UConn Traditions

Volume 4, Number 2 - Summer 2003

Barbed wire be gone

By Katalin Farkas, '94 Ph.D.

There are, perhaps, more important world events happening nowadays. But as a Hungarian national, a particular referendum in a small, obscure Eastern European country is an event of historic proportion.

In April, Hungarians had the opportunity to exercise their democratic political rights and cast votes for or against Hungary's joining the European Union. The turnout was lower than expected (45 percent of eligible voters showed up), and I am sure politicians and political scientists will debate the reasons for months to come. What truly matters is that 84 percent of those who did take the trouble to turn out, cast their votes in favor of participating in the EU.

When I put my X onto the ballot, tears rolled down my face. I kept repeating: yes, yes, yes; as I involuntarily crossed my mark over and over again. This reaction shocked me and I contemplated it on my way home.

I had to realize that in spite of all the work I had done to put the past behind, there was pain left in me on a cellular level; pain from all those years I spent living under a Communist government I had hated so much. I still can recall that deep yearning I felt when I thought about life in Western Europe.

I still remember the frustration I felt when I wanted to travel, to see the world, but was not allowed to leave the country. In comparison, I watch with delight as my brother's kids spend a year here, a few months there, and come back with a lot of new experiences. They will find no reasons to hate foreigners, to be intolerant of those who are different.

A political scientist should not base judgments on gut feelings, but perhaps it is irrational to believe that this historic event once and for all closed that part of our history. That there never again will be barbed wires around Hungary.

For a lot of people, membership in the EU means nothing more and nothing less than opportunities for a higher standard of living. I welcome the possibilities of a more prosperous life, or opportunities to live in another part of Europe. But these are not the most important changes this membership brings. I see a guarantee of peace in a unified Europe, and a chance to solve together our pressing ecological problems.

I see in Hungary's membership in the EU a kind of guarantee that our governments will have to answer to a larger community for upholding the rule of law; that new dictators-to-be will not be able to stir Hungary away from democracy.

Katalin Farkas returned to Hungary early in 2002. In September of that year, she joined CaliVita International, a multinational company that markets vitamins and dietary supplements. Her commentary is excerpted from a letter she wrote to colleagues in the department of political science at UConn.

Table of Contents

	UConn Traditions

		Volume 4, Number 2 - Summer 2003 Barbed wire be gone By Katalin Farkas, '94 Ph.D. There are, perhaps, more important world events happening nowadays. But as a Hungarian national, a particular referendum in a small, obscure Eastern European country is an event of historic proportion. In April, Hungarians had the opportunity to exercise their democratic political rights and cast votes for or against Hungary's joining the European Union. The turnout was lower than expected (45 percent of eligible voters showed up), and I am sure politicians and political scientists will debate the reasons for months to come. What truly matters is that 84 percent of those who did take the trouble to turn out, cast their votes in favor of participating in the EU. When I put my X onto the ballot, tears rolled down my face. I kept repeating: yes, yes, yes; as I involuntarily crossed my mark over and over again. This reaction shocked me and I contemplated it on my way home. I had to realize that in spite of all the work I had done to put the past behind, there was pain left in me on a cellular level; pain from all those years I spent living under a Communist government I had hated so much. I still can recall that deep yearning I felt when I thought about life in Western Europe. I still remember the frustration I felt when I wanted to travel, to see the world, but was not allowed to leave the country. In comparison, I watch with delight as my brother's kids spend a year here, a few months there, and come back with a lot of new experiences. They will find no reasons to hate foreigners, to be intolerant of those who are different. A political scientist should not base judgments on gut feelings, but perhaps it is irrational to believe that this historic event once and for all closed that part of our history. That there never again will be barbed wires around Hungary. For a lot of people, membership in the EU means nothing more and nothing less than opportunities for a higher standard of living. I welcome the possibilities of a more prosperous life, or opportunities to live in another part of Europe. But these are not the most important changes this membership brings. I see a guarantee of peace in a unified Europe, and a chance to solve together our pressing ecological problems. I see in Hungary's membership in the EU a kind of guarantee that our governments will have to answer to a larger community for upholding the rule of law; that new dictators-to-be will not be able to stir Hungary away from democracy. Katalin Farkas returned to Hungary early in 2002. In September of that year, she joined CaliVita International, a multinational company that markets vitamins and dietary supplements. Her commentary is excerpted from a letter she wrote to colleagues in the department of political science at UConn. Table of Contents
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