PROGRAM # 367 & 368
GUEST: Andras Simonyi
TITLE: Ambassador to the United States from the Republic of Hungary

Taped 6-12-02

Andras Simonyi, Ambassador to the United States from the Republic of Hungary, in his interview with Leslie Dutton, talked about his family background in Communist Hungary prior to the fall of the Soviet Union. Also discussed was the Ambassador’s transition from a pro-Communist to a pro-democracy advocate and why his family decided to stay rather than flee with the Freedom Fighters.

Simonyi offered the following explanation as to why the U. S. opposes an open visa policy with the new Hungarian government. “There are some statistics that say that there are too many Hungarians who are staying overtime in the United States. We are working on it and we are telling Hungarians not to do that, to make sure that this statistical issue gets out of the way, and then we can start talking about the visa issue.”