March 30th, 2011

Foreign ministry summons Bratislava consul over controversial interview

Hungary’s foreign ministry has summoned Hungary’s consul to Bratislava, Geza Farkas, in connection with a controversial interview he gave to a local news website, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

Farkas is reported as having told the website that a “cult” surrounding two Slavic 9th century Christian missionaries, Cyril and Methodius, had been manufactured at a later date.

The ministry said Farkas had voiced his personal opinion in the interview and his views should not be considered the ministry’s official standpoint.

According to Slovakia’s Hungarian-language paper Uj Szo, Farkas had been attacked over statements made in the interview to bumm.sk on February 2.

Slovak cultural association, Matica Slovenska, the Pan-Slavic Union, and the Movement for a Democratic Slovakia (HZDS) have all protested against his statement.

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6 Comments

  1. Viking says:

    So, not only the Slovaks are bad then?
    Hungarian official foreign diplomats goes on the record stating things that are clearly seen, by both parties, as attacks against Slovakia
    With that type of employees the Hungarian Foreign Ministry it is no surprise Hungarian officials find other parties to be a bit ‘negative’ to them

  2. Blazon says:

    This article is very mild. He literally said that
    Slovakia has no history to build on and it’s a shame
    that Slovaks are trying to make one up. I don’t see
    any reason to blame him, he was just being honest.
    All Hungarian politics in Slovakia are thinking the
    same way…

  3. vdx says:

    “Hungary’s foreign ministry has summoned Hungary’s consul to Bratislava, Geza Farkas, in connection with a controversial interview he gave to a local news website, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.”
    As it seems, based on the reports from Slovak media, Hungary has summoned its consul after silent protests from Slovakia’s foreign ministry, i.e. hardly on Hungarian initiative and nearly 2 months after he gave that interview.
    It’s indeed quite interesting reading of the “personal opinions” of the official representative of Hungarian government.
    Labeling the missionaires Cyril and Methodius as some kind of cult or saying that Slovakia has borrowed the attributes of the state as some kind of licence.. this kind of rhetoric is usually expected coming from the supporters of Jobbik, eventually can be heard from certain circles of transatlantic Hungarians to whom “Nem nem soha” is still ringing soundly in their ears.
    It’s nevertheless quite peculiar occurence coming this from the representative of the government, leader of which likes to speak (at least when being abroad to foreign audience) about the mutual respect that he holds/expects to be hold towards others nations/Hungarians.

  4. Czech Nationalist says:

    “So, not only the Slovaks are bad then?”
    Only the Slovaks are bad. Now you know.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Blazon,
    Hungary has no successful history during the last hundred years to build upon.
    Your eyes are still green with envy over those Slovak mountains.

  6. Czech Nationalist says:

    “Slovak mountains”
    The mountains look the same. What was the purpose of renaming them?