At the celebratory session marking the 30th anniversary of Hungary’s first free parliament after the fall of the communist regime, President János Áder gave a speech in Parliament on Saturday.
“What we created over the past thirty years has withstood the test of time … Hungary is an independent, democratic state under the rule of law, a free country,” President Áder said.
In his speech, the president proposed to “use as a resource” the experience of the past thirty years to resolve the problems posed by the novel coronavirus epidemic “so we can soon enjoy freedom again”.
According to MTI, the president said the first session of the first freely elected parliament on May 2, 1990, “marked the end of an era”. The first Hungarian parliament after the communist era had the task to build a state on the rule of law, prepare the ground for freedom, strengthen its constitutional basis and set up the institutions of democracy and the nation’s sovereignty.
President Áder thanked all those working on creating the new political and constitutional system. He also thanked the first president, Árpád Göncz, the first prime minister, József Antall, and the Speaker of the first Parliament, György Szabad.
Hungarians at the time of the regime change fought for Hungary to “become the homeland we all call ours … an independent country serving no one … and a community where the love of country does not only mean that people are faithful to the country but that the country also keeps faith with them.”
After the first free elections in 45 years, the first free parliament had the task to put the country on a path to an economy based on a free market, competition and private property; where the country becomes an equal partner in strong alliances; where its borders could be crossed freely; where the country becomes a member of the European Union and NATO. “[That is when] Hungary became truly Hungary again,” President Áder said.