We are the heirs of the regime changers

Today's generation of politicians are the heirs of those who changed the regime, President Katalin Novák stressed at the event of the „Conversations in the Sándor Palace” on Monday, adding that "we respect and love the great generation that came before us".

Speaking at the launch of the book "Regime Change from Within " authored by former Interior Minister Imre Kónya, the Head of State said that today's politicians have a choice, and they must choose responsibly. They can squander, preserve or enrich this heritage.

She stressed that the events of the regime change are widely known, but it is important how Imre Kónya remembers them 33 years later, how he sees what happened then, what he considers important even in retrospect, what he highlights, and what this means to us.

She recalled that her own generation of politicians received "democracy ready-made", as they entered public life following the regime change. Therefore, "as children of the regime changers" they still understand what happened in 1989 and the years after, but they are far enough removed from the events then to be able to "look at everything from the outside, critically, and learn from it".

Katalin Novák said that the volume presented at the book launch confirms that laying the foundations for democracy was essential. But the book also shows that the concepts of democracy and nation can be present in our lives at the same time.
The President of Hungary also thanked the author for pointing out the difference between "violence and incentives, coercion and encouragement, silencing and appeasement, the appearance of choice and true choice, repression and decisive leadership, in essence dictatorship and democracy".

The Sándor Palace is not primarily an office, but a meeting place, the Head of State said, referring to the venue of the event. Within the walls of the Sándor Palace, people, thoughts and emotions can meet – she added.

During the podium discussion held at the event, Imre Kónya explained that commitment to the Hungarian nation was the most important reason that made him join his party, the Hungarian Democratic Forum MDF. Moreover, he was impressed by the responsible thinking of the party’s leaders, that they assessed the situation carefully rather than rushing blindly into a position. They “understood the weight of the whole matter" – he stressed.

He recalled that when the Opposition Roundtable was formed, he felt that a political force had been created that could make the authorities introduce changes. That was the moment, he said, when the authorities were "forced to sit down with us, the ragamuffin, barefoot opposition" to agree on the rules for the change.

Imre Kónya said that at the end of the 1980s it was not clear whether a career in politics would lead to success, but it was clear that without change "Hungary would be completely cut off from the course of development" and it would be on a "road to nowhere".

"They tried to divide us," he recalled of the negotiations with the communist authorities, stressing that the dominant parties of the opposition had "enough awareness and restraint" to rise above their own immediate interests and unite.

Imre Kónya said at the event that although good books have been published on the subject, there is still a lot of work to be done to explore the regime change.

"The feature film means more than anything," he said, adding that former participants who have seen the film "Blockade" have a clearly positive opinion of it. He said the film "is a worthy tribute not only to József Antall, but also to Árpád Göncz".