Post Tagged with: "Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa"

The screen capture of the print version of my piece in Wednesday's Népszava.

Hungary’s responsibility – An open letter to Deputy State Secretary Csaba Latorcai

This morning, Népszava–one of Hungary’s daily newspapers–published an op-ed from me, which effectively serves as an open letter addressed to Csaba Latorcai. A couple of weeks ago, here in Ottawa, I met with Hungary’s Deputy State Secretary for Priority Social Affairs, whose works in the Prime Minister’s Office focuses on the Jewish minority, as well as other religious/cultural communities. Deputy […]

by · December 16, 2015 · Politics
Humankind stares into the abyss / The art of weirdness (2012)

Hungary and the Jews: A Case Study on Affinity Fraud

“Don’t listen to what I say, but watch what I do!” — Viktor Orbán, Prime Minister of Hungary An essay by András B. Göllner in honour of Elie Wiesel and Randolph L. Braham What is Affinity Fraud ? Affinity fraud is the oldest scam in the book. Eve used it to con Adam into tearing off the forbidden fruit from […]

by · November 25, 2015 · Focus
Zsolt Varga, the chef at the Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa, serving up venison stuffed cabbage at the Embassy Chef Challenge. Photo: C. Adam

Hungary and Moldova represent Eastern Europe at Ottawa Embassy Chef Challenge

“Don’t just take pictures, actually try some of our food!”–said a smiling representative of the Embassy of Moldova at the Ottawa Embassy Chef Challenge on November 5th, 2015. The Moldovan chef, Nata Albot, offered a traditional take on a classic meal in the region, namely: stuffed peppers. The Embassy of Moldova’s table was adorned with local wines–this small Eastern European […]

by · November 6, 2015 · Culture
111 Sussex Drive, the venue for the 2015 Embassy Chef Challenge.

Embassy chefs compete in Ottawa competition

This is a lighter, although I think still meaningful, story for a Sunday. The Canadian capital is getting ready to hold its second Embassy Chef Challenge on November 5th, 2015 at Victoria Hall, where each year a handful of chefs employed by foreign missions in Ottawa compete and showcase their culinary art. All proceeds from the event go to the […]

by · November 1, 2015 · Culture
A refugee at the Röszke border crossing. Photo: Balázs Mohai / MTI.

András Göllner responds to Ambassador Ódor and George Jonas in the National Post

András Göllner published a piece on Hungary’s slow slide into despotism in the National Post, which elicited a response from Hungarian Ambassador Bálint Ódor. Mr. Ódor’s response then led to an op-ed from columnist George Jonas, who agreed with the ambassador and wrote fearfully of the dangers of Europe turning into “Eurabia.” Professor Göllner offered the following response to Mr. […]

by · September 25, 2015 · Politics
From page A9 of the National Post (September 23, 2015.)

Responses to Ambassador Ódor’s defence of the Orbán government in the National Post

Canada’s National Post daily newspaper published an op-ed entitled “A Word in Hungary’s Defence,” by Ambassador Bálint Ódor. The Orbán government’s representative in Canada was responding to an earlier piece in the National Post by Professor András Göllner, which highlighted the xenophobia that is a driving force behind the policies of the current regime in Budapest, especially as they relate […]

by · September 23, 2015 · Politics
Tensions flare on September 19th, 2015, in the village of Beremend, on Hungary's border with Croatia, as over 5,000 refugees enter Hungary through its southern neighbour in the last 48 hours. On Friday, Hungarian authorities disarmed Croatian authorities and confiscated a train filled with refugees, with the Orbán government claiming that Croatia has violated Hungary's borders. Photo: Balázs Mohai/MTI.

Response to Ambassador Bálint Ódor: Hungary’s government displays callousness

Hungary’s ambassador to Canada, Bálint Ódor, used an article in the Montreal Gazette to try to rally Hungarian Canadians to defend the actions of his government in Budapest. There is no doubt that the unprecedented number of Syrian refugees transiting through Hungary was a serious strain for Hungarian authorities and especially for the charities and activists in Budapest who struggled […]

by · September 19, 2015 · Politics
Ambassador Ódor and Hungary’s Contempt for Human Rights:  Making Excuses Instead of Amends

Ambassador Ódor and Hungary’s Contempt for Human Rights: Making Excuses Instead of Amends

Hungary’s ambassador to Canada, Bálint Ódor,  sent letters to the editor to various Canadian news outlets, in which he attempted to whitewash the shockingly vicious actions of his xenophobic government against Syrian refugees and blamed the media and other EU member states for the crisis. Here is a response from Professor Stevan Harnad: The Ódor excuses are rank and all-too-familiar […]

by · September 9, 2015 · Politics
RCA Victor's Nipper in neon wonderland. The trademark of the Victor Talking Machine Company, in neon rendition. Source: The Reflecting Light blog,

RCA Viktor–His master’s voice in Canada (2): The rules of diplomatic conduct within the Transatlantic community

Before turning to the description of RCA Viktor’s Canadian sound system, a system in which Hungary’s diplomats in Canada play a commanding but not exclusive role, I want to make some general observations about the standards diplomatic representatives are expected to uphold in those countries that belong to the Transatlantic community (TAC). This is necessary in order to gauge whether […]

by · June 4, 2015 · Focus
Lajos Oláh at Concordia University on March 3, 2015.

Hungarian embassy in Ottawa stages cabaret at Scheppele-talk in Montreal

When I was riding back from Montreal late Tuesday evening, after a roundtable discussion hosted by Concordia University on the state of the rule of law in Hungary, I didn’t think that a short video I produced starring the Embassy of Hungary in Ottawa and their completely surreal act would find its way onto nearly all of Hungary’s major internet […]

by · March 4, 2015 · Focus