News and Events
Refugee Rights Day – April 4th 2010
Guaranteeing Life, Liberty, Security and Humanity for Refugees in Canada for 25 years
April 4, 1985 was a milestone for refugee rights in Canada. On that day, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects the right of refugee claimants in Canada to life, liberty and security of the person, and that claimants are therefore entitled to an oral hearing, in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice. This ruling is known as the ‘Singh decision’.
In honour of this decision, April 4th is recognized as Refugee Rights Day in Canada. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Singh decision.
Canadians can be proud of many accomplishments to protect refugees, but there is still a lot to do to protect refugee rights in Canada.
Check the CCR’s Refugee Rights Day webpage shortly at: http://www.ccrweb.ca/RRDay.htm for a brief history of accomplishments and for action ideas.
We encourage you to use the ideas to promote refugee rights in your local area on or around April 4th.
For a brochure on Refugee Rights Day and what the Singh decision means for refugees in Canada, see: http://www.ccrweb.ca/documents/RRDAYpamphletEN.pdf
March 10th 2010
Diefenbunker screens Freedom’s Fury March 16th 2010
Diefenbunker, Canada’s Cold War Museum, is screening the hugely successful feature-length documentary Freedom’s Fury, directed by Canadian brother-sister team of Colin Gray and Meagan Reaney. This historical film produced in 2006 in time for the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution, had its gala premiere at the National Gallery of Canada in September 2006 - organized by the Canada-Hungary Educational Foundation as one of its major educational activities in commemoration of the Hungarian refugee movement to Canada in 1956-57. Read more...
March 5th 2010
Krisztina Szabó in concert March 28, 2010 in Ottawa
Krisztina Szabó, described as "simply one of the most exciting singers in the country right now,” is a Canadian-Hungarian mezzo-soprano who made her NAC debut in January 2005. A graduate of the University of Western Ontario, Szabó finished her postgraduate studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London, England. She was awarded an Emerging Artist grant from the Canada Council and was a winner of the 1997 Mozart Competition, held under the auspices of the Canadian Opera Company. In 1998 she joined the Canadian Opera's Ensemble Studio. Read more...
March 5th 2010
In memory of Kati Rekai
We regret to announce the death on February 1st 2010 of Catherine (Kati) Rekai C.M., writer and advisory board member of the Canada-Hungary Educational Foundation. Kati had been a friend and supporter of the work of our Foundation as of many Canadian literary and publishing projects. She is well-known in the Canadian writing world for her series of children’s travel books with animal characters: The Adventures of Mickey, Taggy, Puppo and Cica and how they discover …Toronto, Budapest, Vienna or the Thousand Islands – and other places. She started writing these books for her first grandchild Christopher. Read more...
February 19th 2010
Professor Diosady receives Order of Ontario
On January 28th 2010 Professor Levente Diosady of the Chemical Engineering Department of the University of Toronto was named to the Order of Ontario, the province’s highest official honour. The Order recognizes Ontarians who have made an outstanding contribution to society in Ontario and around the world and is awarded for excellence and achievement in any field. Past recipients have contributed to education, the arts, community and public service, science and medicine, citizenship and multiculturalism, business, sports, and many other fields. Read more...
February 19th 2010
Montreal concert in honour of György Kurtág
On Wednesday February 10th at 8 PM in the 'Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur' in Montreal, a concert will be held in honour of György Kurtág.
For more information and to view the poster, please click HERE.
February 5th 2010
Anna Porter on Eastern Europe at St Thomas’s Church, Toronto February 10th 2010
On February 10th 2010 at 8 pm Anna Porter is giving this year’s Gene Stewart Lecture (“Repairing the World”) at St Thomas’s Anglican Church in Toronto. She is talking about Eastern Europe since the fall of the Berlin wall. The previous two lecturers have been General Romeo Dallaire and Dr Roberta Bondar. Anna’s new book tentatively titled “The Ghosts of Europe” will be published later this year.
For more information view the poster.
