educated either at the Blantyre Mission or the schools of the independent, separatist African churches in the Shire Highlands and Ncheu District, as his lieutenants. In a series of meetings held in December 1914 and early January 1915, Chilembwe and his leading followers aimed at attacking British rule and supplanting it, if possible. However, it is possible that he learnt of his intended deportation, and was forced to bring forward the date of his revolt, making the prospects of its success more unlikely, and turning it into a symbolic gesture of protest. When he brought forward the date of the Shire Highlands rising, Chilembwe was unable to ensure that it could still be coordinated with the planned rising in the Ntcheu District, which was therefore largely abortive. The failure in Ncheu District may also relate to the pacifism of many Seventh Day Baptist and Watchtower followers who were expected to rise there.
1915 Uprisings and His Death The The aims of the rising remain unclear, partly because Chilembwe and many of his leading supporters were killed,
and also because many documents were destroyed in a fire in 1919. However, use of the theme of “Africa for the Africans” suggests a political motive rather than a purely millennial religious one. Chilembwe is believed to have drawn parallels between his rising and that of John Brown, and stated his wish to "strike a blow and die" immediately before the rising started. The first part of Chilembwe's plan was to attack European centres in the Shire Highlands on the night if 23–24 January 1915, to obtain arms and ammunition, and the second was to attack European estates in the same area simultaneously. Most of Chilembwe's force of about 200 men were from his P.I.M congregations in Chiradzulu and Mlanje, with some support from other independent African churches in the Shire Highlands. In the third part of the plan, the forces of the Ncheu revolt based on the local independent Seventh Day Baptists would move south to link up with Chilembwe. He hoped that discontented Africans on European estates, relatives of soldiers killed in the war and others would join as the rising progressed. It is uncertain if Chilembwe had definite plans in the event of failure; some suggest he would seek a symbolic death, others that he planned to escape to Mozambique. The first and third parts of the plan failed almost completely: some of his lieutenants did not carry out their attacks, so few arms were obtained, the Ncheu group had failed to form and move south, and there was no mass support for the rising. The attack on European estates was largely one on the Bruce estates, where W. J. Livingstone was killed and beheaded and two other European employees killed. Three Africans were also killed by the rebels, and European-run mission was also set on fire and a missionary was severely wounded. All the dead and injured were men, as Chilembwe had ordered that women should not be harmed. On 24 January, a Sunday, Chilembwe conducted a service in the P.I.M. church next to a pole impaling Livingstone's head, but by 26 January he realised that the uprising had failed to gain local support. After avoiding attempts to capture him and apparently trying to escape into Mozambique, he was tracked down and killed on 3 February. Most of his leading followers and some other participants were executed after summary trials under Martial law shortly after the revolt failed. The total death toll is unclear, because of theextrajudicial killings carried out by European members of the Nyasaland Volunteer Reserve.
Nyasaland Independence and National Hero Status
Nyasaland gained independence in 1964, taking the name Malawi. Chilembwe's likeness have been seen on the obverse of all Malawian kwacha notes since 1997 until May 2012, when new notes were launched and 500 kwacha of which still honors his portrait. John Chilembwe Day is observed annually on January 15 in Malawi.
Prohibition Remembrance Day U.S. - J a n 1 6
January 17 is the birthday of three of the most iconic Americans ever: Benjamin Franklin, Muhammad Ali, and Al Capone. On January 16, 1919, the day before Alphonse Capone’s 20th birthday, the United States bestowed upon the new father and husband the best birthday present he could ever wish for: the 18th Amendment. Having been ratified by the required 36 states, the 18th amendment declared that a year from its passage, the sale, manufacture and transportation of alcohol would be illegal in the United States. Hence, on January 17, 1920, at 12:01 am the Prohibition Era began. Thanks to Prohibition, Al Capone became the most infamous bootlegger and gangster in U.S. history, until he was convicted, not of racketeering, murder, or bootlegging, but of income tax evasion. Moral of the story: If you’re gonna break every law in the book, don’t mess with the IRS. The 18th Amendment was repealed in 1933. By that time Capone was enjoying a ten-year vacation overlooking the San Francisco Bay from Alcatraz prison, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Justice. Many folks celebrate Prohibition Remembrance Day on January 16, the last day it was legal to drink in 1920. (Technically you could still consume alcohol after January 16, 1920. You just couldn’t make it, sell it, transport it, import it or export it.) Since January 16 is also Religious Freedom Day, I suggest combining the two and celebrating Get Drunk and Pray Day.
