00:00:01 Dear viewers, The archive of the
Hungarian Television preserves an
00:00:05 interview by Antall József that was
never seen, heard by our viewers.
In September 1990,
00:00:11 he was unable to speak on the screen
because of a TV president's decision.
00:00:18 However, after the first hundred
days of the Antall government,
the recording before the
00:00:23 municipal elections testifies to the
fact that the Prime Minister addressed
the Hungarian people.
00:00:29 Accurate, analytical, warm words,
both asking for and giving trust.
00:00:36 But some strange political
intent came between them.
The recording is still much more than
00:00:43 some kind of historical curiosity.
Its validity still applies today
and perhaps it can still,
00:00:50 in hindsight, help us in understanding
and orientation. Not only with regards to
00:00:54 Joseph Antall's personality,
but also in our own destiny.
00:01:02 - I know that there are
enormous difficulties, I know
00:01:09 that there are serious financial
problems for Hungarian families,
00:01:14 I know how bitter inflation is,
how difficult it is
00:01:23 for many families, pensioners,
seniors to not be able to buy very often
00:01:29 the most important items
necessary to sustain life.
We know all this
00:01:37 and no use any violent means
are needed to convey these
00:01:45 rumors to us, these facts,
we are aware of them.
00:01:54 I think that we Hungarians should
think, as many times in history,
00:02:03 about what is around us.
It wouldn't hurt to compare
00:02:10 it to the situation in
the neighbouring countries.
It wouldn't hurt to look a
00:02:17 little beyond our borders.
We were often accused of only
00:02:23 turning inwards, only starting with
some kind of Hungarocentric view,
00:02:28 the problems of Hungary
and that is not what this is about.
00:02:36 We need to see what happened
in this entire region,
00:02:42 what happened in the camp
that was created around us in
00:02:48 the last decades under the
leadership of the Soviet Union.
00:02:55 It is not just a Hungarian problem,
it is not just Hungary's
00:03:01 internal crisis, it is the
crisis of a system of things,
and we are now experiencing
00:03:08 this extremely serious crisis as
part of a system of things.
00:03:15 There are complete economic, social,
political, ethnic conflicts and
00:03:21 crises in the Soviet Union.
This means that the Soviet Union,
00:03:29 our most important
00:03:36 trading partner in recent decades,
which has defined the structure
00:03:42 of the entire Hungarian economy,
which has forced a model on us,
00:03:50 if you will,
which has made the country part
00:03:56 of this Soviet and Comecon market,
has collapsed or collapsing.
00:04:03 But the countries around
us also collapsed.
You can see the Polish, Czech,
00:04:11 Romanian, Bulgarian example.
In fact, we can see the internal
difficulties of Yugoslavia as well.
00:04:17 And we can see the former territory
of the German Democratic Republic,
00:04:24 the eastern half of today's united
Germany, the serious problems it faces
00:04:31 when the eastern part of Germany
has been indirectly supported by
00:04:37 the Federal Republic of Germany,
and it was, in a sense,
00:04:44 a lurking, hidden member of
the European common market.
Everywhere, everywhere,
00:04:51 these countries are in serious crisis,
not only in Hungary,
00:04:58 and under such circumstances,
we cannot say anything other than that Hungary is,
00:05:05 of course, part of this crisis,
of this serious situation.
00:05:13 This heritage is mentioned so many times,
00:05:17 these days and it sounds like an excuse
to many today, consequently,
00:05:23 any talk of it is no longer welcome.
People say not to talk about
00:05:29 he past, only about the
present and the future.
00:05:34 But we cannot talk about the present,
because this heritage is not firmly in the past,
00:05:40 this heritage is our present,
and unfortunately this heritage,
this present, determines the
00:05:46 difficulties of the future.
It must be said that Hungary's
00:05:53 economic structure means an
obsolete structure that is
00:05:59 simply not compatible with the world
at the end of the 20th century.
00:06:06 The collapse of the Soviet Union
happened, too,
00:06:11 due to the serious internal crisis
of the Soviet Union and the failure
00:06:15 of the Soviet Union to keep up
with the Western world and with
developed industrialised countries.
00:06:22 Hungary has accumulated 20 billion
in debt over the last decades.
00:06:31 Out of this 20 billion-dollar debt,
the actual investment is
00:06:37 just over $4 billion.
The rest is debt rolled before us,
00:06:43 and interest is derived
from newer borrowings.
00:06:48 Under these circumstances,
we must deal with this serious crisis.
00:06:56 In Hungary, with debt.
More and more unexpected
00:07:03 difficulties have come.
It means that we could not
00:07:09 improve the Hungarian infrastructure.
