Raoul Wallenberg, honorary citizen of Budapest, rescuer of ten thousands of Hungarian citizens would be one hundred years old in 2012. At its session on 2 November 2011 the Government has taken a decision according to which, on the occasion of the centennial, Hungary shall duly commemorate the rescuer Swedish diplomat in the context of the Raoul Wallenberg Year. On this occasion we shall recall this tragic period of the past in Hungary and at our foreign representations, and we shall also commemorate the deeds of other rescuers besides Wallenberg.

Following the decision taken by the Government, the Wallenberg Commemorative Committee, which shall coordinate the programmes of the Wallenberg Year in Hungary and abroad, has held its inaugural session on 9 November 2011. The Commemorative Committee is led by Zsolt Németh, Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and by Swedish Ambassador Karin Olofsdotter.

At its inaugural session the Commemorative Committee has decided about the main events of the Wallenberg Year. The official opening ceremony of the Commemorative Year will take place on 17 January 2012 in the Hungarian National Museum. The Museum will host the travelling photo exhibition of the Kingdom of Sweden presenting Wallenberg’s life. The planned programmes involve conferences dealing with moral, human rights and foreign affairs issues, while several initiatives will target the younger generations. An exhibition on Wallenberg and the activity of the rescuers who surrounded him in Hungary will also be part of the Centennial.

The Members of the Commemorative Committee are: Balog Zoltán, Secretary of State for Social Inclusion, Ministry of Public Administration and Justice; András Balogh, Vice-President, Hungarian Socialist Party (MSZP); Szabolcs Bihari, President, Association of Hungarians in Sweden; János Fónagy, Secretary of State for Parliamentary Affairs, Ministry of National Development; Ágnes Gavallérné Kancsal, Director, the Raoul Wallenberg Secondary and Vocational School; Gábor Gordon, President, March of the Living Hungary Foundation; István Gyarmati, President, Centre for Democracy Public Foundation; Rita Izsák, President, Tom Lantos Institute; Tibor Kertész, Member of the Board, Electrolux; Katrina Lantos Swett, President, Tom Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice; Ilan Mor, Ambassador of the State of Israel; Mihály Nagy, Ministry of National Resources (NEFMI); Ferenc Orosz, Chairman, Raoul Wallenberg Association; András Schiffer, faction leader, Politics Can be Different (LMP); Mária Schmidt, Director General, House of Terror Museum; György Szabó, representative of the Hungarian Jewish Heritage Public Foundation(MAZSÖK); László Szászfalvi, Secretary of State for Church, Minority and Non-governmental Relations, Ministry of Public Administration and Justice (KIM); Szabolcs Szita, Director, Holocaust Memorial Center; János Takács, President, Swedish Chamber of Commerce; László Tőkés, Vice-President of the European Parliament; Miklósné Váli, Raoul Wallenberg’s former colleague, rescued by him; Louise von Dardel, member of the Wallenberg family, honorary member of the International Raoul Wallenberg Foundation; Josef Weiss, honorary consul general in Jerusalem; Carl Michael L. Wernstedt, member of the Wallenberg family; and Anna Miklós, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the Secretary of the Commemorative Committee.

(kormany.hu)