At its March 2, 2011 session, the Government of the Republic of Hungary decided to set up the Tom Lantos Institute. The mission of the Institute bearing the name of the late Hungarian-American representative will be to support human and minority rights in Central Europe. The opening of the Institute is scheduled to take place in the summer of 2011, and is to be attended by high-level international delegations and visitors.

Tom Lantos was born in Hungary. He was a Democratic Party politician who served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 until his death in 2008. He was the only Holocaust-survivor to serve in the House. He never forgot about his heritage: he paid special attention to Hungarian issues and was a steadfast representative of the interests of ethnic Hungarians. He kept the spotlight on human and minority rights in the broader region of Central Europe.

The main task of the Institute will be to spread democratic values. Specifically, the Institute will study and support human and minority rights from a Central European perspective, thereby helping the peaceful coexistence of majority and minority populations, regional cooperation and stability. In addition, the Institute hopes to become a defining pillar of transatlantic relations, with special regard to cooperation between Central Europe and the United States. The Institute will work to realize these goals through research projects, conferences, study trips and scholarships. In other words, its theoretical work will be complemented by the promotion of peer-to-peer contacts.

The Government of the Republic of Hungary will provide HUF 100 million to support the setting up of the Institute, its expenditures in 2011 and its initial projects.

At their meeting in Washington in July 2010, Minister of Foreign Affairs János Martonyi briefed Secretary of State Clinton about the plans concerning the Institute. President of the Republic Pál Schmitt informed the international community of the establishment of the Institute in his speech delivered before the United Nations General Assembly.

(kormany.hu)