On Wednesday evening Zoltán Kovács, Minister of state for Government Communication, and Fidesz MEP György Schöpflin took part in a political debate at the prestigious London School of Economics. The subject was the policies of the present Hungarian Government, and domestic and economic affairs in Hungary since the political transition of 1989-1990.
The Government has approved an equestrian programme named after ‘Kincsem’, the historic Hungarian racehorse. This programme aims to develop the Hungarian equestrian sector and ensure its sustainability, integrating national equestrian education culture, horse riding tourism, stud farms, equestrian sports, hippotherapy and horse racing. Thus Hungary’s role in horse tourism, based on a long and famous tradition of horsemanship, may increase still further within Europe.
The number of churches recognised by Parliament has risen to thirty-two. Parliament decided on the amendment of Act CCVI of 2011 on the Freedom of Conscience and Religion and the Status of Churches, Religious Denominations and Religious Communities on 27 February.
Hungary would like to thank the people and politicians of the Republics of Lithuania and Poland – including, of course, the Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk – for standing by Hungary in its efforts to determine its own fate, and for espousing Hungary's right to sovereignty and self-determination.
Zoltán Kovács, Minister of State for Government Communication, took part in a round-table discussion on the subject of the eurozone crisis at the Paris office of the European Commission.
Thomas Hammarberg, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe, welcomes as a positive development that Hungary has made its legislation concerning assembly more stringent in order to regulate and sanction unlawful demonstrations designed to create fear. The report also acknowledges that the European Roma Framework Strategy was conceived under the coordination of the Hungarian Government. Hungary was the first Member State to complete and submit to the European Commission its own inclusion strategy, the National Social Integration Strategy.
Minister of State for Government Communication Zoltan Kovacs participates at a seminar on the topic: “Euro crisis/ the new European Treaty/Europe: what do the countries of the EU last enlargement think of it” in the office of the European Commission in Paris.
The Government is launching a comprehensive programme equalling HUF 410 million (approx. EUR 1.41 million), aimed at helping families in extreme poverty. The first model programme is to start in the provincial town of Szolnok.
On Saturday 25 February across the country there will be commemoration events for the victims of communism. On this day in 1947 Béla Kovács, the Secretary General of the Independent Smallholders’ Party, was unlawfully arrested and deported to the Soviet Union. Following a decision adopted by the first Orbán government in 2000, all secondary education institutions mark this anniversary. The Government of Hungary’s official commemoration event will take place this Saturday afternoon outside the House of Terror Museum at Andrássy út 60; this institution is ten years old this year.
The Hungarian Government is launching a comprehensive 4.7 billion-forint settlement rehabilitation programme using EU funds, for which local governments may submit their applications by 31 March 2012. The sub-measure coded 5.3.6.-11-1 within the Social Renewal Operational Programme (SROP, in Hungarian: TÁMOP) provides opportunities for social inclusion for those living in disadvantaged settlements, in deep poverty, and in segregation.