As we made this huge sum of debt,
00:07:16 we couldn't build our modern transport
system, our telephone network,
00:07:23 our school system,
all that we need to provide for a
00:07:31 new economy as a means of pulling it ahead.
This has not happened,
00:07:38 and now Hungary's crisis is also
serious because we have serious
shortcomings in this area.
00:07:47 But it also has to be said
and it has to be said openly
00:07:54 that Hungary has been put artificially in a
better state for the Hungarian
00:07:59 population over the last decades,
the country has been put in a better
00:08:04 living conditions than it could have
guaranteed for the goods it produced
00:08:09 as it could have done on the
basis of its economic results. Now,
00:08:16 however, a new situation has emerged,
these resources have been clogged,
00:08:22 we have lived up to our reserves,
and we have received the
00:08:29 legacy of accumulated debts and
the obsolete industrial structure.
And so comes the newest and latest
00:08:38 plagues that our neighbours
have suffered by crashing,
00:08:43 the Soviet market being able to
absorb less, our industrial production
00:08:49 falling by 10 percent...
This also means that in some
00:08:56 industries we can point to a
decrease of up to 30 percent,
00:09:02 and under these circumstances we
must continue to move forward.
00:09:09 But I could also talk about the
fact that the obsolete industrial
00:09:15 structure, the outdated car park,
the structure of our industrial
00:09:20 production consumes twice,
three times as much energy as
00:09:24 in the case of a modern industrial country.
Therefore, we consume much more energy
00:09:30 than is considered justified on
the basis of the products produced.
00:09:37 So you can simply check this
if you look at what a Western
00:09:45 minivan consumes or what the used,
aged car park owned by
00:09:53 Hungarian car owners consumes,
00:10:00 but the same can be said about our factories.
For us, however,
this amount of energy we are
00:10:08 using is causing very serious
problems throughout the country,
throughout the national economy.
00:10:15 I think that this is also where
we should talk about what the oil
00:10:23 price increase means for Hungary,
what the situation means.
00:10:28 Two factors need to be pointed out.
One is that the Soviet Union
00:10:34 has promised only 80 percent
of our orders this year.
00:10:41 On the other hand, what we need
to replace must be replaced
at increasing world prices.
00:10:51 So this also means that the
country's economic life will be
00:10:56 seriously damaged in the coming time,
and that serious damage has
been caused so far.
00:11:04 However, the only thing we cannot
00:11:09 say in itself is that in Hungary
we only have the economic disaster
00:11:18 and only the obsolete industrial structure.
00:11:26 That is why we reveal this
and why no one has ever concealed what a
00:11:34 serious inheritance we have received.
The country is in
00:11:41 such a serious state that
we cannot agree with those
00:11:50 who are trying to discourage
the population permanently,
00:11:58 turn it against the government,
turn it against the political
00:12:09 forces who are doing everything they
00:12:15 can to keep the country in
00:12:21 balance so that we can maintain
00:12:27 our national economy at all.
I would like to stress that when
00:12:37 we talk about the damage caused
by state property and the obsolete
00:12:45 industrial structure in Hungary,
when we talk about what Comecon means
00:12:52 to the country and how seriously
it affects our situation, we also
00:12:59 have to talk about what foreigners,
foreign economic professionals and
00:13:05 foreign politicians say, that Hungary
is the most promising country in
00:13:12 the former Communist bloc.
I wonder why they say so and
00:13:20 why is there in Hungary so much pessimism
and why political forces
00:13:27 emphasize it here in public,
why they are almost cheering and happy
00:13:36 to report all negatives and negatives,
when the relevant economic circles,
00:13:44 the significant financial circles,
significant political circles,
00:13:49 governments talk about
positive phenomena and praise the
00:13:55 Hungarian development.
I think it's enough for anyone to
00:14:01 hear the government's statements.
All you need to know is what they say
00:14:09 about us and it's clear that they
00:14:15 don't have a pessimistic opinion
about our future.
00:14:21 The spread of small and
medium-sized enterprises in
Hungary is considered encouraging.
00:14:28 It is safe to say that
50 percent of the foreign capital
00:14:36 in the entire Eastern European region
was invested in Hungary.
00:14:44 Are Western countries,
Western financial circles
00:14:49 who see Hungary fit for this,
those who distinguish us
00:14:56 from the surrounding states,
all of them stupid, do they
have no self-interest?
00:15:04 Every day I meet representatives
of the international banking world,
00:15:10 international business circles,
leading statesmen and all of
00:15:15 them consider Hungary's future to
be encouraging. Well, then,
00:15:21 what's good is it to instill
bitterness into this country,
00:15:28 into public opinion,
in our present grave situation.
00:15:33 It is safe to say that are whining
about the total
00:15:42 destruction of agriculture in Hungary.
