Caught In The Middle

The President of Hungary,  László Sólyom, visited Wellington on Sunday, 27th September as part of a four-day visit to New Zealand.  The last time the President of Hungary visited New Zealand was on 1999 when Árpád Göncz came to our shores.  I don’t want to write a lot about Sólyom’s visit or about what he said, or what he did.  Sólyom is a somewhat controversial figure in Hungary and especially so given the toxic political environment there and he carries a reputation for being somewhat austere and remote almost.  This is especially so in comparison to Göncz who was known affectionately in Hungarian as Árpi bácsi, which is the avuncular form of his name.   And my memory of him was exactly that: the delightful, charming uncle of the family. He took an immediate fondness to our children, Zsófi and Gábor, when he met them we have a charming photo of him sitting on a couch, the children sitting either side of him, his arms stretched around each of them.  Mind you, when Göncz had visited Melbourne, Australia, prior to coming here, one or two Hungarians had shouted “rat” at his speech to the strong local Hungarian community – a reference to his alleged informing on his fellow prisoners while in the Vác prison as a result of his anti-government activities in 1956. So as with anything Hungarian one must always be mindful of the shadows.

But back to Sólyom and his visit to Wellington.  The highlight was a state luncheon in his honour, held in Parliament and hosted by the New Zealand government and the Magyar Millennium Park Trust, the organisation that manages the Hungarian Garden here. In a short ceremony at around noon, he laid a special paver in commemoration of his visit here and then proceeded, on foot, to Parliament Building, some 300 metres away, entourage in tow.  The lunch was a success.  There were speeches of course, but all were relevant, short and worth listening too, including that of course by His Excellency. There were also performances by various members of the local Hungarian community.  The President was especially taken with the performance of the local children’s dance group and at the end of their performance gladly posed for a group photo with them. He looked genuinely happy to do so.

His speech was warm and to the point.  Hungarians should preserve their culture and stick together as much as possible.  He spoke in Hungarian but he had an interpreter for the English-only amongst the audience.  ( I must say that the interpreter was  sublime.  He managed to convey the President’s words in perfect English with a warmth and sincerity that was appreciated by everyone.  I understand he has been the English interperter for several Hungarian Prime Ministers and it is easy to see why. He is the best.)  Sólyom was keen to hear of practical suggestions as to how Hungarians so far from their homeland can maintain their “Hungarianess” and offered to make himself available to those at the luncheon who wished to talk with him.  And this he did.  Many came up to him, spoke their piece, had their photograph taken with him, and moved on.

I was most impressed indeed at his openness and good manner in which he took it all.  I am sure he gave many who spoke with him a good listening to.  Anyone who knows Hungarians, will know that they are not shy about speaking their mind, not matter whom they are speaking with!  The point here was that he made himself accessible to any and all who wanted to have a few words with him.  Good on him, I say!  He may not seem that charismatic on television or other media, but in person he came across as a warm, caring man. Perhaps he is not quite Laci bácsi^[1], but nonetheless he is clearly a good man.

I am glad to have been part of his visit, and glad that he visited our shores, the most distant of any from Hungary.

Footnotes

Back to post. ¹ László is the same as Leslie in English. It is probably of Slavic origin because in Czech and Russian the equivalent is Vladislav. In Hungarian the diminutive, Laci or Les in English, is most commonly used for anyone called László.  Bácsi means Uncle so Laci bácsi literally means Uncle Les, but somehow in Hungarian, it sounds and means something much more affectionate and avuncular.

Totally shameless self-plug here, but the current edition of the EEO Trust’s ^[1] quarterly publication. ‘Diversity in Action‘, [pdf link] features an interview with me on page seven and has a lovely photo my Zsofi, my daughter. The article was about Kiwi leaders who sponsor women in the workforce. I make no claims that this that I am anything special in this regard, but the article did reinforce the idea that men who have daughters are more likely to ‘sponsor’ or ‘promote’ women in the workforce. There are of course other factors at play, such as a positive experience of women managers, but according to research, men with daughters are more likely to be supportive of women in the workforce.

The nice thing about this publication is my quote, “That could be my daughter one day”, was used on the front cover. Perhaps this is my 15 minutes of fame, but I’ll take it nonetheless.

Footnotes

1. Return To Post. Equal Employment Opportunity Trust. Established to “provide information and tools … and raise awareness of diversity issues in the workplace.” Website is www.eeotrust.org.nz.

A wonderful exhibition has opened at the Lesa Gallery of Peter Lendvai, a Hungarian artist living in New Zealand.  If you live in Wellington check it out!  One of the great things about this exhibition is that it is five minutes walk from my work in Petone.  What a city!

Another great photo of the Petone Wharf (or Ponton à Petone as originally described ). I particular like the sense of distance this photo evokes. Whenever I take a lunchtime walk along the wharf, I am confronted by this sense of distance as I start. It is as if the wharf is reaching out into the unknown: more likely a southerly, but you know what I mean.

Posted on Flickr by Airflore.

I love this photo of my old home town. The sweep of the clouds across the harbour gives the photo a wonderful sense of distance and makes the city seem almost dwarfed by the sea and sky. The sea and the beaches of St Clair and St Kilda are indeed “just beyond” the harbour. This photo is a perfect illustration of Denis Glover’s ode to his place of birth, Dunedin Revisited.

Under Flagstaff’s boulders
Beds the town; and the houses
Complacent over one anothers shoulders
Look on a harbour as pleasant as a pond
- With gate-crashing rollers just beyond
Where remotely the sugared island still
Winters in the Pacific’s hug and maul.

The photo was posted on Flickr by Branxholm.