László Tőkés
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László Tőkés ( ; born 1 April 1952) is an ethnically Hungarian pastor and politician from
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
. He was a
Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...
(MEP) from 2007 to 2019. Tőkés served as a
Vice-President of the European Parliament There are fourteen vice-presidents of the European Parliament who sit in for the President of the European Parliament, president in presiding over the plenary of the European Parliament. Role Vice-presidents are members of the Bureau (European P ...
from 2010 to 2012. A bishop of the Reformed Diocese of Királyhágómellék of the
Reformed Church in Romania The Reformed Church in Romania (; ) is a Calvinist denomination and the largest Protestant church in Romania. The majority of its followers are of Hungarian ethnicity and Hungarian is the main church language. The large majority of the Church's ...
, he is also a former honorary president of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania. An effort to transfer Tőkés from his post as an assistant pastor in
Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...
and to evict him from his church flat helped trigger the
Romanian Revolution The Romanian revolution () was a period of violent Civil disorder, civil unrest in Socialist Republic of Romania, Romania during December 1989 as a part of the revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several countries around the world, primarily ...
, which overthrew
Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( ; ;  – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the second and last Communism, communist leader of Socialist Romania, Romania, serving as the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 u ...
and spelled the end of
communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
in Romania. Tőkés is the head of the
Hungarian National Council of Transylvania The Hungarian National Council of Transylvania (; ) is a civic organization that represents the ethnic Hungarians of Romania. Established in 2003, its chairman is László Tőkés. The organisation intends to present, represent and move the cas ...
, a civic organisation for Transylvanian Hungarians. He is closely associated with the Hungarian People's Party of Transylvania (PPMT), but not a member of it. He is a member of the
Reconciliation of European Histories Group The Reconciliation of European Histories Group is an informal all-party group in the European Parliament involved in promoting the Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism, Prague Process in all of Europe, aimed at coming to terms ...
, and co-sponsored the European Parliament resolution of 2 April 2009 on European conscience and totalitarianism.


Family

A native of
Cluj Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...
, László Tőkés is the son of István Tőkés, professor of theology and former deputy bishop of the largely Hungarian Reformed Church. He was married to Edit Joó, with whom he has three children: sons Máté and Márton, and daughter Ilona. Máté Tőkés, who was only three years old during the Revolution of 1989, later collected the memories of the friends, relatives, and other participants of the events, and in 2005 wrote ''Egymás tükrében'' ("In Each Other's Mirror"), a book about his parents and the hardships of the family. In March 2010, his wife filed for divorce. Edit Tőkés accused the bishop of "numerous affairs" and "absurd habits". The claims of infidelity and mistreatment were confirmed by a former counsellor of the pastor and the divorce decree was issued in February 2011.