February 3rd 2010
Andrea Blanar receives Pro Cultura Hungarica Award
Ms Andrea Blanár, President of the Canadian Hungarian Artists’ Collective in Montreal, Quebec was awarded the Pro Cultura Hungarica medal by István Hiller, Minister of Education and Culture of the Republic of Hungary for her continuous and dedicated work to preserve, promote and enrich Hungarian cultural values in Canada as well as in Hungary. Read more...
January 25th 2010
Canada's Marie Chouinard in Pecs 2010 dance program
Pecs in southern Hungary is the 2010 European Capital of Culture. The Hungarian News Agency MTI has just announced that Compagnie Marie Chouinard will participate in one of several dance programs Pecs is hosting during the year. Other dance events in Pecs are also mentioned in the January 17th 2010 news item. Read more...
January 18th 2010
Peter Munk Named Ivey Business Leader of the Year
TORONTO, Jan. 15 /CNW/ - Peter Munk, Founder and Chairman of Barrick Gold Corporation, will receive this year's Ivey Business Leader Award at a gala dinner on October 20, 2010.
For more information click here.
January 15th 2010
Anna Porter at the Munk Centre, January 28th 2010
Anna Porter, writer, publisher and advisory board member of the Canada-Hungary Educational Foundation, is giving a lecture entitled “The Ghosts of Europe” at the Munk Centre for International Studies at the University of Toronto on January 28th, 2010 from 2-4 pm. For information on this event, click here.
January 13th 2010
Employment Opportunity - Internment Recognition Fund
The Shevchenko Foundation received funds from the Federal Government that established the Canadian First World War Internment Recognition Fund. Interest earned on the fund supports projects that commemorate and recognize the experience of ethno-cultural communities affected by Canada's first national internment operations of 1914 - 1920. To read more in English and Hungarian click here.
December 8th 2009
Hungarian film at the EU Film Festival, Ottawa, Vancouver
As in previous years, the Canadian Film Institute in cooperation with the
Embassy of Hungary has included a recent Hungarian film in the annual EU
Film Festival. The Ottawa screening of Overnight takes place on December 2nd but the film
is also being screened in Vancouver a few days later. For more information
about the film, click here. To find out more about the Festival Program and
the Canadian Film Institute, see the festival's home page.
November 30th 2009
Premiere of Susan Papp’s Outcasts on OMNI 1, Nov 15th 2009
Susan Papp’s successful Outcasts - A Love Story, published by Dundurn Press in May 2009 has been turned into a documentary film, produced and directed by Susan with the screen version written by Allen Abel. The film will be premiered on OMNI 1 on November 15th at 9pm. For more information about this project, see the media backgrounder HERE and for more information on the book, see our web page.
November 3rd, 2009
Gabor Szilasi exhibition at National Gallery of Canada
Well-known Montreal photographer Gabor Szilasi who came to Canada after the 1956 uprising is being recognized with a one-man show at the National Gallery of Canada which opens on October 8th and runs till January 17th. On October 9th at 12.15 pm David Harris, the exhibition’s curator and Associate Professor of at the School of Image Arts, Ryerson University, Toronto is doing a talk about why and how he came to put the exhibit together. This will be followed at 1.30 pm by a presentation by Mr Szilasi himself about his work. Mr Szilasi was one of the fifty Canadians of Hungarian origin whose portrait by V Tony Hauser was included in the National Arts Centre’s Hungary 50th anniversary project “ New Lives” in 2006. See our webpage: New Lives Exhibit
For more information on the exhibit click here.
October 1, 2009
Hungarian historian to lecture in Toronto, Ottawa on 1989 regime changes in Europe
Professor Ignac Romsics, one of Hungary’s best know historians, and a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, is to give a series of lectures about the political changes in Hungary and Central Europe in 1989. After a lecture at the Munk Centre in Toronto on September 15th, sponsored by the Hungarian Studies Program of the University, Professor Romsics will give a public lecture at the Ottawa Public Library on Thursday September 17th at 7 pm. The title of his lecture is “The Birth of the 3rd Hungarian Republic: the 1989 Regime Change and its International Implications.” The lecture will be followed by a question and answer period and refreshments will be provided by the Embassy of Hungary which is sponsoring the Ottawa event with the Canada-Hungary Educational Foundation. Carleton University’s Centre for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies has alco invited Professor Romsics to give the lecture on campus, on September 18th at 10 am.
