On Friday Prime Minister Viktor Orbán attended the funeral of former Fidesz Member of the European Parliament Etelka Barsi-Pataky, who passed away on 4 February at the age of 76. In his eulogy at Farkasrét Cemetery in Budapest he said that Mrs. Barsi-Pataky threw all her energy into the reconstruction of Hungary.
The Prime Minister said that Etelka Barsi-Pataky worked tirelessly in many official capacities for a civic, national and Christian Hungary, and devoted her whole life to that cause.
“She was faithful and loyal to her political community, and steadfastly stood by her nation and her faith – come rain, sun, sleet or snow”, Mr. Orbán said , adding that “Her Christian work ethic, determination, perseverance and patience won the respect of us all”.
The Prime Minister stated that “As a woman, she was able to hold her own in a world dominated by men: the engineering profession. And, as we saw, she became a central figure in that world […] She also held her own in the challenging and unfair world of local government and parliamentary politics […] She also held her own on the international stage”. He recalled that “In the dawn hours of a free Hungary, she was one of the first to join the group of democrats who formed around József Antall, seeking to replace the communist system”.
When her original political community “was ground down by the fierce battle”, he continued, she was among the first to recognise where she could continue to represent Christian, national, civic and conservative ideals in the most credible manner – both from her own viewpoint and that of the country.
Her example was an encouragement to many, Mr. Orbán said, “and together and in solidarity the civic side did indeed achieve success”.
Etelka Barsi-Pataky “stayed with us even in the most difficult and hopeless times; neither the storm-force winds of defeat nor those of victory could sweep her away, the Prime Minister said.
“Without her example and perseverance, and that of similarly committed Hungarians, the national, Christian camp and the ideal of a civic Hungary would never have achieved victory in Hungary”, the Prime Minister said, adding that “She is an example for today’s politicians, and for those of the future”.
Gyula Nagy, President of the Hungarian Chamber of Engineers, described Mrs. Barsi-Pataky, who was his predecessor, as a standard-bearer who remained an engineer in every facet of her life, and who served her country and its society “as a representative of civic culture and a creator of civic values in the best sense of the term”.
Mr. Nagy said that she had preserved her integrity throughout all her domestic and diplomatic duties, and had stood her ground in the whirlwind of politics. As a policy-maker she earned respect and recognition from every political camp, he said; and when in 2009 she was elected President of the Chamber, she took a previously divided organisation and strengthened and unified it. Thus, Mr. Nagy stated, the Chamber was able to successfully safeguard the professional interests of its members and preserve its earlier achievements.
Etelka Barsi-Pataky first emerged on the democratic political scene in 1990 as a member of the MDF (the Hungarian Democratic Forum), and between 2000 and 2003 she was Hungary’s ambassador to Vienna. In 2004 she received a mandate in the European Parliament through the Fidesz party list. In 2009 she was elected President of the Hungarian Chamber of Engineers, and in 2010 she was appointed Government Commissioner for the European Union’s Strategy for the Danube Region.