On 25 February, in remembrance of the victims of communist dictatorships, a memorial event took place in plot 300 of the Rákoskeresztúr New Public Cemetery.

Within the framework of the commemoration service, a monument indicating and depicting the national memorial site was inaugurated by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. In his address, he stated that as long as a single person lives in Hungary who had been prosecuted and tortured under Communist dictatorship, the lifting of the ban on totalitarian symbols is not timely and opposes the provisions of the Fundamental Law on human dignity.

The Prime Minister stressed that a country has to be built where nobody can be discriminated against the basis of their gender, race, religion or political views.

The unveiling of the monument was attended by former Prime Minister Péter Boross, Chairman of the National Memorial and Funerary Committee, as well as by victims of political persecution and representatives of political parties, local governments, churches and the defence forces. Following the ceremony, candles were lit in honour of the victims.

Plots 298, 300 and 301 of the Rákoskeresztúr New Public Cemetery are important memorial sites to post-1945 Hungarian history where politicians, soldiers, public figures, workers, students and farmers who were sentenced and executed on false accusations in mock trials after 1945 and 1956 are buried. Prior to 1990, the cemetery was the scene of silent protests against the incumbent communist regime, evoking memories of 1956.

The nation pays its respects to the memory of the victims with a compassionate heart and thoughts of gratitude, the Prime Minister said.
In the afternoon, there will be a special guided tour in the Terror House Museum for members of the diplomatic corps and foreign students studying in Hungary, led by Director Mária Schmidt and Minister of State for Public Diplomacy Zoltán Kovács. Entry to the Museum will be free of charge for all visitors.

On the evening of the Memorial Day, the victims of Communism will be honoured with the lighting of candles at the Buda end of the Chain Bridge.

On 25 February 1947, Béla Kovács, General Secretary of the Independent Smallholders’ Party, was unlawfully arrested and later deported to the Soviet Union. In 2000, a resolution adopted by the first Orbán government declared this day to be the annual Memorial Day for the Victims of Communism. The number of people killed by communist dictatorships in Central Europe is estimated at around one million; however, the number of those who were physically and psychologically crippled by the everyday reality of dictatorship may be even greater.

(Prime Minister's Office)