Semjen: Hungarian state aims to preserve nation

The only way the Hungarian nation will survive is if every part of it survives, Semjen, the deputy PM in charge of Hungarian communities abroad, church policy and national and ethnic minorities, said. If a part of the nation, such as the ethnic Hungarian communities in Slovakia or Romania, were to disappear, it would endanger the survival of the nation as a whole, he said.

“Every nation is a unique and one-of-a-kind asset,” Semjen said. “They possess values that only they can give to humanity, so anything that truncates the existence of a nation ultimately truncates the wealth of humanity’s assets.”

He said internationalism and chauvinism went against Hungarians’ idea of a nation, adding that all nations had a mission to preserve and present their own values and heritage.

Semjen said Hungary’s policy for ethnic Hungarians abroad was focused on strengthening the nation. Since 2010, government spending on schemes aimed at preserving national identity among ethnic Hungarians in neighbouring countries has increased more than tenfold, he said.

The government has also launched economic development programmes across the Carpathian Basin, he noted, arguing that besides preserving their national identity, ethnic Hungarians also needed to be given a chance to make a living in their homelands.