Szentmargitbánya
St. Margarethen im Burgenland, Ausztria · Szentmargitbánya, Ausztria
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There was some disruption on the border

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The Pan-European Picnic was a peace demonstration at the Austrian-Hungarian border near Sopron on 19 August 1989. This is an important antecedent was cutting through the iron curtain, Germany unification. This picnic was a big protest against the Socialist government, which was called the Pan-European Picnic. While this was happening more than 700 people who lived in East Germany (which was Socialist) escaped to the West. The international press conference that took place before the picnic was prolonged due to the huge public interest, therefore, László Nagy got to the border only by quarter to four instead of three o'clock. "I learnt about the breakthrough on arriving to the border by car. There were no mobile phones around back then, you know. It struck me as unusual that the closest I could get to the border gate was 100 metres. I just couldn't figure out what the reason was. There was such a big crowd! It was crazy! I got out of the car to see what was going on. And I still dont't get it to this very day, I only sort of have been starting to understand it recently. For the sole function of that gate was to let the Austrians from Margitbánya, Rust and Meggyes enter and head for the picnic through the field. Therefore, there weren't supposed to be any people there […] And then a dear acquintance of mine from Kismarton came towards me saying "some fantastic things are happenning here! Crowds of East Germans cross the border by the hundreds!" And then I said, East Germans! Oh, no!'. And then it sank in that they can prosecute us for whatever they please. I was also aware that for assisting illegal border crossing you can get sentenced to 2-5 years of imprisonment. […] We couldn't cross over. […] The mayor of Margitbánya received a phonecall that there was some disruption on the border. And he drove there in no time.and he arranged for the East Germans to be put up for the night. They should be allowed to take a shower, to make phonecalls back home and be given food and drink. He will foot the bill. They were paid reimbursement for seven hundred-and-sixty people. My guess is that they must have been over one thousand, as quite a few of the refugees didn't even go to Margitbánya. Moreover, being afraid of the soldiers, many of them didn't cross through the border gates but a kilometre further to the left or the right, through the Iron Curtain, that is. In my view, there may have been about one or one and a half thousand refugees.

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László Nagy

László Nagy

László Nagy was born to conservative, religious parents in 1957. His father was a forest engineer, while his mother took care of their three children. The family moved to Sopron in 1960. They lived in Nigeria between 1970 and 1977. László did his secondary school leaving exam in Germany and then continued his studies at the Technical University of Budapest. He is a founder of the 405 circle, which invited politicians and public figures (several representatives of the opposition among them) to the university. He got his degree in chemical engineering in 1982. Subsequently, he and his family moved back to Sopron. They had three children. László worked in the Sopron Carpet Factory and earned a degree in textile engineering. At the end of the 1980s he joined the local opposition group in Sopron and became one of the organisers of the Pan-European Picnic (19 August, 1989). Up until 1996 he had been politically active and a member of the Hungarian Democratic Forum's executive committee. Since 1990 onwards he has been the Hungarian representative of various foreign companies and the managing director of the Viva la Musica Art Agency. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Hungarian Republic in 1999. He is a curator of Pan-European Picnic '89 Foundation.

Szentmargitbánya

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Mezőváros Ausztriában, Burgenland tartományban, a Kismartoni járásban. Kismartontól 12 km-re délkeletre fekszik. Nevét Antiochiai Szent Margit védelmére szentelt templomáról kapta. Eredeti neve Majád volt. 1910-ben 2141, túlnyomórészt német lakosa volt. A trianoni békeszerződésig Sopron vármegye Kismartoni járásához tartozott. 1921-ben Ausztriához csatolták. 1989. augusztus 19-én a Páneurópai piknik keretében történt magyar határnyitást követőn több mint 700 keletnémet menekült érkezett ide és egy ideig itt szállásolták el őket.

Szentmargitbánya

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There was some disruption on the border

There was some disruption on the border

László Nagy
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