Ambassador András Simonyi was guest of
honor at a dedication ceremony held at the home of Eleanor Bien, wife of
the late György
(George) Bien, who passed away in June this year. A room, called
the George Zoltan Bien Memorial Library, which features documents
from Mr. Bien's long and adventurous life, was opened to friends and,
ultimately, researchers, on October 30.
Among the many items displayed are rare
documents and photos dating from the 1956 revolution in Hungary, including
a Hungarian-language menu for Christmas Dinner from the refugee camp in New
Jersey that temporarily housed many Hungarians before they left for cities
on the East Coast. Also displayed in the library is a gold pocket watch
that once belonged to Nobel Prize-winning Hungarian scientist Albert
Szentgyörgyi, who gifted it to Mr. Bien's father, a research assistant
to Mr. Szentgyörgyi, in gratitude for his work on the discovery
that paprika was a rich source of Vitamin C.
Mr. Bien and his father were arrested
in Budapest in 1945 by the Soviets, charged with espionage, and sentenced
to the GULAG for 10 years. The Library contains numerous
documents pertaining to this event including the exoneration papers
received 50 years after the sentencing.
Eleanor Bien presenting the Ambassador with a copy of a
DVD containing interviews with George Bien about the GULAG
Ambassador Simonyi and Dr. Gregory Neas, George Bien's
physician, examining Albert Szentgyörgyi's gold watch
Ambassador Simonyi was the fist to sign the library
guest book
The text of Ambassador
Simonyi's remarks follows:
"It is highly symbolic that this
inauguration takes place on the 50th anniversary of the 1956 Hungarian
Revolution. Gyuri bácsi left Hungary in 1956. We are truly
sorry that he cannot be with us to celebrate this anniversary because
I'm sure he would have had many things to add, many stories to
contribute to the general discourse.
"We,
however, know his life's story well from his book 'Lost Years' and the
film that was based on this book, made by Zoltán Szalkai, called 'Walk
on Gulagland: Kolyma.' The film was shown at the Embassy to an
appreciative audience.
"I
am truly glad that Gyuri bácsi was able to meet, before his passing,
with Otto von Habsburg at an Embassy reception. One thing they had
in common was that they both lived through the most tempestuous times of
Hungarian history.
"Gyuri bácsi
lived through not one but two dictatorships – the Nazi oppression
followed by Soviet tyranny. It is hard to imagine how difficult it
must have been to face the fact that those who were hailed as liberators
were no better than the Nazis.
"The
Jewish and bourgeois heritage of Gyuri bácsi meant that he was in the
crosshairs of both murderous regimes, when all he wanted is to work and
raise a family. It is sad he had to go all the way to the U.S. to
realize his dreams. He remained true to his Hungarian roots but it
is a pity that his considerable talents did not enrich Hungary.
"It
is important that the message of Gyuri bácsi's life is preserved for
the next generations: that even the greatest humiliation and hardship
can be borne with dignity and humanity, that you can walk out of a death
camp with your head held high and still retain your belief in
humanity. He could have well turned into a bitter man but we all
knew him as a happy, content person who loved life and people.
"It
was his extended family that served as a haven for Gyuri bácsi all
these years. It was moving to see when I visited him at his hospital bed
how family members took turns to keep him company, learn from him until
the last minute and assure him of their love for him."