At a time when there are
00:15:48 real problems with drought,
when we are doing everything we
can to bring in feed and under
00:15:54 the most favourable conditions.
Every day we are in contact
with European and other
00:16:02 international organisations and
financial circles to reach Hungary
for preferential feed imports.
00:16:09 In these circumstances,
I received official information today
with the Ministry of Agriculture
00:16:16 that the cultivation of the
land is better this year
00:16:22 by 20 and 30 percent than
in the same period last year.
00:16:29 This means that the Hungarian
peasantry, which also sowed in 1944,
00:16:36 when the war, the front approached,
is still aware of the fact,
00:16:43 - and our agricultural experts
are clearly aware of it - that autumn
00:16:48 works must be carried out.
And the question of how privatisation,
00:16:55 the solution to the land issue,
will develop is not affected by
00:17:03 the completion of agricultural work,
because in agriculture whoever sows must
00:17:09 reap it. As a result,
00:17:15 if anything happens and the Hungarian
Parliament adopts any kind of law
00:17:22 to solve the Hungarian land issue,
it is certain that no one,
00:17:28 whether community or individual,
will suffer so much damage that they
00:17:34 will not be able to recover their
invested work and fixed assets.
00:17:41 But if the Hungarian people know that,
then let us not try to hammer
00:17:47 these rumours on and spread about us
that we do not work and there is
00:17:53 going to be a disaster in agriculture.
But I could tell you something else.
00:18:00 I can say that in Hungary,
in the field of privatisation,
00:18:08 in small businesses and in all the
areas where we are talking about
00:18:16 the recovery of economic life,
there is a serious result.
00:18:24 The state asset agency,
which is in fact a state asset fund,
00:18:31 which places those state-owned
companies on the market
00:18:36 making rapid progress.
It has been assessed and the
00:18:43 number of applicant interested in buying
00:18:50 formerly state-owned companies
is very high. I ask why
00:18:57 anyone can say to us that we
are not doing privatisation properly,
00:19:05 with insufficient speed.
The British Prime Minister is
00:19:11 not exactly among the defenders
of state property and the
00:19:16 opponents of privatisation.
He himself stated that he felt
00:19:22 that the privatisation process in
Hungary was progressing well.
00:19:28 What do some people think of the
pace of privatization? In Britain,
00:19:34 some sectors were state-owned and it
took years to implement privatisation.
00:19:42 The same was said by the
French Finance Minister or
00:19:47 the privatizer of the former
French nationalised industry.
00:19:52 Last time, the German Secretary
of State for Economic Affairs said
that the government's privatisation
00:19:58 policy was appropriate, modern,
both at its pace and in its nature.
00:20:03 So all of this shows
that this government's activity
00:20:09 does find recognition.
At the same time, we must take
00:20:15 appropriate financial measures.
We must ensure that the market,
00:20:22 the emerging market economy,
which we consciously call a
00:20:28 social market economy based
on the teachings of Professor
00:20:34 Erhard and Minister of Economy,
is implemented with
00:20:41 measures that ensure the
establishment of the institutional
00:20:48 system of a market economy,
from the stock exchange to the
00:20:55 banking system, and all the
institutions that belong to it,
00:21:02 just as Parliament or government
are part of the political systems.
00:21:09 We also need to establish a
00:21:15 way to ensure that monopolies
can be broken down,
00:21:22 to ensure proper competition,
since a market economy without
00:21:27 conditions of competition is worth nothing.
We need to ensure competitive conditions
00:21:34 and legal settlements necessary for
that because that pushes prices down and,
00:21:40 of course, to reduce inflation.
But we also have to take
00:21:47 into account the budget.
The budget of a state
00:21:52 is regulated by law.
So what Hungary's budget today in
00:21:58 1990 is what the previous Parliament
approved and which is binding on us.
00:22:07 While the previous government may
have made a deficit of HUF 54
00:22:14 billion in the previous year,
our government can only make
00:22:19 one of 10 billion forints, because the
agreement with the International
Monetary Fund requires this,
00:22:27 but it is also in our own interest.
This means, however,
00:22:33 that if we do not conclude this,
and if we do not keep it,
00:22:39 then Hungary's financing will become
impossible, there are no more opportunities,
we are no longer creditworthy,
00:22:45 so we must keep it.
Today, this must be maintained,
00:22:50 meaning that the budget cannot
be exceeded and that the
00:22:56 budgetary framework cannot be
extended as a elastic.
00:23:01 This has to be said
because any occupational branch,
00:23:08 every social class, every sector,
everyone has a legitimate claim,
00:23:15 everyone is underpaid,
every occupational branch,
if we make a comparison,
00:23:23 is at a disadvantage compared
to the developed countries,
00:23:30 but also to ourselves.