Dissident pastor

Like his father, Tőkés was a persistent critic of the totalitarian Ceaușescu regime. While a pastor in the Transylvanian town of Dej, he contributed to the clandestine Hungarian-language journal ''Ellenpontok'' ("Counterpoints"; 1981–82). An article there on human rights abuses in Romania appears to have been the occasion of his first harassment by the secret police, the
Securitate The Department of State Security (), commonly known as the Securitate (, ), was the secret police agency of the Socialist Republic of Romania. It was founded on 30 August 1948 from the '' Siguranța'' with help and direction from the Soviet MG ...
. He was reassigned to the village of Sânpetru de Câmpie, but refused to go and instead spent two years living in his parents' house in
Cluj Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...
. His situation was discussed in the
U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign a ...
, which led indirectly to his appointment to be assistant pastor in Timișoara, where he gave sermons that opposed the Romanian national government's program of systematisation, which proposed radical restructuring of the infrastructure of Romanian towns and villages. Smaller villages were deemed "irrational" and listed for reduction of services or forced removal of the population and physical destruction. This included the destruction of historic churches and monasteries. The programme was seen by Hungarians and human rights activists as a particular threat to Hungarian villages, although Tőkés' sermons did not single this out, calling for solidarity between Hungarians and Romanians.Deletant, online, p. 50 The governments of Hungary and West Germany, concerned for their national minorities in Transylvania, protested against systematization. In the summer of 1988, Tőkés organized opposition to systematisation among Hungarian Reformed Church pastors, again drawing the attention of the Securitate. After the Securitate objected to a cultural festival organized on 31 October 1988 ( Reformation Day), jointly with the amateur Hungarian-language theatre group "Thalia", Bishop László Papp banned all youth activities in the
Banat Banat ( , ; ; ; ) is a geographical and Historical regions of Central Europe, historical region located in the Pannonian Basin that straddles Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe. It is divided among three countries: the eastern part lie ...
(the region Timișoara is part of). Tőkés nonetheless worked together with the bishop of the
Romanian Orthodox Church The Romanian Orthodox Church (ROC; , ), or Romanian Patriarchate, is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox Christian denomination, Christian churches, and one of the nine patriarchates in the East ...
on another festival in spring 1989. On 20 March 1989, Tőkés gave a secretly taped TV interview to two Canadians – former politician Michel Clair and
Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...
journalist Réjean Roy (released as ''Dracula's Shadow – The Real Story Behind the Romanian Revolution''). The two were helped by a small group from
Székesfehérvár Székesfehérvár (; ; ; ; Serbian language, Serbian: ''Стони Београд''; ), known colloquially as Fehérvár (), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the Regions of Hungary, regional capital of C ...
in Hungary who smuggled in videotapes and video cameras. On 31 March 1989, Papp ordered Tőkés to stop preaching in Timișoara and move to the isolated parish of
Mineu The Mineu is a left tributary of the river Sălaj in Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the ...
. Tőkés refused the order, and his congregation supported him. On 24 July 1989, the Hungarian State TV investigative show ''Panorama'' broadcast the secretly-taped TV interview with Tőkés. Two days later Bishop Papp sent Tőkés a letter, accusing him of slandering the state and saying lies in the interview, and ordered his expulsion. The bishop began civil proceedings to evict him from his church flat. His power was cut off and his ration book taken away, but his parishioners continued to support and provide for him. The state had some arrested and beaten. At least one, Ernő Ujvárossy, was found dead in the woods outside Timișoara on 14 September, and Tőkés's father was briefly arrested.Deletant, online, p. 51 In the interview in July 1989, to Hungarian television, Tőkés complained that the Romanians do not even know their human rights. Tőkés explained the message and effect of this interview in a German TV series on the collapse of the
Iron Curtain The Iron Curtain was the political and physical boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. On the east side of the Iron Curtain were countries connected to the So ...
in 2008: A court ordered Tőkés' eviction on 20 October. He appealed. On 2 November, four attackers armed with knives broke into his flat; Securitate agents looked on while he and his friends fought off the assailants. The Romanian ambassador was summoned to the Hungarian Foreign Ministry and told of the Hungarian government's concern for his safety. His appeal was turned down, and his eviction set for Friday 15 December. Foreign broadcasters also began showing the secretly taped TV interview, such as ABC's ''Nightline'' in the U.S.


December 1989

As 15 December approached, Tőkés' parishioners began something of a vigil outside his flat, refusing two guards' orders to move along. On 15 December, a human chain was formed around the block; the militia were unable to gain access. Tőkés thanked the crowd but advised them to leave, but several hundred stayed in groups close to the flat. His wife, Edit, who was pregnant at the time, fell ill. On 16 December, the family doctor appeared to see Edit. Within half an hour, the mayor of Timișoara appeared with three more doctors, hoping to persuade Edit to go to a hospital. On the advice of their family doctor, she refused. Shortly afterwards, workmen arrived to repair the damaged windows and door to the flat; presumably the mayor was hoping to defuse matters, but the crowds actually grew, with some young Romanians joining the Hungarian parishioners. Tőkés spoke to the mayor and again urged the crowd to disperse. The crowd remained; the mayor stormed away, returned at noon, and promised that Tőkés would not be evicted. The crowd remained; some of them accused Tőkés of collaborating with the authorities and demanded a written retraction of Tőkés' transfer and eviction. The mayor promised to do so within an hour; if he actually intended to, it proved impossible on a Saturday. After various negotiations with the mayor and the deputy mayor and the involvement of various delegations, the mayor gave an ultimatum for the crowd to disperse by 5 pm or face fire-brigade water cannons. Tőkés again pleaded with the crowd to disperse, but, possibly convinced that he was acting under threats from the Securitate, they refused. The crowd beckoned him to leave his apartment and come down to the street. He refused, presumably fearful of being seen as the leader of this resistance. 5 pm came and went without water cannons. By 7 pm the crowds extended for several blocks and included many students from the local polytechnic and university, Hungarians and Romanians in a human chain, first singing hymns, but about 7:30 launching into the patriotic song
Deșteaptă-te, române! "" (; ) is the national anthem of Romania. It originated from a poem written during the Wallachian Revolution of 1848. The lyrics were composed by Andrei Mureșanu and published during the Wallachian Revolution of 1848, 1848 revolution, initiall ...
("Awaken thee, Romanian!"), banned in 1947 at the beginning of the communist dictatorship and sung during the 1987 Brașov rebellion. In Deletant's words, "The Hungarian protest had now become a Romanian revolt." Cries were raised, "Down with Ceaușescu!" "Down with the regime!" and "Down with Communism!" The crowd moved out from around Tőkés' flat and church, crossed a bridge, and headed for the city centre and Communist Party headquarters, where they threw stones before militia drove them back toward the church around 10 pm and the water cannons finally came into play. However, the crowd seized the cannons, broke them up, and threw the parts into the river Bega. A general spirit of roving riot ensued.Deletant, online, p. 54 Demonstrations continued the next two days. On Sunday, 17 December, the army fired into the crowd. The number of casualties has been a matter of dispute; early reports were undoubtedly exaggerated. The number of deaths was 73 for the period 16–22 December 1989, and another 20 for the period after Ceaușescu fled. On
Elena Ceaușescu Elena Ceaușescu (; born Lenuța Petrescu; 7 January 1916 – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician who was the wife of Nicolae Ceaușescu, General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party and leader of the Socialist Republic o ...
's orders, 40 of the dead were transported by lorry to Bucharest and cremated to make identification impossible. On 18 December, tens of thousands of industrial workers in Timișoara peacefully took up the protest; by 20 December the city was effectively in insurrection. The news of the protests and the violent government crackdown spread quickly across Romania and triggered many more protests. They quickly escalated into the Romanian Revolution of 1989 that overthrew Ceaușescu and the Communist government.