Photo: Zsolt Burger preferential terms. Thanks to the programme, more than 100 thousand people, including over 30 thousand children, had the opportunity to enjoy a holiday at Lake Balaton or in other locations in the country for a minimal fee in 2012. Based on last year’s positive experiences, the programme organised by the Hungarian National Holiday Foundation will also continue in 2013. As part of the programme, sixday general and thematic holidays and spring and autumn trips are being organised, and attendance is subject to the payment of a mere HUF 1 to 2 thousand fee per child. The programme is designed to assist those who need help on a shortor long-term basis on account of social and financial difficulties. The pur-
Subs t a nt ia l r e s our c e s e a r m a r k e d f or highe r e duc a t ion, s a y s R ózs a (Online 08 Jan) The Government will work towards an agreement with students on higher education and will make the best use of tight resources both to run the system and to develop it, the Minister of State for Education Rózsa Hoffmann said in an interview for commercial broadcaster Inforádió on Monday evening. The Minister of State pointed out that they are currently working on a proposal that will settle financing for higher education in the long term. In 2013, the Government plans to allocate HUF 70 billion (EUR 240 million) in EU funds and an additional HUF 10 billion from the central budget to the area, she stated, adding that it is the Government's firm intention to reach an agreement
with students. Concerning the handing over of educational institutions to the Klebelsberg Institution Maintenance Centre as of 1 January, Rózsa Hoffmann said the transaction is going ahead smoothly. She added that she is in daily contact with the institution and will actively participate in the restructuring process. In response to the question of whether sixteen university courses will not be state-supported, she said negotiations are underway and a position is being developed that is acceptable for both parties. However, teacher training will continue to be state-funded, Rózsa Hoffmann said, highlighting that according to the Government’s deci-
sion those participating in teacher training may also receive a special scholarship. She emphasized that the system must also attract those who had previously left the profession. She added that legislation on the career model scheme for teachers has been implemented, which also includes wage increases. With regard to the strategy for foreign language education, which was submitted for consultation at the end of last year, she said it is a white paper that does not include deadlines and commitments, only guidelines. The main objective of the strategy is to radically increase the number of people who speak foreign languages, she stressed.
Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(Online 11 Jan) Zsolt Németh, the Parliamentary State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, visited Myanmar, where he was received on January 10 by the Head of State, Then Sein and by Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin. The State Secretary is the first high ranking Hungarian official to visit the country in 25 years. State Secretary Németh conducted talks with Aung Min, the Minister responsible for peace negotiations with
ethnic groups and also met Deputy Foreign Minister Thant Kyaw in Naypyidaw, the administrative capital of the country. The Hungarian State Secretary met with the President of the Lower Chamber of Parliament Shwe Man and President of the Upper Chamber of Parliament Khin Aung Myint. The State Secretary also met with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate is currently a Member of Parliament and
the President of the National League for Democracy (NLD). The visit became possible since Myanmar recently decided to opt for a political opening. President Then Sein, who was elected in the spring of 2011, launched several tangible social and economic reforms. By-elections were held in 2012 with the participation of opposition parties as a result of which NLD candidates were voted into the legislature with an overwhelming majority.
The Hungarian police take firm action against all criminals (Online 11 Jan) The Police take definitive action against every criminal all across Hungary in order to protect human life and property, while maintaining law and order. It is the task of the National Police Force to ensure the protection of property, prevent
crimes and capture criminals. When assessing crimes, race and nationality can serve as neither an aggravating nor mitigating circumstance. An ethnic group cannot be held responsible when some of its members commit serious crimes.
Only the criminals themselves must be held accountable for the crimes they commit. The Hungarian authorities have only one task: to take the strongest possible action against criminals, using the full force of law.
