Dear Colleagues,

I visited the Association of the Moldavian Csango Hungarians (Moldovai Csango
Magyarok Szervezete – MCSMSZ). This organization is a member of RMDSZ, and
participated in the recent election by entering two senatorial races. Their
senatorial candidates (Istok Gyorgy of Cleja and Eros Jozsef of Pusztina)
were expected to receive about 10,000 votes from the 2-300,000 descendents of
the Hungarians who entered the region in the 14-15th Centuries. This is the
very first attempt of MCSMSZ to participate in any election and the majority
of the Hungarian csangos is still afraid to support them.
I asked them: How could we help? Here is a list of the answers I
received. I would like to ask all of you to help. In addition to your
personal efforts, you should try to distibute this list among your
acquitances and particularly among piests, bishops and other leaders of the
Roman Catholic Church, of which the csangos are devout members.

1) They, being very poor, often illiterate farmers, they are in need of all
types of simple farm implements. They particularly mentioned good quality
scythes and scythe-stones, which some Hungarian group from Sweden, sent to
the Gyimes (Szekely) csangos, but not to them. (They work minute parcels of
land by hand.)

2) The csango survival requires self-respect (they have been looked down at
by both Szekelys anf Romanians) and self-respect comes partially from
material improvement. Therefore, the MCSMSZ wants to start a brick-making and
a tile-production facility. They need books and instructions on how to do
that. If you have such (Hungarian language) booklets, please mail them to the
addresses at the end of this letter.

3) Their ultimate dream is to produce wood boards and planks in a community
owned lumber yard. If anybody could provide them with a pit-saw, that, for
them, would be a dream come true.

4) In Cleja there are 850 houses and only 11 TV disk antennas. An antenna is
1,500,000 ley ($450). Duna TV is their only link to Hungarian culture. It is
a powerful influence of supporting and reenforcing their identity and
self-respect. If you or your group can collect this sum, MCSMSZ will make
sure that the antenna will be put to collective use.

5) We should try to influence the programming of Duna TV, so that they would
also air programs using the archaic Hungarian language of the csangos. The
csangos should be proud of their 500 year old, unique language and of their
superhuman achievement in making it survive. I talked with people at Duna TV
about this, and if you agree that such a program is desirable, you might want
to write to them (elnok: Sara Sandor, 1016 Bp. Meszaros u. 48, fax:
011-361-156-9246). Tougether, I am sure, that we will succeed in getting a
csango-language program started, and I know that such a program will be
enjoyable to ALL viewers of Danube TV.

6) They also asked for a HUNGARIAN LANGUAGE copy of the Hungarian-Romanian
Basic Treaty. (Also of the 1201 recommendation of EC). If you have one,
please send it to the address given at the end of this letter. They would
also like to have guidance on “what rights do these agreements give the
csangos?”

7) They were very disappointed that presidential candidate Frunda (and others
such as Bishop Tokes) did not visit them. They feel that the RMDSZ is not
taking them seriously neither as a surce of support, nor as a responsibility.
We should use our contacts at RMDSZ to change that.

8) The MCSMSZ does not even have a typewriter, not to mention stationary,
copier or word processor. They need such equipment and they need the
knowledge to use them. They also need books to start a library. (66 pounds of
books can be sent for $47 from the USA from any Post Office in an M-bag.) If
you can help with any of these, please mail to the address below.

9) I have already written about their request for csango language masses in
their own villages. You can help by writing letters to:
Episcop Petru Gergel, Episcopia Romano-Catolica, Iasi, Code:6600, Romania
with copies to:
The Honorable Archbishop Joan Robu, 70749 Bucuresti, Str. Nuferiol 19.,
Romania
Tel: 40-1-614-55-31, 40-1-613-39-36, Fax: 40-1-312-12-07
The Honorable Paskai Laszlo, Hercegprimas, Esztergom, Hungary
His Holiness, Pope John Paul, Vatican City, Rome, Italy

10) Today there are only Romanian language schools and Romanian language
masses in the area (Yesterday, I dealt with the role of the Roman Catholic
Church and our efforts in that connection.) In connection with csango
schools, the most important need is for csango speaking teachers. To date,
the whole educational effort has failed for the following reasons:
a) The teacher’s certificates issued in Hungary are not accepted
in Moldavia.
b) Of the 102 csango students, who graduated from the
Transylvanian highschool classes for csangos, NONE has returned to Moldavia.
c) These students were educated in modern Hungarian, which is not
understandable in the region. What is worst: they received the impression,
that their language is inferior and they themselves are not as good as
anybody else.
For the above reasons, it seems to me that the whole issue of
csango education should be redirected from the goal of removing and “saving”
csango individuals from Moldavia, while giving up on the masses, to assisting
in the production of dedicated and self-respecting csango teachers. This will
only happen if RMDSZ, the Hungarian government, the Catholic Church,
international linguist organisations and all others who care, join tougether.
The first step towards that goal could be an international conference held in
Bacau (Bako), supported by the United Nations, the Soros Foundation, the
Catholic Church and others. As the csango senatorial candidate said: “This is
what we need! All of you should promise to light a match every day and while
it is burning, think about, how this could be achieved?” Let us do more than
think! Let us act!

If you can help with any of the above ten(10) problem areas or if you can
provide financial help (International Money Order), please send it to the
addresses below. If you do send help, please let Peter Orban know, because
the Hungarian Lobby would like to keep a running account to recognise those
who help the MCSMSZ. (While the Szekely csangos of Gyimes did receive some
help from the West, when I made a $100 contribution to MCSMSZ, they told me,
that it was the very first assistance they have EVER received.) Help for the
MCSMSZ can be sent to their senatorial candidate:

Istok Gyorgy
Com: Cleja Code: 5529
Jud: Bacau
Romania

Help for the Gyimes csangos can be sent to:

Deaky Andras, Director
Scoala Generala Ghimes
5494 Ghimes-Faget
Jud. Bacau
Romania
(Telephone in the school: 14, at home: 21)

Best regards: Bela Liptak