|  Hungary regards sharing experiences of the change of political system with affected states as important in both bilateral and multilateral development co-operation, said Kinga Göncz, addressing a Friday meeting in New York of the Community of Democracies. She called the attention of the ministerial-level conference - convened at the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session - to the Budapest-based International Centre for Democratic Transformation (ICDT) which, rather than supporting the creation of democracies in a general way, sets substantive and practical goals and transacts projects. Ms Göncz noted that in this respect attention must be devoted to good governance not only in Africa but in other regions of the developing world. Equally important is the appropriate involvement of local public administration, while the civil sector can also play a substantial role in fulfilling the transformation. The ICDT is currently working on a programme which collates examples of best-practice with regard to co-operation between governments and the civil sector, and in this way contributes to the spread of democratic values. In connection with the meeting on co-operation between the UN and the European Union, the Hungarian minister emphasised the need to co-ordinate activities between the two organisations, primarily within the area of crisis management. She said that Hungary supports the principle of the two sides’ agreement on the exchange of information. Hungary welcomes the UN-EU co-operation aimed at strengthening peace-building capabilities in Africa , and stresses the importance of monitoring and evaluating results in crisis management, since this helps to draw useful lessons, whether it concerns e.g. Congo, Chad or Kosovo. In respect of the latter, she urged the soonest possible clarification of task-sharing between UNMIK and EULEX. On Friday morning, Ms Göncz held talks with the representatives of Jewish organisations - the American Jewish Committee, the American Jewish Congress and the Anti-defamation League. She asked her guests to promote the further improvement of Hungary’s image in the United States. She noted that signs of extremism do appear in Hungarian society but there is no anti-Semitic segregation or discrimination. The Hungarian Jewish community is undergoing a renaissance, and Holocaust research has received ever greater attention over the past few years. She emphasised that the Hungarian government is unwilling to tolerate extremist forces. The minister emphasised that the late Tom Lantos, who had been the only member of Congress to survive the Holocaust, had played a distinguished role in Hungarian-U.S. relations. The foreign minister held talks with her Tanzanian and Ethiopian colleagues during the day, and requested support for Hungary’s aspirations with regard to non-permanent membership in the Security Council for the 2012-2013 period as well as seat in the Human Rights Council. Ms Göncz met Richard Holbrooke, the former Deputy Secretary of State. At a traditional dinner of women foreign ministers, she reaffirmed that ladies in high office had a particularly great responsibility in combating violence against women with particular regard to armed conflicts and post-conflict situations. (September 26, 2008) |