To mark the 20 August national holiday commemorating the founding of the State of Hungary in 1000 CE by Saint Stephen, Hungary’s first Christian king, at the Ministry of Interior on 18 August 2020 Minister of Interior Dr. Sándor Pintér presented state and ministerial awards and acknowledgements to staff who have performed outstandingly, and to the leaders and employees of authorities, organisations and local governments that work together with the Ministry.
The awards that were due to be presented at an event to mark the anniversary of the 1948-49 Revolution and War of Independence on 15 March, which was cancelled in view of the coronavirus epidemic, were also presented at Tuesday’s event.
In his speech at the event, Deputy Minister and the Ministry of Interior’s Parliamentary State Secretary Károly Kontrát said: “Saint Stephen left his descendants a people who had taken root in Europe, a kingdom that operated based on written law, and an independent Christian state”.
He emphasised that this year’s commemoration is different from the others: “Hungary must battle a new enemy, the coronavirus”. He highlighted the fact that Hungary had successfully protected the population during the first phase. “We have already won one battle, but are preparing for further combat! The solidarity we learned from Saint Stephen became the basis of our efforts to protect against the epidemic”, the Deputy Minister stated.
The organisations that fall under the supervision of the Ministry of Interior performed significant duties during the course of successful protection, he added, thanking police and Ministry staff for their dedicated efforts.