Csanád Szegedi
| Csanád Szegedi | |
|---|---|
 Csanád Szegedi in 2009 | |
| Born |
September 22, 1982 Miskolc, Hungary |
| Nationality | Hungarian |
| Alma mater | Károli Gáspár University of the Reformed Church in Hungary |
| Occupation | Politician |
Political party | Jobbik (2003-2012) |
| Parents |
Miklós Szegedi Katalin Molnár (Meisels) |
| Relatives | Szegedi Márton |
Csanád Szegedi (born 22 September 1982) is a Hungarian politician and elected Member of the European Parliament.[1] He was a member of the Hungarian radical nationalist Jobbik political party between 2003 and 2012, which has been accused of anti-Semitism.[2] In 2012, Szegedi gained international attention after acknowledging that he had Jewish roots.[3] He was also accused of previous bribery to try to keep that revelation a secret,[3] and subsequently resigned from all Jobbik political posts.
Personal life
Szegedi was born in Miskolc. His father, Miklós Szegedi, is a famous wood carving sculptor, and his mother, Katalin Molnár (Meisels Jewish descent), is a software engineer.[4][5]
Prior to the revelation of Szegedi's partial Jewish origin, Szegedi was notorious for his incendiary comments about Jews.[6] In 2007, he was a founding member of the Hungarian Guard, a group with black uniforms and striped flags reminiscent of the Arrow Cross, a pro-Nazi party during WWII.[7] The Hungarian Guard was banned in 2009, at which time Szegedi joined the Jobbik party, the country's biggest far-right political force.[7] Since 2009, he has served in the European Parliament in Brussels.[7]
In June 2012, Szegedi revealed that he had recently learned that his grandparents on his mother's side were Jewish: his maternal grandmother survived the Auschwitz concentration camp, and his maternal grandfather was a veteran of forced labor camps.[8][7] Under Jewish law this makes Szegedi a Jew.[7] Szegedi was raised Hungarian Reformed and did not initially practice the Jewish religion.[7] Szegedi said he had defined himself as someone with "ancestry of Jewish origin — because I declare myself 100 percent Hungarian."[7]
Szegedi has since undertaken to live as a practicing Jew, observing the Sabbath and attending synagogue.[9]
A documentary film is being produced about his journey from Neo-Nazi to Orthodox Jew. [10]
Political career
His political views have often been described as consisting of anti-EU, anti-Roma, and anti-Semitic characteristics by different press outlets.[11][12][13] As an active Member of the European Parliament openly advocates leaving the European Union and establishing a "new Turanian alliance" with Central Asian states as a supporter of Hungarian Turanism.[14] Szegedi paid from the European Parliament budget three men – Előd Novák, Balázs Molnár and Roland Kürk – who according to Tamás Polgár, better known as Tomcat, were members of the editorial board of the kuruc.info, a racist website associated with Jobbik. All three received their salaries as "local assistants" to the member of parliament.[15] Szegedi is also propagator of the Old Hungarian script.
Resignation from all posts in Jobbik
On 28 July 2012, Szegedi released a statement to the press, which was reproduced on his party's website[16] that he had with immediate effect resigned from all the various positions still held in Jobbik. Szegedi expressed his wish to remain a Member of the European Parliament.[16]
The Jobbik statement confirmed that the news of his mother's Jewish ancestry "did not pose any threat to his positions in the party."[16]
The Jobbik statement went on to say that "Last week, in July, media reported that the MEP [Szegedi] had known about his origin for longer than he previously stated. Allegedly, in 2010, the MEP tried to stop news published about his origin by offering money [bribe], which the MEP categorically denies. This prompted Jobbik vice-president Elod Novak to call for Szegedi's full resignation, describing the MEP's actions as a 'spiral of lies'."[16] Jobbik says its issue is the suspected bribery, not his Jewish roots.[7]
Jobbik is expected to release a statement on Monday August 6, 2012, regarding the issue of resignation and Szegedi's possible recall from the European Parliament.[16]
See also
References
- ↑ europarl.europa.eu: Szegedi Csanád
- ↑ Freeman, Colin (24 May 2009). "Feminine face of Hungary's far-Right Jobbik movement seeks MEP's seat". London: The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-06-07.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Eyder Peralta (14 August 2012). "Leader Of Anti-Semitic Party In Hungary Discovers He's Jewish". NPR. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
- ↑ Szegedi Csanád az ellene zajlott karaktergyilkosságról
- ↑ "Az számít, hogy ki hogyan viszonyul a magyarság ügyéhez" - anyai ági zsidó származásáról nyilatkozik Szegedi Csanád, Kuruc.info
- ↑ Leader of anti-Semitic party in Hungary discovers he is Jewish thestar.com, August 14, 2012
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 PABLO GORONDI (August 14, 2012). "Hungary far-right leader discovers Jewish roots". Associated Press. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
- ↑ Agence France-Presse (27 June 2012). "Hungarian far-right deputy admits Jewish roots". European Jewish Press. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
- ↑ Ofer Aderet, 'Former anti-Semitic Hungarian leader now keeps Shabbat,' at Haaretz, Oct. 21, 2013.
- ↑ http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/175217#.UrDJjfRBkwE
- ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/hungary/9370194/Hungarian-far-Right-leader-admits-Jewish-origins.html
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/democracylive/hi/europe/newsid_9229000/9229400.stm
- ↑ http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/06/28/member-of-hungarian-anti-semitic-party-learns-hes-jewish/
- ↑ Official Page of Csanád Szegedi
- ↑ http://hvg.hu/itthon/20120731_jobbik_kuruc_eu
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 "MEP Szegedi resigns from -nearly- all positions in Jobbik". 27 July 2012.
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