S t r a t e g i c p a r t n e r s h i p a g r e e m e n t w i t h I B M
Prime Minister to attend EPP summit in Cyprus (Online 08 Jan) Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will attend an extraordinary summit of the European People's Party in Limassol on Friday, Bertalan Havasi, the press chief of the prime minister, told Hungarian News Agency MTI on Tuesday.
The meeting will be attended by heads of member parties, as well as presidents and prime ministers of European Union member states, and will focus on the next EU budget and preparations for the 2014 European Parliamentary elections.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso have also been invited to attend the summit.
New York bard conservatory orchestra to perform in Budapest's new music venue (Online 11 Jan) The Ministry of Human Resources welcomes that the chamber orchestra of the acclaimed New York-based Bard College Conservatory of Music will give the next "tune-up" concert in the new Budapest Music Centre (BMC) on January 13. The orchestra composed of teachers, graduate and undergraduate students, regularly tours the world, and will perform in central Europe for the first time. Among its Hungarian members is
cellist Robert Martin, who also serves as the Conservatory's director. The Budapest Music Centre, which will be one of the most significant centre for contemporary music in Hungary, opening officially in March 2013. The Bard Conservatory Orchestra will perform pieces by Mozart, Schubert and Ernő Dohnányi as well as the world premiere of the "Two Mirrors" by Seoul-born Sunbin Kim, fellow at Bard College.
The almost hundred-year-old Bard College's relations look back to 1957 when it provided support and language learning opportunities to 300 young Hungarian refugees after the crushing of the 1956 anti-Soviet revolution. One of them was doctor and writer Laszlo Bitó, who returned to Hungary after 1989 and promoted studying opportunities at the conservatory for Hungarian students.
More money will be allocated to culture in 2013 (Online 10 Jan) Public spending on culture will increase significantly in 2013, Minister of State for Culture László L. Simon announced on 10 January. The politician underlined that the State Secretariat for Culture will have an increased budget of HUF 35 billion this year. Furthermore, other ministries will also have cultural contributions from their own budget; the Ministry of Interior will have 25 billion forints to spend on developing local culture through libraries, theatres, museums, cultural centres. Tax allowances aimed at providing impe-
tus to culture will exceed HUF 10 billion in 2013 and a budget of at least the same size will also be provided to the National Cultural Fund. With regard to questions concerning the autonomy of the National Cultural Fund, he recalled that earlier legislative changes had in fact strengthened its financial and professional independence. As for the rural public education system, László L. Simon underlined that HUF 1.1 billion will be dedicated to carrying out related tasks at county level. The county-level library system will remain as is, while those libraries
that carry out more complex tasks are to be maintained by municipal libraries. He also added that independent theatres will receive the same amount of financial support that they benefited from in 2012. Considering the fact that the mandate of Róbert Alföldi, the Artistic Director of the National Theatre will expire in June, Minister for Human Resources Zoltán Balog today held talks with the newly appointed Artistic Director, Attila Vidnyánszky together with Róbert Alföldi, discussing the future operation of the theatre.
Photo: Gergely Botár
(Online 11 Jan) The Government of Hungary and IBM Hungary Kft concluded a strategic agreement on Friday; the document was signed in Budapest by Minister of State at the Ministry for National Economy Zoltán Cséfalvay and Director General Zsolt Veres of IBM Hungary. Speaking about the agreement which covers the issue of vocational training and suppliers along with innovation, Zoltán Cséfalvay emphasized that the IBM, a company with a global reach and rich history, employs more than 400 thousand mostly highly skilled professionals, conducts significant applied as well as basic research in
informatics development. Zoltán Cséfalvay stressed that the innovation activities of the company often match Hungarian economic policy objectives. The Minister of State also mentioned that that the Ministry for National Economy launched a national consultation forum on the National Innovation Strategy at the end of 2012, which aimed primarily to increase R&D expenditures as percentage of GDP and the number of research posts. He added that the Government made a decision on 17 December last year that in the period 2014-2020 the 60
In the past year the Government introduced several measures to stimulate innovation: regulatory environment has been made more predictable, the notion of research and development has been legally defined and as of 1 January 2013 the Government exempted companies employing researchers with at least PhD titles of paying social contribution tax. In the past year tenders totalling 73bn HUF have been announced from domestic and EU funds, and the Minister of State highlighted among these the three-year tender of 22bn HUF addressing large enterprises and university research facilities.
