November 16, 2007

Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation Reception at Embassy

The Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation (VOCMF) and the Embassy of Hungary co-hosted a reception on November 15th, Thursday at 6:30pm. The Memorial, which was inaugurated by President Bush on June 12, 2007, was founded and created by VOCMF.

VOCMF Chairman Dr. Lee Edwards presented the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom to Representative Dana Rohrabacher, a strong Congressional supporter of the Memorial; South Vietnamese human rights activist Tran Van Ba, who was executed in Hanoi in 1984; and Professor of Economy and Hungarian Representative Dr. János Horváth, the Doyen of the Hungarian Parliament. They were lauded by Representative Thaddeus McCotter, Dr. Lee Edwards, Former US Ambassador to Budapest George Herbert Walker III, and Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

VOCMF Chairman Dr. Lee Edwards and Representative Dana Rohrabacher

Dr. Lee Edwards and the brother of Tran Van Ba, Dr. Tran Van Tong

Ambassador George Herbert Walker and Dr. János Horváth

Former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán

The ceremony was followed by Ambassador Ferenc Somogyi presenting the Hero of Freedom Medal of the President of the Republic of Hungary to Chinese-American Human Rights Activist Harry Wu, who was imprisoned by the Chinese authorities for 19 years after making a statement as a university student, saying that the Soviet invasion of Hungary in October 1956 was a breach of the international law. The Ambassador stressed that the people of Hungary pay tribute to the hero, who stood by the freedom of Hungary and paid a terrible price for it.

Ambassador Ferenc Somogyi and Chinese-American Human Rights Activist Harry Wu

At the end of the reception, Dr. Lee Tucker, Chairman of Tucker & Associates, presented the results of the silent auction of the reception, the revenue of which will be donated to the creation of the Global Virtual Museum of VOCMF.

Former US Ambassador to Hungary and US Chief of Protocol Nancy Goodman Brinker, the Ambassadors of Estonia, Latvia, the Philippines, Slovakia were present at the reception, as well as members of the Hungarian American organizations and former 1956 Revolutionaries.

Dr. János Horváth, Linda Horváth and US Chief of Protocol Nancy Goodman Brinker

The Washington Times reported on the event, and Hungarian News Television Hír TV and Vietnamese American Television made interviews with the awardees and the VIP guests.