Bishop of Oradea

After the dispossession of the discredited Communist bishop of Oradea, László Papp in 1989, Tőkés was elected as a bishop of the Reformed Diocese of Királyhágómellék. He was again re-elected in 2004 for another six-year term. During his tenure, he worked hard for the reorganization of the disintegrated church and the renewal of spiritual life. He emphasised the importance of Hungarian-language education, social responsibility, and missionary work. It was his top priority to win back the properties and schools of the church that had been confiscated by the Communist government, but ownership-restoration in Romania proved to be an extremely difficult, slow and—so far—unsuccessful process. In spite of financial difficulties, he established new social and educational institutions instead of the old ones. The Christian University of Partium in Oradea was one of the bishop's favourite projects as the first Hungarian-language private university in Romania (opened in 1999). His other notable initiatives are the child-care center in Oradea, an orphanage in Aleșd, Bethesda Health-Care Centre in Arduzel, Peter Reformed Elementary School in
Salonta Salonta (; , colloquially , ; ) is a municipiu, city in Bihor County, in the geographical region of Crișana, north-western Romania, near the Hungarian border. Population According to the 2021 Romanian census, 2021 census, Salonta has a popu ...
, and a nursing home in
Tinca Tinca () is a commune in the south-central part of Bihor County, Crișana, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Belfir (), Gurbediu (), Girișu Negru (), Râpa (), and Tinca. Historic attestation It was first mentioned as a village in a Pap ...
. The Lórántffy Zsuzsanna Ecclesiastical Centre of the Hungarian Reformed Church with a museum, auditorium, and social care centre was inaugurated in 1996.


Political career

In 2007 Tőkés ran for the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
as an independent, receiving the backing of Hungary's
Fidesz Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; ) is a national-conservative political party in Hungary led by Viktor Orbán. It has increasingly identified as illiberal. Originally formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young Democrats () as ...
. At the November 2007 election in Romania, he gained enough votes to win a seat. In competition with the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, the main party of Romania's Hungarians, Tőkés was accused, for instance by a leading politician of that party, György Frunda, of splitting the Hungarian vote. Frunda also claimed that Tőkés was helped by President
Traian Băsescu Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a Romanian politician who served as the president of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian minister of transport on multiple occasions between 1991 and 2000, ...
and noted that he received 18,000 votes from the historically named
Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...
and
Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...
regions of Romania, places where few Hungarians live. Tőkés commented on election night, "I knocked out the Greater Romania Party", referring to the fact that, while he had won a seat, the far right, anti-Hungarian Greater Romania Party had lost all five of its own. In the
2009 European Parliament election The 2009 European Parliament election was held in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU) between 4 and 7 June 2009. A total of 736 Member of the European Parliament, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to represent s ...
he headed the party list of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania and was re-elected. In May 2010, he became one of the fourteen vice-presidents of the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
. He was elected by 334 votes in favour and 287 abstentions, replacing
Pál Schmitt Pál Schmitt (; born 1942) is a Hungarian Olympic fencer and politician who served as President of Hungary from 2010 until his resignation in 2012, following his academic misconduct controversy. Schmitt was a successful fencer in his ...
. He is a signatory of the
Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism The Prague Declaration on European Conscience and Communism was a declaration which was initiated by the Czech government and signed on 3 June 2008 by prominent European politicians, former political prisoners and historians, among them former ...
. In 2014 he was the third on the list of
Fidesz Fidesz – Hungarian Civic Alliance (; ) is a national-conservative political party in Hungary led by Viktor Orbán. It has increasingly identified as illiberal. Originally formed in 1988 under the name of Alliance of Young Democrats () as ...
for the European Parliament election in Hungary. Before his term ended in 2019, he announced that he would not run for re-election, stating that the
European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democracy, Christian democratic, liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other p ...
had "abandoned Christian Europe".