Miss Colours Hungary 2013 wheelchair beauty pageant (Online 09 Jan) The Miss Colours Hungary 2013 pageant, organised by the Foundation for People in Wheelchairs and Colours Rehab Ltd., was held today under the patronage of Minister of State for Sport at the Ministry of Human Resources István Simicskó. The aim of the organisers was to find a wheel-chaired ambassador, who
could promote accessibility throughout the year and raise awareness about people in wheelchairs. The organisers also presented an award for the most athletic contestant to emphasise the importance of sports in living a healthy life. At the opening ceremony, Deputy State Secretary for Sports Affairs Pál Szekeres, a Paralympic multiple
fencing champion, stated that disabled people also wish to live full lives, to work and to participate in sports, and are capable of standing their ground in these fields. Last year’s winner participated in several equal opportunity and sports events in 2012 and today she was in among the competition’s judges helping to find 2013’s winner.
Old Artists’ Colony in Szentendre under renewal
Religious Freedom Day U.S. - J a n 1 6
Photo: Gergely Botár its 12 global research workshops, and the company owns more patent rights than any other enterprise in the world. The IBM has a rich history in Hungary as well, with a continuous Hungarian market presence since 1936. It currently employs almost 5000 people at its Hungarian affiliates from which about 4000 professionals belong to the sector providing quality services and high added value, and about 1000 people are active in the field of
percent of EU development funds shall be spent directly on economic development instead of the current share of 20 percent. Within that, according to plans, research-development-innovation will be given a special role. 300-400bn forints are expected to be allocated to this field from EU resources. In the period 2014-2020 the management of development programmes will be assigned to the relevant ministries.
IBM Director General Zsolt Veres stressed that the company has been on the Hungarian market for 77 years, and this period has been an era of constant development; they currently have four enterprises in Hungary. In his words the strategic agreement concluded with the Government will assist their activities as investors and suppliers in the field of informatics.
National Religious Freedom Day commemorates the Virginia General Assembly's adoption of Thomas Jefferson's landmark Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom on January 16, 1786. This vital document became the basis for the establishment clause, and led to freedom of religion for all Americans as protected in the religion clause in the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. Religious Freedom Day is officially proclaimed on January 16 each year by an annual statement by the President of the United States. This day is commemorated by the First Freedom Center in Richmond, Virginia by an annual First Freedom Award banquet.
Lima Foundation Week Peru - J a n 1 8
The city of Lima, the capital of Peru, was founded by Francisco Pizarro on 18 January 1535 and given the name City of the Kings. Nevertheless, with time its original name persisted, which may come from one of two sources: Either the Aymara language lima-limaq(meaning "yellow flower"), or the Spanish pronunciation of the Quechuan word rimaq (meaning "talker", and actually written and pronounced limaq in the nearby Quechua I languages). It is worth noting that the same Quechuan word is also the source of the name given to the river that feeds the city, the Rimac river (pronounced as in the politically dominant Quechua II languages, with an "r" instead of an "l"). Early maps of Peru show the two names displayed jointly. In 1988, UNESCO declared the historic center of Lima a World Heritage Site for its originality and high concentration of historic monuments constructed in the time of Spanish presence.
