With our National Avowal, we reject the limitation of inhumane crimes committed against the Hungarian nation and its citizens during the rule of national socialist and communist dictatorships, János Bóka, Minister of State for International and European Union Justice Cooperation of the Ministry of Justice stressed at a conference held in Warsaw on the day of remembrance for the victims of totalitarian regimes.
In Warsaw on 23 August 2019, on the memorial day of the victims of totalitarian regimes, a ministerial conference was organised which was attended on behalf of Hungary by János Bóka, Minister of State for International and European Union Justice Cooperation of the Ministry of Justice.
The declaration adopted on the occasion of the commemoration seeks to draw attention to the crimes committed by totalitarian regimes and pays tribute to the victims and the heroic deeds of those fighting against dictatorships. The signatories to the declaration support every effort which seeks to hold the perpetrators accountable in harmony with national legal systems. At the conference, Mr Bóka said we bow our heads before the millions of victims of national and international socialist dictatorships, and it is our duty to foster their memory. According to the Minister of State, the courage and humanity manifested by those who helped the victims and persecutees of totalitarian regimes are exemplary for European generations. He further highlighted that during the period between 2018-2020 the Government of Hungary supports with a contribution of HUF 200 million the activities of the Platform of European Memory and Conscience which promotes international cooperation in the interest of gathering more information on the functioning of totalitarian regimes and commemorating the victims.
During the Hungarian EU Presidency, in June 2011 – at a Hungarian-Lithuanian-Polish initiative – the Justice Ministers of EU Member States declared 23 August, the day of the signing of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939 in Moscow, the European Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Totalitarian Regimes.