For information on the September 17th lecture at the Ottawa Public Library click here.
To see the flyer for the the September 18th lecture at Carleton University click here.
September 12, 2009
Molnar’s “The Guardsman” in Toronto
Well-known Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnar’s “The Guardsman” is playing in Canada once again, this time in Toronto’s Soulpepper theatre, opening on August 31st and running till October 24th. The play is directed by internationally acclaimed director, Laszlo Marton who is Director General of the Comedy Theatre (Vigszinhaz) in Budapest and has a stellar Canadian cast of actors. The Guardsman was one of the first plays produced at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa after it opened its doors in 1969.
For details of the Soulpepper performances, see http://www.soulpepper.ca/performances
And for more on Molnar, see our own site: click here.
September 2, 2009
Famous Hungarian Lace Exhibited in Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa
Famous Lace from Kiskunhalas in Hungary is travelling to different locations across Canada this spring and summer. The exhibition is being organized by the Embassy of Hungary in cooperation with Canadian institutions. The original impetus for the exhibit was the Governor General’s State visit to Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia in November 2008. The Lace was displayed at Rideau Hall for the special cultural event organized by Her Excellency in advance of her visit. The exhibit was then on display at the Place des Arts in Montreal in March-April 2009, in the Robarts Library of the University of Toronto in April-May 2009 and will be shown to the Ottawa art and textile loving public at the gallery Framed! In Ottawa during June. For the details see the invitation below – as well as the poster, press release and logo.
The last stop of the tour is the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum in Almonte Ontario where the lace exhibit can be viewed in August and September.
The Embassy of the Republic of Hungary is pleased to bring you an exhibit of Halas Lace in cooperation with FRAMED!, and we invite you to come and see these wonderful examples of Hungarian art and culture.
This lace has been created for more than a century in the small town of Kiskunhalas, Hungary. Woven from whisper thin fibers of a Saudi Arabian water plant, these works are stunning in their incredible detail, and have won awards around the world rivalling the best lace of Venice and Brussels. For those with an interest in world textiles and highly refined handwork, this exhibit offers an opportunity normally open only to those traveling to Eastern Europe. The exhibition is open to the public: June 5 –June 21.
FRAMED! 1075 Bank St. Ottawa , ON
613-730-0477
framed@intranet.ca
Framed Gallery Hours: Weekdays 9-6, Saturday 10-6, Sunday 12-5.
June 1, 2009
World Refugee Day 2009 – Journée mondiale du réfugié
June 20th is World Refugee day, as designated by the United Nations. This year’s theme is “Real People, real needs: - de vraies personnes, de réels besoins.” UNHCR Canada has a website http://www.unhcr.ca/wrd/ where information can be found about the situation of refugees in the world today and what Canadians can do to mark this day and get involved.
“The intolerance that is often at the root of internal displacement and refugee flows is also present in some of the countries that refugees flee to. Instead of finding empathy and understanding, they are often met with mistrust or scorn. On World Refugee Day, let's not forget that some day in the future any one of us could be knocking at a stranger's door hoping to find a safe and friendly shelter. We should extend refugees the same kind of welcome we would like to receive if we were in their position.”
Those Hungarians who found refuge in Canada are grateful for the welcome they received and it is only right that we should be mindful of the fate of others who are experiencing difficult situations around the world today.
June 2, 2009
Elizabeth Merei’s 25 years in Canada
Elizabeth Merei celebrates 25 years of sculpture in Canada: June 12-14 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre’s International Art Fair and July 15- August 7th at the Canadian Sculpture Centre, 500 Church St, Toronto. See poster and her website for more information.
June 2, 2009
Hungarian writers at the Montreal Blue Metropolis Festival
April 23-25
The 11th Blue Metropolis Montreal International Literary Festival will feature a Hungarian contingent consisting of two writers and a publisher, who will participate in events in French, English and Hungarian.