Photo: Károly Árvai (Online 09 Jan) The refurbishment of five of the twelve studios has been completed at the Old Artists’ Colony in Szentendre, where the office of the Hungarian Public Non-Profit Council of Arts (MANK) has also been moved to. State Secretary for Cultural Affairs László L. Simon and CEO of MANK István Sárváry visited the new studios with members of the Hungarian press. The State Secretary talked about the expanded opportunities that MANK provides, such as an im-
Ethiopian Epiphany (Timket) Ethiopia - J a n 1 9
The state of the central sub sector of the state budget in December 2012 Among tax revenues of significant weight, receipts from corporate income tax, value added tax (a significant share of VAT refunds due to the verdict of the European Court of Justice was repaid), personal income tax and duties were significantly higher than last year’s amount. In addition, revenues of budgetary institutions and chapter administered appropriations, as well as interest payments came in also higher compared to the corresponding period of last year. Expenditures: Expenditures of the central government budget in the month of December were almost 226bn HUF lower in comparison to the same month of last year. As far as expenditures are concerned, they were lower regarding special and normative provisions, consumer price subsidies, budgetary institutions as well as expenditures related to state property. That fact that expenditures were lower compared to last year was due to a large extent to debt assumption related to the MÁV Zrt and local governments of counties incurred, as well as the higher than formerly planned capital increase at MFB at the end of 2011. At the same time, in December 2012 the debt of towns with a population below 5000 people was repaid. This item appeared as expenditure of 76bn HUF in the central sub sector’s balance sheet and as revenue of equal amount at local governments. Interest payment balance: Interest payments totaled 58.6bn HUF in December 2012, which was 19.0bn HUF more than in the corresponding period of the previous year. Interest revenues totaled 18.1bn HUF which was 7.1bn HUF higher than last year’s figure. Thus the gap between net interest expenditures (40.5bn HUF) and the figure of the same period of last year as a whole amounted to 11.9bn HUF, due to a different interest payment schedule for this year. Social security funds: The 33.2bn HUF deficit in December 2012 of Social Security
buildings were also insulated and fitted with new windows and doors. The refurbished kitchens, bathrooms and restrooms all serve the comfort of the artists. The work completed so far amounted to 100 million forints, and further refurbishments are expected to cost an additional 70 million forints, which will be funded by the Ministry of Human Resources. The Director added that minor renewal will also take place in the surrounding park and the colony’s gallery.
Swis s a nd H unga r ia n a r t is t s t o de c or a t e c hildr e n's hos pit a l wa r d
In the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, the feast is known as Timkat and is celebrated on the day that the Gregorian calendar calls January 19, but on January 20 in years when Enkutatash in the Ethiopian calendar falls on Gregorian September 12 (i.e. when the following February in the Gregorian calendar will have 29 days). The celebration of this feast features blessing of water and solemn processions with the sacred Tabot.
(Online 08 Jan) Key features of financial processes regarding the central sub sector of the state budget in December 2012 and preliminary data for the year have been published today. In the month of December 2012 the central sub sector of the state budget registered a surplus of 84.2bn HUF. Within that, the central state budget posted a surplus of 119.4bn HUF, while Social Security Funds and extra budgetary state funds recorded deficits of 33.2bn HUF and almost 2.0bn HUF, respectively. In the month of December 2011 the central sub sector of the state budget posted a deficit of 487.1bn HUF. (The discrepancy between data for the month of December in the two years is the consequence of extraordinary expenditures incurred at the end of 2011 and the VAT payments on the revenue side due to the verdict by the European Court of Justice.) The preliminary annual cash flow deficit of the central sub sector of the state budget for the year of 2012 totaled 607.5bn HUF, corresponding to 2.1 percent of GDP, instead of the 671.9bn HUF estimate amended by law. The deficit in the year of 2011 amounted to 1741.6bn HUF. The change in the cash flow deficit of the central sub sector in the year of 2012 serves as a proper basis for achieving the projected 2.7 percent deficit target calculated by EU methodology, which excludes the extra revenues of 50.9bn HUF originating from private pension fund membership transfer as recommended by the ECOFIN Council and undertaken by the Government of Hungary. Final data will be published at the end of March 2013 by the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) in the socalled EDP Report that will be officially forwarded to the European Union. Central government budget Revenues: The revenues of the central government budget for the month of December were almost 316bn HUF higher in comparison to the same month of the previous year.
