Hungarian Jews decry monument to controversial WWII leader

The Federal of Jewish Communities in Hungary (Mazsihisz) denounced the plan to build a memorial in Szeged to Miklós Horthy, a controversial WWII leader of Hungary who allied with Nazi Germany in the late 1930s.

“The Federation of Jewish Communities in Hungary considers the plan to erect a memorial plaque in Szeged to Miklós Horthy unacceptable since he was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Hungarian citizens,” Mazsihisz said in a statement.

Mazsihisz decried the monument as contrary to the zero tolerance for antisemitism policy of the government, urging the authorities to prevent the inauguration of the plaque.

“Only a few weeks after the statue of Miklós Horthy was improperly placed in the Hungarian Parliament, unfortunately, the Mazsihisz must now once again raise its voice against yet another manifestation of the Horthy cult – unfortunately present in the society,” they said.

According to Hungarian media reports, a day-long event will be held on October 15 to honor Horthy. During the celebration, a memorial plaque will be installed honoring the former Hungarian governor, “whose antisemitic conviction was well-known and was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Hungarian citizens during the war,” Mazsihisz said.

“Mazsihisz cannot accept that Béla Mihálffy, an MP of the ruling coalition parliamentary group, is preparing to give a speech in Szeged in honour of the antisemitic ex-governor,” they added.

They urged the ruling coalition to act “in accordance with the norms of the civilized world” based on the fact that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has pledged zero tolerance for antisemitism.

“Mazsihisz calls on the government and the representatives of the Fidesz-KDNP faction to prevent the inauguration of the memorial plaque and not to give the representative of the government coalition the opportunity to pay tribute to a politician with antisemitic conviction.”

They described the tribute on behalf of the ruling party as “unacceptable and unforgivable.”

“If the above request of the Mazsihisz, representing the Hungarian Jewish community, is not heeded, the proclaimed principle of zero tolerance can only be seen as a political gesture, nothing more. We hope that this is not the case, and that the leaders of the state, government and parliament will do everything they can to prevent another manifestation of the Horthy cult and the desecration of the memory of hundreds of thousands of martyrs.”