antecedents to kin-state policy
The term kin-state policy was used in a dual sense from the second half of the nineteenth century. On the one hand it was applied to the political aspirations of the nationalities in Hungary and on the other hand it was an expression of Hungary’s sovereign interests. The latter meaning became common place by the end of the century mainly in relation to issues that transcended party politics and affected the political community as a whole. Between the two world wars it denoted the common interests of Hungarians beyond the borders and within Hungary. The turn of national policy began in the late 1980s. In 1988 the leadership of the Hungarian Socialist Workers’ Party (MSZMP) publicly recognized Hungarians living beyond the borders as part of the Hungarian nation and in 1988–1989 the Németh government established separate institutions to deal with the issues of minorities in Hungary and Hungarian minorities in neighbouring countries. The term ‘kin-state policy’ became accepted again in the 1990s when it was used to describe the Hungarian state’s policy towards Hungarians beyond the border.
In order to address the situation of Hungarian minority communities and to override the marginalization efforts of the majority state, which was striving for national homogenization (minority marginalization), Hungarian governments in the twentieth century formulated seven strategic goals. Between the two world wars the dominant goal was territorial restitution of the entire historical state territory inhabited by Hungarians or the entire territory of the historical Hungarian state. In the territories re-annexed between 1938 and 1945 the main goal was socio-economic revitalization and the creation of Hungarian supremacy, and nationality policy was based on language rights and the practice of reciprocity. After 1945 the main aim of the Hungarian government, which lacked effective tools altogether, was to avert the accusation of collective guilt of Hungarians, to prevent expulsions and to limit population exchange. The Communist party leadership declared the affairs of national minorities as the internal affairs of the other country, and even declared them automatically resolved once the class struggle was concluded. The domestic thematizing of responsibility for Hungarians beyond the borders, which began in the Kádár era after 1968, was made possible by the fact that the party and state leadership hoped, in the interests of political stability, to catch the wind of those who criticised the regime by citing national grievances. By the early 1980s the increasing awareness of national interests and values in society was most evident in the thematizing of relations with Hungarians beyond the borders. At the same time Hungarian minority opposition groups and significant opposition circles in Hungary also stated that the national minority question could not be dealt with within the framework of socialism without the rights of democratic self-government. The worsening situation of Hungarian minorities – especially in Romania – was countered by the increased activity of Hungarian foreign policy leadership which was open to international minority rights and advocated their acceptance. Thus, the official declaration made in early 1988 that Hungarians living beyond the borders of Hungary were part of the Hungarian nation was not only a message to minority Hungarians but also confirmed the concept of a political nation based on citizenship and ethno-cultural community integration. During and after the democratic changes there was a political consensus between the parties that the establishment of institutions for Hungarian minority communities and prosperity in one’s native land was the primary goal and that the constitutionally recognised autonomy of these communities was a fundamental guarantee thereof. This goal was not achieved despite the governmental involvement of Hungarian minority parties, and therefore EU membership and the institution of dual citizenship increasingly focused on the integration of the cultural nation across borders.