proved financial support system for young artists that assists their work more efficiently. Regarding arts scholarships, the State Secretary announced that the age limit for applicants will be increased by a year, while the monthly funds available will rise to 100 000 forints and will be available for 12 months. István Sárváry, talking about the refurbishing, stated that in the five studios already completed the roof and the façade were renovated, while the
Funds originated from the 4.3bn HUF surplus of the Pension Fund and the 37.5bn HUF deficit of Health Fund. In the month of December 2011 the compound deficit of the Funds amounted to 53.0bn HUF. On the revenue side social contribution tax payments and health care contribution payments of the Health Fund came in higher than in the previous year. On the expenditure side, (due to structural changes) pension benefit expenditures and drug subsidies at the Health Fund were lower, among others, than in the previous year. Extra budgetary state funds: The negative balance of almost 2.0bn HUF of extra budgetary state funds in the month of December was more favourable than in the same month of the previous year. Total revenues and expenditures of the funds were 39.6bn HUF and 30.3bn HUF higher, respectively, compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. Within revenues, vocational training contributions at the National Employment Fund were higher. In addition, expenditures received as innovation contributions at the Research and Technological Innovation Fund were also more. With regard to expenditures, those related to the Start work programme at the National Employment Fund were higher in comparison to the corresponding month of the previous year. The reason for this is that in line with the intentions of the Government the Start work programme was allocated a larger amount this year, as payments amounted to 15.3bn HUF in December this year whereas the relevant figure for last year was 5.0bn HUF. Furthermore, employment and training subsidies as well as normative expenditures aimed at stimulating employment were also higher. Expenditures at the Research, Technology and Innovation Fund – parallel to higher revenues – were also up compared to the same period of the previous year.
(Online 08 Jan) In April of 2013 Hungarian artists will be painting colourful and cheerful pictures on the walls of the Démétér-house paediatrics department on the territory of Szent László Hospital in Budapest to make children who have to stay at the hospital during their medical treatment happier. This action was announced at a conference today by His Excellency Mr Jean-Francois Paroz, the Ambassador of Switzerland in Hungary and Dr. Albert Royaards, founder and board chairman of the Smiling Hospital Foundation. The project is being financed from the Twinning and Partnership Block Grant within the framework of the Swiss-Hungarian Cooperation Programme under the supervision of Nándor Csepreghy, the Deputy State Secretary Responsible for Develop-
ment Programmes of The Ministry of National Development. The project will be realised with the partnership of experts from the Swiss Anouk Foundation. The Small Project Implementation Agreement was signed on 4 July 2012 and the project’s planned closing date is 1 July 2013. A special, spontaneous piece of art prepared by children, which has also been hand-printed by among others Mr Jean-Francois Paroz, Dr. Albert Royaards and Countess Éva CsákyBornemissza, founder of the Smiling Hospital Foundation, was presented at the conference. The Deputy State Secretary welcomed the initiative and expressed his hope that such charitable projects would be realised in the future as well. The European Commission and
Switzerland signed a bilateral agreement on 27 February 2006 regarding the Swiss Contribution established by the Swiss government. In accordance with the Agreement, Switzerland shall provide non-reimbursable funding totalling CHF 1 billion (HUF 240.75 billion) over a 5-year period to the ten new Member States who joined to the EU in 2004. Hungary has received funding of 130,738 million Swiss Francs (31,475 billion Hungarian forints) within the framework of the programme. During the programme, a total of 32 individual projects, 2 block grants, 1 Swiss scholarship programme and 1 venture capital fund were approved. All the projects must be realized by June 2017.
Se v e r a l m e m be r s of t he Gov e r nm e nt t o v is it C hina t his y e a r (Online 08 Jan) The Prime Minister and several members of the Government plan to visit China this year, Minister of Foreign Affairs János Martonyi said on Tuesday. A visit by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is scheduled in the first half of 2013, Minister Martonyi said in a written reply to a Socialist lawmaker's inquiry posted on Parliament's website. A meeting of the Hungarian-Chinese joint economic committee, attended
by co-chair Minister of National Economy Matolcsy, will take place concurrently. Deputy State Secretary for bilateral affairs Gergely Prőhle, is currently in China, visiting Beijing and Shanghai. In 2013 Deputy State Secretary for Global Affairs Szabolcs Takács will also hold talks in Beijing, while a visit by Minister of State for Health at the Human Resources Ministry Miklós Szócska, as well as by Minister of State for Justice Róbert Répássy are
to take place later in the year. Officials of the Ministry of Rural Development are scheduled to attend the next meeting of the HungarianChinese agricultural working group, as well as the 8th China-Central Europe Agricultural and Trade Forum. These visits serve to fulfil the foreign policy strategy of global opening, announced by the Government in 2010, giving special focus to boosting relations with the East, Minister Martonyi said.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to attend the FIFA Ballon d'Or Gala in Zurich (Online 07 Jan) Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, founder of the Ferenc Puskás Football Academy, has been invited to the FIFA Ballon d'Or Gala in Zurich to be held today, the Prime Minister's spokesman Bertalan Havasi told Hungarian News Agency MTI.
