No local or foreign provocateurs will drive a wedge between Ukrainians and Hungarians (OFFICIAL STATEMENT)

Joint statement of the Transcarpathian Regional State Administration and the Society of Hungarian Culture of Transcarpathia in connection with the arson of the SCHT office in Uzhgorod

 At night, on Tuesday (27.02), on Pravoslavna embankment in Uzhgorod, yet unidentified criminals set fire to the office of the Society of Hungarian Culture of Transcarpathia (SHCT). It’s already known that it was an arson, and not self-ignition. In this regard, the Transcarpathian Regional State Administration and the Society of Hungarian Culture of Transcarpathia declare the following.

Over the past few years, in the multinational Transcarpathian region, repeated attempts have been made to stir up the situation on the inter-ethnic ground, with special efforts aimed at driving a wedge between Ukrainians and Hungarians. Those were the installation of signs with provocative inscriptions in Hungarian on the border of Beregovo and Vynogradiv districts in May 2017, an attempt to blow up the monument on the Veretsky Pass in October 2017, arson in the SCHT office in Uzhgorod on the night of February 4 this year.

We officially declare that these provocations failed and will always fail, they only unite Ukrainians and Hungarians, as well as representatives of other nationalities living in Transcarpathia in peace, harmony and tolerance. No foreign or local provocateurs will drive a wedge between us.

At the same time, we appeal to law enforcement agencies to do their utmost to promptly solve the crimes and bring the perpetrators to justice. Only the effective work of law-enforcers and the inevitability of punishment will prevent such provocations in the future.