Comment by Viola Hinz-Hassan Pour Razavi on October 26, 2012 at 18:24

That would be great Qristina, thank you so much :-)

Comment by Stoimen on October 26, 2012 at 19:53

Dear Qristina,

Please contact Ciuin and Glenda! If you agree we can send this letter on behalf of Khetanes, with the logo. I hope that many will sign. I am also willing to forward your letter to the European Parliament in Brussels. Think about it!

You are a very good editor! Many thanks in advance!

Els

Comment by Viola Hinz-Hassan Pour Razavi on October 27, 2012 at 8:00

A new info to G. Jeszenszky, he is also ambassador of Hungary in Norway with these e-mail addresses mission.osl@mfa.gov.hu; huembosl@online.no - there was a letter of complaint send to by P. Molnar, I. Hancock, F. Mugisha - all three Rafto laureates! So it might be good if we also send our complaints to that adresses.

Comment by Stoimen on October 27, 2012 at 13:40

Géza Jeszenszky (born in 1941 and author of the book "Post-Communist Europe and its National/Ethnic Problems") is a famous professor, who published many books.

He studied history and was one of the founding members of the Hungarian Democratic Forum.

From 1990-1994 he was Minister for Foreign Affairs and from 1998-2002 he was Ambassador to the United States of America, representing the government led by V. Orban. Later he started teaching again.

Currently he became Ambassador to Norway!

A key question in our reaction could be where professor Jeszenszky found the proof for his statement that the Romani culture promotes mental illness by allowing brothers, sisters and cousins to marry each other and have sexual intercourse?

 

A couple of days ago a Hungarian right-extremist yelled that Gypsies like to live like pigs. Tomorrow this extremist may refer to the mental illness that Prof. Jeszenszky describes in his book, a study book by a renown historian.....

 

Comment by Glenda Bailey-Mershon on October 27, 2012 at 18:16

I will certainly sign such a letter. Qristina, let me know if you want help.

Comment by Stoimen on October 27, 2012 at 19:13

Let's send an official letter, with the logo, on behalf of IRADL!

Comment by Stoimen on November 3, 2012 at 14:13

31/10/2012 - University teachers, students and researchers on Tuesday protested against remarks by Geza Jeszenszky, Hungary's ambassador to Norway, which they think "stigmatise" the Roma minority. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Jeszenszky cannot be blamed for prejudice for his lines.
Over 100 people signed the statement concerning a textbook used at Budapest's Corvinus University (BCE), in which Jeszenszky suggested that "the reason why many Roma are mentally ill is because in Roma culture it is permitted for sisters and brothers or cousins to marry each other or just to have sexual intercourse with each other".

The statement said that the textbook's conclusion was not scientifically supported and insisted that the community of BCE could not "accept pseudo-scholarly claims disguised in the cloak of science, especially not those harshly stigmatising an ethnic group."

Jeszenszky has rejected accusations of racism. In a statement, the diplomat said that "as a teacher, minister and ambassador" he has always supported cases of persecuted ethnic or religious communities.

He admitted that he was not an expert on Roma issues, and said that a 15-page chapter in his textbook on the community was based on other authors. "Not even a biased Roma civil rights activist could find fault with my handling of the subject; hundreds of Hungarian and foreign students have used my book and found it useful," he said.

Jeszenszky added that the issue of mental disabilities among the Roma are usually attributed to the community's closed nature and the resulting frequent marriage between brothers and sisters. Due to his assignment in Oslo, the seminar has not been advertised for two years and the textbook did not go to bookstores, he added.

On Tuesday, the Hungarian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Jeszenszky had written his remarks as a university teacher rather than as Hungary's ambassador. The statement said that though the contested remarks "could be misunderstood", Jeszenszky's life achievement and his latest publications all demonstrate that he is committed to minority rights and cannot be charged with prejudice.

In the meantime, organisers of a Holocaust conference in Oslo suggested that it would be "prudent" of Jeszenszky to stay away from the event.

Head of the Center for Studies of Holocaust and Religious Minorities Anton Weiss-Wendt told MTI that the conference was supported by the Hungarian, Swedish and Israeli embassies in Oslo, and noted that Hungarian Holocaust expert Professor Laszlo Karsai was one of the guests invited. Karsai, however, declined to participate, and referred to Jeszenszky's "biased and racist" remarks in the textbook, Weiss-Wendt said.

Weiss-Wendt quoted Jeszenszky's email to the centre, based in Norway, saying as the Roma community was "inbreeding" and "suggested that Roma as a people have little idea of the dangers posed by incest", he said.

"These and similar comments are deemed uninformed, if not offensive, in this country," Weiss-Wendt added.

In a telephone interview to commercial TV channel ATV on Tuesday evening, the ambassador said that if he were to publish his textbook now, he would consider how to quote the contested sentence, if at all. He insisted that it had been a direct quote from medical papers.

Jeszenszky said that the chapter in question attempted to present "the real weight of the problem" and that it suggested his "understanding for the Roma", the author's desire to improve their situation.