No one's questioning that.
00:23:36 But the question is,
is there any way to get past it?
No. This is simply not possible
00:23:45 at the moment and should
be taken into account when
drawing up next year's budget.
00:23:53 This is why it is the greatest
irresponsibility to take
00:24:00 advantage of our social tensions
as a result of our economic
00:24:06 situation for political purposes.
Believe me, this is a government,
00:24:12 and I can safely say that
this is a government coalition that is
00:24:18 definitely sensitive socially,
sensitive in terms of what we would
00:24:24 do to raise people's standard of
living and make the most of it.
00:24:32 But by irresponsiblely disrupting
the financial balance,
00:24:37 it can only lead to inflation,
if inflation continues to increase,
00:24:45 then the further increase in
wages would be in vain,
00:24:52 those benefits would be in vain.
We do everything by
00:25:00 being aware of social problems,
taking into account tensions
00:25:05 in order to save the most vulnerable,
in order to stretch out the social
00:25:14 net knowing that unemployment,
which has been accelerating,
00:25:18 is really inevitable.
We need to provide unemployment
benefits to the unemployed
00:25:26 and to ensure re-training.
But if some groups of interests
00:25:33 or social groups were to be given
such special preferences or even
00:25:41 given special benefits,
then we would not be
00:25:47 able to achieve anything.
Our only way is to focus
00:25:54 on breakout points in economic
development that allow us to
00:26:02 boost Hungarian economic life.
To this end, it is necessary to
00:26:09 ensure that we increase the number
of private economies, businesses.
00:26:15 To this end, we create a basis
for living conditions through the
involvement of foreign capital.
00:26:26 I think that if you are aware
that in order for the Western
00:26:33 business circles to enter Hungary,
in order for the working
00:26:38 capital to come in, in order
to boost Hungary's economic life,
00:26:44 you need to have confidence in
Hungary in the first place.
00:26:51 Trust must be gained,
and I can safely say that
00:26:56 there has never been such trust
in Hungary as there is today.
00:27:03 Government leaders,
industrial leaders of economic
00:27:10 powers look to us with confidence.
Business circles look at the
00:27:17 country with absolute confidence,
and believe that the government,
which, although accused of not
00:27:24 having and distributing a
manifesto for government
00:27:31 (those accusing us will do so even if we have one in
00:27:38 book form), has gained confidence.
It is safe to say that Hungary
00:27:46 enjoys undivided trust both in
business and banking circles
00:27:53 and among various political forces.
I ask why we have to discredit
00:28:03 ourselves from the inside,
undermine this trust,
00:28:08 whose interest it is to
fight against it. The other
is stability in addition to trust.
00:28:19 Only then will there be an
economic rise in this country.
00:28:25 The only way for the country
to break out of this crisis is
00:28:31 if there is stability here.
Without stability,
00:28:36 there will be no ascension.
I can say that if there is
00:28:43 no confidence inside and outside,
and if there is no economic
00:28:48 and political stability in Hungary,
then we are lost. This stability
00:28:55 can only be achieved,
in accordance with our real potential,
00:29:05 through parliamentary work
00:29:13 and the solidarity of society as a whole
00:29:22 and agreement on the main issues.
All those who undermine stability
00:29:31 out of power-motivated or individual
ambition for party policy purposes
00:29:39 will destroy the country.
Therefore, I ask everyone
00:29:47 to have confidence in us,
give us the opportunity to carry
00:29:56 out the task we have received
and to ensure stability
00:30:05 because everyone who considers
promising made clear that they have
00:30:13 confidence in the government,
have confidence in our future.
00:30:19 The question is whether stability
can be maintained in this country
00:30:27 - we cannot maintain stability
because political forces are encouraging
00:30:35 Hungarians to go on strike or demonstrate party
political or power interests,
00:30:42 and in doing so they are destroying the country.
I believe that I can safely say
00:30:51 that we need national public burdens,
that everyone should help us
00:30:59 carry out the tasks ahead and
bridge this crisis with patience
00:31:07 and solidarity with each other.
I ask no more confidence from the
00:31:15 people of Hungary than we have
received from the governments of
00:31:20 the world's leading countries in
the past and for the future,
00:31:25 than the leading business circles
and banking circles which encourage Hungary
00:31:30 to emerge from this crisis,
and I can even say that there is the
00:31:36 best chance of getting away from it.
The journey will be
difficult until then,
00:31:43 there will be many trials ahead of us,
and there will be many bitter hours
00:31:50 when we will feel bitter because
of the disadvantages we have suffered,
00:31:55 nevertheless there is a way out,
and the government will work to
00:32:01 that end and will do everything in its power.
Thank you for listening.
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