Next month will be 59 years since Soviet troops backed by hundreds of tanks invaded Hungary to crush a short-lived revolution and precipitate one of the worst refugee crises of the time.
Next month will be 59 years since Soviet troops backed by hundreds of tanks invaded Hungary to crush a short-lived revolution and precipitate one of the worst refugee crises of the time. But as we reflect on the poor treatment of Syrian refugees in some European countries, particularly Hungary, we cannot but remember how the world opened its doors to Hungarian refugees fleeing for their lives in the wake of the Soviet invasion. It is ironic that a Hungarian government today is building walls and erecting barbed-wire fences to keep out other people fleeing similar violence and oppression.
It was October 23, 1956 that what began as a student demonstration in the capital Budapest against the Hungarian government and its Soviet masters, grew into a full-blown revolution that for a brief euphoric moment, toppled the government. The euphoria that greeted the restoration of freedom lasted only days however, as the Soviet regime mobilized thousands of troops backed by an equally large number of tanks to crush the rebellion.
By the time it was all over weeks later, 2,500 Hungarians were dead and about 200,000 had fled the country, largely into refugee camps in Austria. The world did not turn its back on the refugees but instead, acted with generosity.
More than 35 countries, including most notably Canada, opened their doors to the refugees. Canada’s immigration minister of the time actually went to Austria to supervise the processing of applications. When the first group of refugees arrived in Quebec City, it was met by 3,000 cheering Canadians. The same enthusiasm and generosity played out in Halifax where even larger numbers of Hungarians came ashore. Canada took in 35,000 refugees in record time, and when the dust finally settled, about 50,000 Hungarians would call Canada home.
They and their descendants are now part of our great Canadian family, but Hungary today has forgotten the lessons of its own history. When thousands of mainly Syrian refugees fleeing the brutal regime of dictator Bashar Assad and a civil war that has taken at least 200,000 lives and created more than four million refugees knocked on Hungary’s door, the story was different. They were met, not with kindness and generosity, but tear gas, pepper spray, baton-wielding police, water cannons and harsh laws. Calling the refugees a threat to Europe’s Christian identity, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban vowed to stop them. “We would like to preserve Europe for Europeans,” he said. “They are over-running us. They are not just banging on the door, they are breaking the doors down on top of us. Hungary is under threat, so is the whole Europe,” he added earlier this week as Parliament voted to allow the army to use to use rubber bullets and tear gas against the refugees massing at the border. Imagine if Canada and other countries around the world had responded in similar fashion in 1956.
Canada obviously has not responded to the Syrian refugee crisis with the harshness demonstrated by the Hungarian government, but the initial response of the Conservative government was very much against the traditions and values of this country. We are at our best when we show kindness and give sanctuary to those fleeing war, persecution and deadly violence – as we have done many times in the past.
When Canada welcomed the Hungarian refugees with open arms in 1956/57, it was a humanitarian gesture. Politics, ideology or electoral calculation had nothing to do with it. The Conservative government has now done the right thing by abandoning its hard line and committing to accept 10,000 refugees by next September, faster than previously planned. But it should not have been dragged kicking and screaming to do what’s right. Better late than never, however. The more poignant point worth noting is what has become of Hungary today. It is unfathomable how a country whose citizens were once victims of violence and brutality that forced them to flee their homeland, could turn its back on others in similar predicament.
Mohammed Adam is an Ottawa writer.