On this occasion, the Ferenc Puskás award will be presented to the player who scored the most spectacular goal of the preceding year. Three scorers are in contention for the prize: title-holder Neymar (Santos) of Brazil, Radamel Falcao (Atletico Madrid) of Colombia and Miroslav
Stoch (Fenerbahce) of Slovakia. The prize is in honour of the legendary Hungarian footballer Ferenc Puskás. The FIFA Ballon d’Or will also be awarded at the event to the player who is considered to have performed most successfully in the previous season.
Foreign Minister Martonyi recovering in hospital (Online 07 Jan) Due to the illness of Foreign Minister János Martonyi, Parliamentary State Secretary Zsolt Németh represented the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the
opening of the Hungarian– Italian Cultural Year at the Italian Cultural Institute in Budapest on January 6. Minister Martonyi has been receiving treatment at the
hospital of the Hungarian Defense Forces since December 27, 2012. The latest clinical tests show an improvement in his condition.
We the staff of Worldwide Events / Zarb-e-Jamhoor newspaper deeply saddened to hear that H.E. János Martonyi is not in good health at this time. We pray for his health and fast revitalization. We wish to gain full fitness and return to his conscientiousness as soon as possible.
Photo: Gergely Botár
Prime Minister to propose concrete business projects in China (Online 10 Jan) Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will make proposals for concrete investment projects in China where he is expected this spring, following the formation of the new Chinese Government, Deputy State Secretary Gergely Prőhle told Hungarian News Agency MTI in Beijing. One of Hungary’s objectives as current president of the Central European Initiative (CEI) and of the
Visegrád Four group is to develop the region’s transport infrastructure, Prőhle stated, after his meeting with China’s Deputy Foreign Minister Song Tao. This goal meets China’s plans to develop economic, cultural, and scientific relations with Central and Eastern Europe, he said, adding that the Chinese Government had earmarked 10 billion USD for these purposes.
Deputy State Secretary Prőhle said they discussed student exchange programs as well and Song Tao confirmed grants offered for 100 Hungarian students at Chinese universities. He stated that concerning cultural cooperation the focus is on organizing meaningful and rich programs in the already existing cultural institutions instead of opening new ones.
More than 2.4 billion forints for young talents (Online 10 Jan) More than 2.4 billion forints (EUR 8.3m) are available for supporting young talents and their mentors in Hungary and in ethnic communities in the Carpathian Basin under the national talent support programme, the Minister of State for Education Rózsa Hoffmann said on Thursday. The amount earmarked in grants under the 2011/2012 programme is
four times greater than in the previous budget, Minister of State Hoffmann stated at a press conference, adding that in December last year, applications for a total of 30 grants had been invited for an amount of close to 1 billion forints. She also said that this February, 33 grants worth 1.4 billion forints will be announced, while last year, under the 2010/2011 programme, an amount of
613.9 million forints was awarded in grants for 827 winning projects covering over 334,000 students and 139 localities. Deputy General Secretary of the Hungarian Academy of Science (MTA), Valéria Csépe said that the programs are aimed at people from different age groups, social backgrounds and countries.
Zsolt Semjén on measures by the Slovakian Police with relation to Hungarians in Southern Slovakia (Online 09 Jan) Deputy Prime Minister responsible for the Hungarian Government's national policy Zsolt Semjén was shocked when he was made aware of the fact that on Tuesday Slovakian police once again fined several Hungarian nationals living in
the region of Southern Slovakia for refusing to hand in their identification cards, which according to the Slovakian citizenship act and related regulations have become invalid. Zsolt Semjén agrees with the declaration by the Hungarian Community
Party in which they request an active standpoint from the European Union with regard to the stripping of rights in Slovakia and the continued harassment of those involved.