Award-winning writer Krisztina Tóth is one of Hungary’s most highly acclaimed poets. Her poetry has been translated into many languages and published in English by Bloodaxe. Born in Budapest, János Lackfi is a writer and a professor at Pázmány Péter Catholic University and the editor of the journal Nagyvilág.
For more information click here.
April 22nd, 2009
Accredited Hungarian language exams in Toronto and Vancouver
Since 2003 Hungarian as a Second Language exams have been offered in Canada; first through the Helicon Society of Toronto which in 2006 became the first accredited site in North America for these examinations and secondly by the Calvin Hungarian Educational Federation in Vancouver. The examinations are run by the Centre for Foreign Languages ( Idegennyelvi Tovabbképz? Központ – ITK) of Budapest, an affiliated centre of the Eotvos Lorand University (ELTE). Examinations are offered at different levels from Basic to Advanced.
The Toronto date is Sunday May 3rd and the location is the St Elizabeth of Hungary Church School Building, 432 Sheppard Ave East, Toronto. For further information, check HERE or visit the website of the Helicon Society at www.heliconsociety.com
The Vancouver date is Saturday, May 2nd at the First Hungarian Reformed Church, 2791 East 27th Ave, Vancouver, V5R 1N4. For further information see the website of the association at www.calvineducation.ca or write to Hungarian@calvineducation.ca
April 14th, 2009
Weininger Exhibition in Oshawa
University of Manitoba art historian and CHEF advisory board member Oliver Botar is the curator of an exhibition about the Canadian work of Bauhaus artist Andor Weininger which opens at the Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa on May 9th and continues to June 28th 2009. Andor Weininger, an artist of international stature, was the only important Bauhaus artist to have lived in Canada (from 1951-1958) but his Canadian work is almost completely unknown. Read more...
April 8th, 2009
Four film Jancso retrospective in Vancouver
Between April 1-6 2009, The Pacific Cinemateque in Vancouver is presenting a four film retrospective of the films of Miklos Jancso, one of Hungary's best-known film directors. Jancso has been called "Hungary's greatest living film-maker" and is the recipient of many international awards, including Best Director at Cannes and the Golden Lion at Venice. The films being shown are The Round-Up, The Red and the White, Red Psalm, and Silence and Cry. For the press release click here or visit the Cinématèque's website.
March 27, 2009
Nato 60th Anniversary
A reception was held on Parliament Hill on Thursday March 5th to mark the 60th anniversary of NATO and the tenth of Hungary’s accession to the organization together with Poland and the Czech Republic. Five years ago 7 of the other Central European countries also joined the alliance as will two more: Albania and Croatia. The ambassadors of all these countries celebrated the anniversaries with Canadian NATO officials as well as MP’s, Senators and other guests. The Hon Peter Van Loan represented the Government at the event and the ambassadors of the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland had an article published in the Globe and Mail of March 6th about the significance of this event.
The article can be read here.
March 9, 2009
Pablo Urbanyi’s book launch March 17th 2009
Canadian Argentine-Hungarian author Pablo Urbanyi’s most recent work of fiction, El zoologico de dios, was translated and published in Hungary in 2007. There is a book launch and discussion to release the Hungarian version of the book at the Dominican University College in Ottawa on March 17th at 7 pm. The event is in Hungarian. To see the invitation, click here. To find out more about Pablo’s work, see this page of our website.
March 6, 2009
Canada welcomes a record number of immigrants in 2008
The Department of Citizenship and Immigration (CIC) recently released figures indicating that in 2008 Canada received a record high number of newcomers to Canada: 247,202 permanent residents including 10,740 refugees; 193,061 temporary workers and 79,459 foreign students, for a total of 519,722 newcomers. Those interested can read the CIC media release at:
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/department/media/releases/2009/2009-02-20.asp
March 4, 2009
Hungarian Studies Association of Canada annual conference,
May 22-24 2009
For the Program, click here.
The Hungarian Studies Association of Canada (HSAC) is holding its annual conference as part of the Congress of Humanities and Social Sciences of Canada at Carleton University, Ottawa, May 22-24. This year’s conference promises to be an interesting and diverse combination of papers, discussions and cultural events. In addition to papers by scholars and graduate students from Canada and Hungary based on the latest research in history, education, literature, fine arts and music, the conference will provide an opportunity to become informed about the Hungarian contribution to the National Gallery’s major summer exhibition on 16th century Italian art about Rome.
