The 16th annual Hungarian Jewish Summer Festival is currently being held in Budapest between 25 August and 2 September and offers various programs introducing Jewish culture. The festival is the largest of its kind in Europe and this year the Prime Minister’s Office is sponsoring the event with 58 million forints.

Organisers expect a record number of visitors, including high-ranking politicians from Israel, such as Deputy Speaker of the Knesset Meir Sheetrit or Joel Razbozov, Chairman of the Knesset’s Diaspora Committee.

The Festival’s opening ceremony took place on Sunday at the Hungarian National Gallery, where Mr. Razbozov gave a speech in which he recalled that culture has the unique ability to connect people and their traditions, and to convey a sense of solidarity. Israeli Ambassador Ilan Mor, who also spoke at the event, stated that the Festival is further proof of the common cultural heritage that must also be cultivated. On behalf of the Government, Political Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Szabolcs Takács was also present at the event.

This year’s Festival offers a variety of exhibitions, concerts, dance performances, as well as film and book premieres. With a multi-cultural program series, the organisers want to emphasise the importance of the peaceful coexistence of different cultures and strengthen the intercultural and interpersonal relationships between people.

The Hungarian Government remains committed to deepening relations with the Jewish community in Hungary. In order to further this cause, this coming school year as well, student groups can visit the Holocaust Memorial Centre free of charge.

These efforts were welcomed by Democratic members of the U.S. Congress David N. Cicilline and Lois Frankel, in a letter recently sent to Hungarian Ambassador in Washington György Szapáry. They acknowledged the Hungarian Government’s activities in combating anti-Semitism and expressed their appreciation for the Government’s “zero tolerance policy” on this issue. For the letter please see here.

(Prime Minister’s Office)