Hungary's government is planning events to mark the WW1 centenary this year and will encourage civil organisations and local municipalities also to organize commemorations, state secretary Bence Retvari said on Thursday.

Retvari told MTI that hundreds of million forints have been allocated for tenders to be invited from January 2014. Civil organizations and local municipalities can apply for funding from this allocation, he added. The government set up the WW1 Centenary Memorial Committee to  work out a detailed concept of the yearlong events that commemorate the heroes and the victims of the WW1.

The state secretary noted that more than 350,000 Hungarian soldiers died between 1914 and 1918 in WW1, nearly twice as many as the Hungarian casualties of WW2.

Retvari emphasized it is our duty to remember them all. He stated: we all must become familiar with the reasons that lead to the break out of the war, the events of 1914-1918 along with the treaties and their consequences.  The WW1 is one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century that truly defines the history of the Hungarian’s 20th century, he added.

(Ministry of Public Administration and Justice)