Exhibition on the life of rescuer and Hungarian diplomat Komor opened in Shanghai (Online 09 Jan) An exhibition dedicated to the Pál Komor, entitled The Forgotten Pearl of Peace, was opened in Shanghai this Wednesday by Deputy State Secretary Gergely Prőhle. Pál Komor (1886-1973), a Hungarian diplomat, assisted several thousand European Jews in finding asylum in China during the Second World War. He issued identity documents for European Jews who had to escape from their Nazi-occupied homeland be-
tween 1938 and 1942. He – along with Victor Sassoon, a British citizen – set up the International Committee for European Immigrants in China, which, later, was often referred to as the Komor Committee. Both Chinese and Japanese authorities accepted these documents, ensuring that refugees could stay in China and return to Europe after the war. Komor also assisted Jewish refugees by providing them food and accommodation.
At the opening of the exhibition Deputy State Secretary Gergely Prőhle lauded the human greatness of the Hungarian diplomat, and stressed that Komor always adhered to his principles and served as an example for helping others. The exhibition introduces his through several photos, documents and letters, while a workshop discussion was also dedicated his activities and legacy.
Returning the holy crown established a strong tie between Hungary and the United States (Online 09 Jan) The deserved safekeeping and return of the Holy Crown established a rarely mentioned but very strong tie between Hungary and the United States of America – stated Hungarian Minister of Defence Csaba Hende in Budapest on January 5, at a ceremony held to mark the 35th anniversary of the return home of the crown. Speaking in the Church of our Lady in the Inner City of Budapest, Minister Hende said that we must preserve this tie since “we have allied to protect freedom, to protect our common freedom.” We must remember what a great treasure we have in Hungarian freedom and the Holy Crown incorporating it. “Let us remember those heroes and friends of ours who have preserved and kept them for us”, the Minister added. In his speech delivered at the event, Timothy Alan Betts, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy pointed out that the return of the Holy Crown symbolizes the trust between the two nations. He reminded his audience that diplomatic relations between the two countries go back more than 90 years. He added that the
safekeeping of the Holy Crown had been a very great honor to America. The Holy Crown and the related coronation regalia returned to Hungary 35 years ago, on January 6, 1978. Acting “on behalf of the American people”, in the Parliament building US Secretary of State Cyrus Vance presented to the Hungarian people their national relics that had gone to American hands in the spring of 1945 in Austria. At the end of World War II the coronation relics were taken to Veszprém to save them from the advancing Soviet forces. In early December 1944, the crown guards rescued the jewels to Kőszeg, then to Velem, and in March 1945 to Mariazell, Austria and then to Mattsee where they dug them in a barrel on the night of April 26. When the crown guards were taken prisoners of war by the Americans, they revealed the hiding place, so the treasures went intact to the hands of the US military. The objects – which are so precious to the Hungarian nation – were first transported from Augsburg to the vault of a bank in Frankfurt, and then to the United States, where they were finally held in Fort Knox.
The decision to return the crown and the coronation regalia was taken by US President Jimmy Carter. To him, the return of the relics was not a political issue but rather a matter of conscience and morality, because these symbols of the past and statehood of a nation were away from their rightful owner – the Hungarian people – without any international agreements. At the end of October 1977 secret negotiations started on the implementation of the return, but their leaking to the press sparked a heated debate on the presidential decision, as several Members of Congress and part of the Hungarian exiles opposed it. After restoration, the crown and the coronation regalia were taken to the Hungarian National Museum where they were on display for 20 years. In accordance with the Parliament’s decision, on January 1, 2000 the Holy Crown, the orb, the scepter and the sword were ceremonially transported to Parliament building (the mantle remained in the museum). Since then, the coronation jewels have been on display there, and the Honvéd Crown Guard has been guarding the Holy Crown since 2011.