Sometimes when we talk about the defeat of communism and those early years following the first democratic elections in Hungary and across the former Soviet bloc, we refer to it almost as if it were something that happened to us as we passively looked on, like a weather front moving across the land. Sure, world politics played a significant role. But passive expressions like the ‘fall of communism’ and ‘transition’ don’t do justice to the brave men and women who played an active role in making it happen and took on the awesome responsibilities of rebuilding a free and democratic order.

Prime Minister Antall was one of these heroes. He was raised in a family that had been politically active before the war. His father, who served as a government commissioner for refugee issues during the war and who resigned after the German occupation of Hungary, worked to save many Jewish families and was detained by the Gestapo. Soon after 1956, the younger Antall, as punishment for his own participation in the revolution and political activity, was prohibited from teaching, the profession for which he was trained, and instead worked for decades as a librarian and researcher. Antall returned to politics in 1988, joining the conservative Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF) and leading them to a surprise victory in the 1990 elections.

As prime minister of the newly democratic Hungary, Antall faced enormous challenges. The country was still occupied by Soviet troops (the last soldiers left in June 1991). It was on the verge of economic collapse after years of unsustainable economic policies, a huge debt burden, high inflation and even higher voter expectations for immediate gratification.

Antall understood the challenge. After winning the elections, he said that he was forming a “kamikaze government” because building a parliamentary democracy after 40 years of dictatorship, a market economy from the ruins of the centrally planned economy and guaranteeing the people’s welfare in an indebted country would require many unpopular decisions.

Soon after taking the oath of office, in the summer of 1990, Antall was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the cancer that would take his life three years later. Yet he kept a stiff upper lip through it all, holding together a fragile, conservative coalition government and fending off a strong, post-communist opposition. His leadership showed the way for the country’s peaceful revolution from dictatorship to democracy. From the crumbling Soviet bloc, he reintegrated a sovereign, independent Hungary into the family of European nations with a firm, pro-Atlantic orientation. By the end of his term, the economy was back on a growing path.

Antall was a true leader, putting Hungary’s interests before everything else. Like many greats, he was not always understood or adored by his contemporaries. Prime Minister Orbán, noting the way today’s political opposition once mocked Antall but now praise the late prime minister, said recently that “apparently, for us there is still hope.”

Twenty years after his passing, the gravity of József Antall’s contributions and his great legacy are now clearer. He was truly a brave leader in difficult times.

Source: A Blog About Hungary

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