European elections


Awards and honours

In 1990 he received the Four Freedoms Award for the Freedom of Worship. In June 2009, in Washington, D.C., he was awarded the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom for his role in the struggles against Romanian communism. He received the
Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the Order of Michael the Brave. It is the oldest Order of Romania. It is awarded by the Preside ...
from President
Traian Băsescu Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a Romanian politician who served as the president of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian minister of transport on multiple occasions between 1991 and 2000, ...
in 2009. President
Klaus Iohannis Klaus Werner Iohannis (; ; born 13 June 1959) is a Romanian politician, physicist, and former teacher who served as the fifth president of Romania from 2014 until his resignation in 2025. Prior to entering Politics of Romania, national politics, ...
announced in 2016 that he decided to withdraw the honour from Tőkés. "The matter reached my table and I have to make a decision. In my opinion, we should consider certain issues when analysing such questions. The one who grants a distinction wishes to reward the person distinguished, the one who receives and accepts the distinction must recognise Romania and the Constitution of Romania, to appreciate the values that stay at the grounds of the Constitution of Romania. Considering all this, I have decided to withdraw the 'Romania Star' Order from mister László Tőkés," the head of state said at the
Cotroceni Palace Cotroceni Palace (Romanian language, Romanian: ''Palatul Cotroceni'') is the official residence of the President of Romania. It is located at ''Bulevardul Geniului, nr. 1'', in Bucharest, Romania. The palace also houses the National Cotroceni Mu ...
. Tőkés responded that the cause of the withdrawal of the award – a comment he made to Hungary's Prime Minister
Viktor Orbán Viktor Mihály Orbán (; born 31 May 1963) is a Hungarian lawyer and politician who has been the 56th prime minister of Hungary since 2010, previously holding the office from 1998 to 2002. He has also led the Fidesz political party since 200 ...
in 2013 about supposedly proposing to extend a "protectorate status" to Transylvania, similar to the status of
South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...
based on the Gruber–De Gasperi Agreement – was mistranslated. His appeals in Romania were struck down by all judicial institutions by 2016, but Tőkés responded that he would challenge the decision at the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the
European Court of Justice The European Court of Justice (ECJ), officially the Court of Justice (), is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Union, it is tasked with interpreting ...
.


Notes


References

*Deletant, Dennis, ''Romania under communist rule'' (1999). Center for Romanian Studies in cooperation with the Civic Academy Foundation (
Iași Iași ( , , ; also known by other #Etymology and names, alternative names), also referred to mostly historically as Jassy ( , ), is the Cities in Romania, third largest city in Romania and the seat of Iași County. Located in the historical ...
, Romania;
Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...
), . * Szoczi, Arpad, "Timișoara – The Real Story Behind the Romanian Revolution – 25th Anniversary Edition" (2015). iUniverse, Bloomington, Indiana, . * Colson, Charles, and Ellen Vaughn, ''Being the Body: a new call for the Church to be light in the darkness'' (2003). W Publishing Group, Nashville, Tennessee, . * Alex Mihai Stoenescu, ''Istoria loviturilor de stat din Romania. Vol. 4, part 1'' ("The History of Romanian Coups d'État"). Rao publishing house, Bucharest, 2004. An entire chapter is devoted to Tőkés, his background and the December 1989 events. *
Marius Mioc, "Revoluția fără mistere: Începutul revoluției române: cazul Laszlo Tokes"
("A revolution without mysteries: the beginning of the Romanian Revolution: the case of Laszlo Tokes") *

* Pinstripes and Reds: An American Ambassador Caught Between the State Department & the Romanian Communists, 1981–1985 Washington, D.C.: Selous Foundation Press, 1987.


External links


Personal site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tokes, Laszlo 1952 births Living people Romanian Calvinist and Reformed clergy Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania politicians Fidesz MEPs Romanian religious leaders of Hungarian descent People from Cluj-Napoca People of the Romanian revolution Hungarian bishops Romanian bishops Hungarian Calvinist and Reformed Christians Romanian dissidents Romanian memoirists Romanian revolutionaries Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania MEPs MEPs for Romania 2007–2009 MEPs for Romania 2009–2014 MEPs for Hungary 2014–2019