APTN
Subotica,
Serbia -
29 November 2004
1.
Road sign to Subotica in
Cyrillic alphabet,
Latin alphabet and in
Hungarian
2. Wide of Subotica town centre
3.
People in streets
4. SOUNDBITE (
Serbian)
Jozef Kasa,
President of the
Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians
"
Even though we speak Hungarian quite well, the motherland still does not seem to want us. So we are in a difficult situation. Here (in Serbia) they beat us, we are considered second-class citizens. We also face discrimination when it comes to employment and other things, while our brothers in
Hungary are unsure whether to help us or not."
5.
Various of signs outside Nepker, the Hungarian cultural centre in Subotica
6. Hungarian cultural centre building
7.
Street sign in both Serbian and Hungarian
8. SOUNDBITE (Serbian)
Vox Pop
"I am a pure-blooded Hungarian and if
I were given the opportunity to leave (Serbia), I would go."
9. SOUNDBITE (Serbian) Vox Pop
"I think the
Hungarians fear that we will take their jobs or something like that. But they have nothing to fear because I could go and work in for example
France or
Sweden where the conditions are much better."
10. Street sign in Serbian and Hungarian
11.
City theatre
Sfintu Gheorghe,
Romania -
30 November 2004
12.
Entrance to the city
13. People in streets
14.
Hungarian newspapers
15.
Shop with signs in both
Romanian and Hungarian
16. Various of memorial for Hungarian poet
17.
Walter Willman, chief editor of
Radio Mix Hungarian radio station, talking into microphone
18. SOUNDBITE (Hungarian) Walter Willman, Radio Mix chief editor
"The dual citizenship proposal has more of a sentimental value, to cure 80-year old wounds. There are no economic advantages, especially because we would have to pay (higher) taxes there."
19. Willman at microphone
20. Various of posters calling for territorial autonomy
21.
Night rally in town by supporters of autonomy and dual citizenship
22. SOUNDBITE (Hungarian) Vox Pop
"We light candles and torches to stress our wish for territorial autonomy and for dual citizenship."
23. Various of vigil
STORYLINE:
Hungarians go to the polls on Sunday in a referendum on granting dual citizenship to ethnic Hungarians living abroad.
The
Hungarian government fears a "yes" result could spark a mass exodus into Hungary and burden social services, wreaking havoc on an already-wobbly state budget.
There are about 2.5 (m) million ethnic Hungarians in neighbouring countries, the result of the post-World War I dismantling of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire in
1920, when Hungary lost two-thirds of its territory and 60 percent of its population.
The fate of ethnic Hungarians, has long been a politically and emotionally charged issue, particularly during the almost 50 years, until
1990, when the region was under
Soviet domination and the rights of ethnic minorities were regularly abused.
While supporters say giving ethnic Hungarians citizenship would help cure the trauma of
Trianon, the 1920 treaty which carved up Hungary, opponents say its consequences are immeasurable, both domestically and abroad.
Estimates of the size of the Hungarian community in Serbia range from 200-thousand to more than 400-thousand, primarily based in
Vojvodina in the north of the country.
In Subotica,
200 kilometres from
Belgrade, traffic and road signs are written in both the Cyrillic alphabet of Serbia and the
Roman alphabet of Hungarian.
Some members of the Hungarian minority say that if they were granted dual citizenship, they would take the opportunity to leave Serbia but not only to go to Hungary, but to access the
European Union.
A
Hungarian passport would allow ethnic Hungarians rights as
EU citizens.
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- published: 21 Jul 2015
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