One of the highlights of the conference will be an evening with Canadian writer Anna Porter on Saturday May 23rd at 8 pm in Simard Hall, Room 125 (60 Université). Anna will talk about her recent visits to her birthplace, Hungary, in relation to her published work, including the award-winning Kasztner’s Train (Douglas and McIntyre 2007) and The Storyteller (Doubleday 2000, re-issued by Douglas and McIntyre in 2006), as well as work in progress. The title of her talk is “Memory, History, Citizenship - Reflections on Hungary and Canada.” This event is open to the public.
For the poster click here. For Anna’s biography, see this page on our site.
Finally, researchers will have an opportunity, in a post conference tour, to visit some of the Collections of the Library and Archives Canada at its ultra modern Preservation Centre, including a selection of multi-media materials relating to Hungary or Hungarians in Canada.
For the original Call for Papers (sent out in October 2008) click here.
For information about the HSAC, click here.
February 23, 2009
Hungarian government scholarships for Canadian students
We would like to inform you about an opportunity for young Canadians to study Hungarian language and culture in Hungary.
The Education and Cultural Ministry of the Republic of Hungary, the Secretariat for Hungarians Abroad and the Balassi Institute invite applications for a 10 month Hungarian State scholarship during the 2009/2010 academic year. The scholarship is intended for individuals of Hungarian origin living outside of Hungary who wish to learn or improve their knowledge of Hungarian language and culture. Several scholarships will be offered to Canadian applicants. Read more...
February 10, 2009
Canada Hungary Educational Foundation’s 2008 AGM
The Canada Hungary Educational Foundation (CHEF) held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 1 December 2008 in Ottawa. President Judy Young-Drache, Vice-President Gábor Csepregi, directors Catherine Bélanger and Mark Curfoot-Mollington, as well as CHEF’s secretary, Christopher Adam, were all re-elected to serve an additional one-year term on the Foundation’s Board of Directors. The AGM served as an opportunity to discuss CHEF’s activities in 2008, which had proved to be a busy year for the Foundation. One of the highlights of the year was CHEF’s participation in the Governor General’s State Visit to Hungary. Read more...
February 24, 2009
Canadian Hungarian Artists’ Exhibitions in Hungary and Canada
“Re: In Situ Exhibition of Contemporary Canadian-Hungarian Artists”
Organized by the Canadian-Hungarian Artists’ Collective (CHAC), this multimedia exhibition will showcase the work of over 40 Canadian- Hungarian artists, highlighting the important role that Hungarian descent artist have played within Canada’s multicultural tapestry. The exhibitions series will travel to public galleries during 2009 and 2010 across Canada and tour the following museums in Hungary: the Muveszetmalom, Szentendre, the Helikon Kastely Muzeum, Keszthely, the REOK Muzeum, in Szeged and finally the Székely Nemzeti Múzeum, in Sepsiszentgyörgy, Romania
CHAC urgently needs your help to realize this unprecedented project. You can make a donation by downloading the fundraising letter and donor form HERE. Otherwise contact CHAC through their website: www.chaccanada.org or CHAC President Andrea Blanar at andreablanar@aol.com
CHAC is presenting the work of several of the participating artists in a fundraiser in Montreal on February 18th 2009.
Click on the above image for the PDF of the Exhibit Flyer.
Jan 23, 2009
Three Hungarians among 2008 Order of Canada nominations
Among the Order of Canada appointments made during 2008 were three Hungarian Canadians. In the December 2008 list, Peter Munk, who had been named to the Order in 1993, was promoted to the highest of the three levels, Companion of the Order of Canada. Mr Munk was born in Hungary and was rescued as a teenager together with his family from the Holocaust in Hungary. Read his story in Anna Porter’s book, Kasztner’s Train: The True Story of Rezso Kasztner, Unknown Hero of the Holocaust.