The ambassador said he was sorry if any readers found his lines offensive, but said that not only the contested passage but the whole chapter or the entire book should be read.

Comment by Stoimen on November 3, 2012 at 14:20

NB: it should be noticed that worldwide protests focused on page 273 in Jeszenszky's book, but could as well have focused on the rest of the chapter, where errors, personal statements and prejudice can be found;

NB: It should be noticed that an apology for racism in an academic work, used in university classes, is clearly insufficient.

Comment by Stoimen on November 3, 2012 at 14:28

LETTER OF PROTEST, 1 NOVEMBER 2012: PART 1

 

International Romani Anti-Defamation League
World Artists Initiative "Khetanes"
Waterschap 90, 5345 RA Oss, Nl
Phone:  0031-6-466 318 47 
Artists_Initiative@ziggo.nl
www.khetanes.org
RISN: 850843467

TO:

Professor Zsolt Rostoványi, Rector Corvinus University Budapest
Professor László Zsinka, Dean Faculty of Social Sciences, Corvinus University
Professor Zéga Jeszenszky, Hungarian Ambassador to Norway, Professor at Corvinus University
Hungarian Embassy to Norway in Oslo
LIBE Committee of the European Parliament, Brussels
Juan Fernando López Aguilar, chair of the LIBE committee
Mrs Kinga Gál, vice-chair of the LIBE committee
Mrs Sophia in 't Veld, vice-chair of the LIBE Committee
Johannes Laitenberger, Chef de Cabinet of President Jose Manuel Barroso
Martin Selmayr, Chef de cabinet of Commissioner and Vice-President Viviane Reding
Vladimír Sucha, Director Culture in the Cabinet of Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou
Mrs Navanethem Pillay, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights


We, the undersigned, are writing to express our concern regarding defamatory content featured in the book "Post-communist Europe and its National/Ethnic Problems: a course-pack" written by Dr. Géza Jeszenszky and published in 2009. The book was considered required reading for many classes at Corvinus University, widely believed to be one of the best in Hungary.
Jeszenszky's book makes libelous claims against the minority Roma population, stating (among other defamatory comments) that "Their [the Roma's] low status on the job market and higher unemployment rates perpetuate poverty, widespread social problems and crime. The reason why many Roma are mentally ill is because in Roma culture it is permitted for sisters and brothers or cousins to marry each other or just to have sexual intercourse with each other" (pg. 273).

Not only are these statements racist and inflammatory, they are also at the most basic level incorrect. The text makes claims that are not supported in any way by facts or statistics. Rather it attempts to avoid placing blame on the national authorities who have truly caused the current state of affairs: a low participation and high unemployment rate cannot bring about high levels of poverty, though they can lead to that state; people who discriminate and exclude bring about this state of affairs.

Comment by Stoimen on November 3, 2012 at 14:31

LETTER OF PROTEST, PART 2:

 

Roma in Hungary live mostly in segregated neighbourhoods and are suffering 70% unemployment. In this condition of social exclusion, Roma are unable to gain adequate access to education and health care, as well as having limited access to employment opportunities. Many Roma children have been required to attend special schools for no other reason than that they are Roma.

As the former minister of Foreign Affairs, former Ambassador to the USA, and currently ambassador of Hungary to Norway, Dr. Jeszenszky should understand that this kind of rhetoric is archaic and does not serve a modern and burgeoning European country such as Hungary.

Humanitarian concerns aside, Jeszenszky's comments are clearly bigoted, defamatory, and misrepresentative of Roma culture and family life. While it is true that Roma culture centers on the role and maintenance of family ties, this does not involve relationships such as those described by Jeszenszky within the family unit. Throughout Europe (and indeed the rest of the world) Roma heavily research family genealogy to ensure there is no relationship between prospective sexual partners or marriage candidates. Relationships with close family members are strictly taboo. To state that Roma are "mentally ill" because of such indecent acts can be considered by any court of law as an act of defamatory libel.

Although recent protests about this book have achieved limited success, with both the Hungarian Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Corvinus University distancing themselves from both Dr. Jeszenszky and his publication, this does not solve the problem. The damage has already been done and continues to be done as long as this volume remains in print and Dr. Jeszenszky is not held accountable. Universities are supposed to be institutions of higher learning, preparing students to be compassionate, just, and rounded citizens. In this respect, Corvinus University has failed its students. The existence of this book and the statements it contains continues to cause significant harm, whether currently an active part of the curriculum or not.

The more than 800 members of World Artists Initiative "Khetanes", originating from 50 countries, all sincerely believe that education and art are important tools to end the current crisis that is fuelled by populism, fear and xenophobia. Scapegoating means widening gaps, which - according to us - need to be bridged in order to find a common ground.  In this approach and analysis we are supported by officials from the European Commission that invited us to present our plans in April 2012 in Brussels.

We demand the immediate removal of this offensive material from the shelves and bookstores at Corvinus University, as well as for Dr. Jeszenszky to be held accountable for his damaging actions.

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