Politics of the past: the use and abuse of history - Socialists ...

the Slovak nation. Slovak historical consciousness also has a very
critical, negative perception of inter-war Magyar revisionism, signalled
by the slogan ‘We want everything back!’, which resulted in
the loss of Slovakia’s southern territory, a decision made by two totalitarian
powers – Germany and Italy – in the Vienna Arbitration of
2 November 1938. And Slovakia has an equally critical perception
of the behaviour of the Hungarian authorities towards the Slovak
ethnic minority in the ‘arbitration territory’ from 1938 to 1945.
These are the main historical reasons why, to this day, little empathy
is felt from the Slovak side towards such sensitive Hungarian
concerns as the loss of a large part of the territory of the old Hungary
after its disintegration in 1918, an experience that remains
painful and hard to stomach. Nor is the Slovak side particularly responsive
to the grievances of ethnic Hungarians living in Slovakia
about their experience of collective retribution by the re-established
Czechoslovak state in the post-war period (1945-1948). On the
other hand, it is true that atonement for the second of these was
made immediately after the incriminating years, in particular with
education, by re-establishing Hungarian language classes, and with
the gradual renewal of Hungarian cultural institutions. We should
not conceal the fact that, for a significant number of Slovaks, lack
of empathy towards Hungarian memory of historical injustices is
combined with misgivings about potential Hungarian territorial
revisionism, however much these anachronistic misgivings may be
fading.
Surely feelings of misgiving or fear, as well as insensitivity or indifference
in neighbourly relations, are not in any way a positive, constructive
factor in awakening and cultivating one’s own national
identity. The starting-point is, or could be, true mutual empathy and
appreciation between our neighbouring nations – or, more precisely
and realistically, between the widest possible number of members
of each nation, since it is only dynamic people, or people who are
collectively dynamic and open towards one other, who represent
the decisive element. But in creating empathy, first and foremost
an open discussion must take place about a shared history that,
paradoxically but understandably, has up to now divided Slovaks
and Hungarians more than it has united us.
179 Milan Zemko