“There are many ‘Hungarian-friendly’ politicians in Germany who would like to help Hungary and feel that there is a need in Europe for the position that Hungary represents, for instance with relation to migration”, the Ministry of Human Capacities’ State Secretary for Family and Youth Affairs Novák Katalin said in a statement to Hungarian news agency MTI in assessment of her negotiations in Frankfurt, Germany.
“Thirty years ago, via its opening of the border that created an opportunity for the reunification of Germany, Hungary contributed to a historic turnaround in the fate of Europe and Germany, and now it professes that this same Europe must be protected even via the construction of border fences”, the State Secretary highlighted.
She added that with its policy of placing families at the focus of attention, Hungary is also “offering an alternative” to the migration pressure weighing down on Europe, and through protecting Christian culture and insisting on is Judaeo-Christian roots, it is contributing to “Europe becoming stronger”.
“Increased awareness of this approach must be achieved through personal meetings and dialogue based on mutual respect. It is important for Hungarian and German politicians to talk to each other as much as possible, and it is important for us to not only communicate via the media and not form opinions of each other based solely on the mistaken information and the negative and unfavourable images provided by the media”, Ms. Novák emphasised, adding that this was one of the reasons for her visit to the German state of Hessen on Monday.
She told the press that, amongst others, she had met with the state government’s Minster for European and Federal Affairs Lucia Putrich with whom, in addition to common European challenges, she had also discussed demographics and family policy issues. As she explained, the German Christian Democratic Union (CSU) politician “showed great interest, and several issues cropped up with relation to which it transpired that it is important to them to acquire background information in view of the fact that this enables them to develop a totally different view with relation to the measures than if they only gain their information from the media”.
In her telephone statement, Ms. Novák added that her negotiating partner had praised the fact that employment among women and the number of births and marriages in Hungary have hit a twenty-year high, which indicates that the Hungarian Government’s family policy is achieving results.
The State Secretary said that Hungary’s new Honorary Consul to the State of Hessen, former Executive Chairman of the German-Hungarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce (DUIHK) Jürgen Illing, had taken office during her visit. “His work is an ‘added resource’ that further reinforces relations between Hungary and Hessen within the fields of the economy, science and culture”, she highlighted.
Ms. Novák also spoke about the fact that at the invitation of the Frankfurt chapter (Hayek-Club Frankfurt) of the Hayek Association (Friedrich A. von Hayek Gesellschaft), which was formed to propagate the ideals of Nobel Prize winning economist and philosopher Friedrich August von Hayek, she had given a lecture on the demographic challenges facing Europe and possible responses to them. At the event, which was followed by a panel discussion that lasted late into the evening, she presented the Hungarian example and family-centred politics, pointing out, amongst others, that compared to 2010 two and a half times as much funding is being provided to family support system, which as a result has reached an outstanding level in European comparison compared to the economy’s performance.
The State Secretary added that she had also showcased the Family Protection Action Plan to be launched in July, which has gained a high level of attention abroad, including in Germany, in view of the fact that, for instance, it affords women with four or more children a lifelong exemption from having to pay personal income tax, which is “an almost unimaginable opportunity” in Germany.