“Holding Hands For The Homeland!”
Szöveg: László Szűcs | 2010. március 10. 6:30There was a special event in the Balaton Street building of the Ministry of Defence to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of the establishment of the National Alliance of Comrades Associations (BEOSZ). In addition to the representatives of foreign partner organizations, several former defence ministers and chiefs of defence staff were also present on the special occasion.
The representatives of the Slovenian, Romanian and Slovakian alliances that have been cooperating with BEOSZ for long were also present at the ceremony. Before the event, they paid a courtesy visit to the defence minister, who received the guests in his office.
In his opening speech retired Colonel Géza Sipos, the chairman of BEOSZ pointed out: the twentieth anniversary is a very important date in the life of a community. This is a good occasion to salute the founders and thank for the work that has been done.
– I do not endeavour to give an account of two decades, it would be an effort that is bound to fail. But we are proud of the fact that we started with 2,500 members of 18 organizations, and today we have 129 organizations and nearly 13,000 members. We are also proud of our successes in the forums of interest reconciliation, elderly affairs policy, in the preservation of traditions, and keeping communities alive – said Géza Sipos, adding: the colours they received from the defence minister are the best example of the recognition of their efforts.
In his address Imre Szekeres emphasized: on February 27, 1990, sixty ’founding fathers’ raised the idea of forming an alliance. In all probability, they did not know that with their initiative they have laid the foundations of a civil organization the membership of which would reach 13,000 in two decades.
– They founded an organization that promotes patriotism, the ideas of national defence, the preservation of the traditions of national defence, representation of the interests of the Hungarian Defence Forces and the members of the alliance – said the defence minister, also noting that for today, BEOSZ has become a recognized organization that preserves military traditions and creates value. In representing the interests of retired personnel and military pensioners, and in reliable and correct cooperation with the Ministry of Defence, they are open to a dialogue in every topic.
In the opinion of Imre Szekeres, their motto – "Holding hands for the homeland!" – truly reflects the aims of the member organizations and associations. In the past years, BEOSZ has proven to be a predictable and reliable partner and it has become an important player in interest reconciliation.
– I hold in high esteem the work initiated and done by the Alliance in the Council on Elderly Affairs, since it is very important for elderly troops and military widows most of whom live in seclusion – said the defence minister.
The minister also pointed out that the protection of interests in the unions requires continuous consultation and dialogue, and concern for the people. In the course of the consultation processes it has been proven that they form their opinion and suggestions in a responsible and carefully considered way, and as a result of that they have facilitated the legislative activity of the ministry.
– Our cooperation was successful as regards the retraining and further training of personnel leaving as a result of staff reductions a few years ago, and the treatment of employment tensions generated in the course of the transformation process. Together we have managed to guarantee the operation of the social schemes of national defence. The achievements of the Ministry of Defence in the field of equal opportunities are significant because these ideas were formulated together with BEOSZ – Imre Szekeres said.
The defence minister underlined that the result of the past twenty years of cooperation was that the voluntary Hungarian Defence Forces were established with the extensive support of society, and besides protecting Hungary, today they are capable of undertaking serious international tasks as well.
The ceremony continued with the presentation of recognitions and rewards. The ministerial recognitions were awarded by Imre Szekeres, the rewards given by the chief of defence staff were presented by Lt.Gen. Károly Hazuga, while the BEOSZ commemorative coins and works of art were awarded by retired Colonel Géza Sipos.
The representatives of the partner organizations also congratulated the twenty-year-old BEOSZ. Former defence minister György Keleti, the chariman of the Defence Forces and Society Friendly Association emphasized in his address: the National Alliance of Comrades Associations has entered adulthood and its duty continues to be to feed the ideas of patriotism and national defence.
Lajos Kórozs, State Secretary of the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour and secretary of the National Council on Elderly Affairs said: in the past years, BEOSZ has had a major role in the forming of elderly policy.
Following the remarks the representatives of foreign organizations tied their ribbons onto the flag of BEOSZ, then Géza Sipos made the closing remarks. He thanked for the words of recognition and the awards, and emphasized: "BEOSZ has become what we have made it to be. And it will be what we will develop it into."