He arrived in Canada in 1947, received his education in Toronto and became one of Canada’s pre-eminent businessmen and philanthropists. He is Founder and Chairman of Barrick Gold, one of the largest mining companies in the world. His citation for the honour reads:
“For his contributions as an entrepreneur and a philanthropist, helping to establish world-class health care and education institutions in Canada and abroad."
The other two Hungarian Canadians, Professor Dezso Horvath and Dr Rudolph Kriegler, were named in the July 2008 list and they both came to Canada after 1956. For more information about them click here.
Jan 27, 2009
Vancouver Première of Freedom’s Fury and Touched by Water
Pacific Cinémathèque and the New Hungarian Voice are presenting Freedom's Fury and Touched by Water
Wednesday, February 4th, 2009
Pacific Cinematheque
1131 Howe Street, Suite 200 Vancouver, B.C. V6Z 2L7 Canada
See both films for the Single Bill Ticket Price: $9.50 Adults, $8 Students/Seniors. Membership in Pacific Cinémathèque or the Hungarian Canadian Cultural Alliance will be accepted for this event.
For more information about the films click here.
Jan.9, 2009
Government speeds up front end of refugee arrival system
By Randy Ray
Citizenship and Immigration Canada has streamlined the refugee intake process.
Changes announced in mid-December are designed to make the application process easier by introducing a single form that replaces several other forms previously in use. Read the article.
***
For those interested in knowing the number of refugees and from which countries they come, Immigration Canada’s website provides statistics. See for instance:
http://cic.gc.ca/english/resources/statistics/facts2007/permanent/10.asp
Jan.16, 2009
Governor General's State Visit to Hungary and Central Europe
Her Excellency, the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, Governor General of Canada and Honorary Patron of the Canada-Hungary Educational Foundation, has embarked on a State Visit to four countries: Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Slovenia. She and a small delegation of Canadians have arrived in Hungary and start a busy program of official activities, meetings and discussions in Hungary on November 24th. Among the programs in Hungary will be the unveiling by her Excellency of a special monument in Budapest’s City Park in honour of Hungarian Canadians – and in recognition of their contributions to Canada. The Canada Hungary Educational Foundation is pleased to have been part of this important project and to have raised – together with the Rakoczi Foundation – the necessary funds for this Canadian-Hungarian monument. Judy Young Drache is in Budapest to participate in the unveiling at which the President of Hungary and a number of Canadians and Hungarians will also be present.
Here are some pictures of the event in Hungary. Also, those interested should visit the website of Her Excellency at www.gg.ca where details of the visit can be found and where blogs and pictures will give information on an ongoing basis.
For the speech of the Governor General at the unveiling, click here.
You can read Judy Young’s comment on Her Excellency’s blog here.
The Governor General was interviewed by various media. Here is a selection of them:
- Duna TV's coverage;
- MTI's short report;
and three newspaper articles from the two major dailies:
- http://www.magyarnemzet.hu/portal/599800?searchtext=kanadai#
- http://nol.hu/lap/vilag/lap-20081122-20081122-8
- http://nol.hu/kulfold/lap-20081121-20081121-13
Nov. 24, Dec.19, Dec. 30, 2008
CHEF's Activities Report
CHEF has recently sent a report on its activities to the Governor General with the following covering letter. The letter and report can be found here:
- Letter to the Governor General
January 9, 2009
News and Events - June - December 2008
- Hungarian documentary on forgotten hero screened in Ottawa
- Gabor Szilasi's new photo exhibit in Montreal
- Canadian Council for Refugees is 30 years old
- Éva Kossuth awarded Order of Merit of Hungary
- Torn from the Flag – documentary on 1956 at Montreal Film Festival
- Plenty of Hungarian Content at Montreal and Toronto Film Festivals
- Ferenc Molnár play on the bill at Shaw Festival this summer
- Bartók Symposium and a Celebratory Dinner in Victoria
- Alanis and other Canadian musicians in Budapest
- Canada establishes endowment fund in memory of interned Europeans
- Two Hungarian Canadians among new Order of Canada recipients
- Dr Judith Woodsworth named President of Concordia University
- Dr Emõke Szathmáry honoured by Province of Manitoba
News and Events January to June 2008
News and events July to December 2007
News and Events January to June 2007
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