RFE/RL NEWSLINE 
Vol. 1, No. 132, 6 October 1997

HUNGARY WANTS TO CONTINUE DIALOGUE WITH SLOVAKIA. Foreign
Minister Laszlo Kovacs on 3 October said Hungary does not intend to
"engage in a war of words" with Slovakia because this would be
"unworthy of a country seeking integration in [Euro-Atlantic]
organizations," Hungarian media reported. Kovacs was speaking
following his return to Budapest after talks in Washington on
Hungarian, Czech, and Polish integration into NATO. He said that
despite recent criticism from Bratislava, Hungary wants to continue
its dialogue with Slovakia. He also stressed that there is no reason
why Budapest should apologize for anything or bow to Slovak
demands.

HUNGARY'S FIRST PRIVATE TV COMPANY GOES ON AIR. Hungary's
first commercial television station began broadcasting on 4 October,
ending a 40-year state monopoly. A second private television station
will go on the air on 7 October, AFP reported. TV-2, which is owned
by a Scandinavian-German-Hungarian consortium, broadcasts to 87
percent of the country's territory and is financed exclusively by
advertising revenues. The second private station, RTL Club, will
broadcast on a frequency that was used by formLT Group, based in
Luxembourg.

ETHNIC HUNGARIANS HOLD CONGRESS IN TARGU MURES. At its fifth
congress in Targu Mures on 3-4 October, the Hungarian Democratic
Federation of Romania (UDMR) amended its statutes to stipulate that
the federation's Council of Representatives will designate cabinet
ministers representing the UDMR. An amendment on the
transformation of the UDMR into a political party was not put to the
vote. An RFE/RL correspondent in Targu Mures reported that the
congress ignored all proposals by the radical wing, which is
considered a victory for the moderate wing, led by chairman Bela
Marko, However, Reformed Bishop Laszlo Toekes was re-elected
UDMR honorary chairman. In his address to the congress, Toekes
criticized the performance of UDMR government officials. Marko
rejected that criticism but said anti-Hungarian nationalists are
sometimes encouraged by positions adopted by members of the
ruling coalition.


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