VZNIK A ČINNOSŤ CSEMADOKU V KONTEXTE POLITIKY KSČ (1949-1951)

Under the influence of foreign policy developments, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia made substantial changes to the position of members of the Hungarian community in Czechoslovakia during the second half of 1948. These included the formation of a Hungarian cultural society. The founding assembly of the Cultural Society of the Hungarian Workers in Czechoslovakia (in Slovak: 'Kulturny spolok madarskych pracujucich v Ceskoslovensku', in Hungarian: 'Czehszlovakiai Magyar Dolgozok Kulturegyesulete', abbreviation: 'Csemadok') was held on 5 March 1949. The beginnings of its activity were conditioned by the dramatic socio-political situation, as well as by relations between the Slovak and Hungarian populations, which were not characterized by mutual trust or understanding in that period. The main problems were the statutes of the society, the membership of re-Slovakized people and the powers of the Commission for Information and Enlightenment. The members of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Slovakia also held different views on these questions. The formation of the organizational structure did not proceed smoothly at first. This was also the result of continuing fears among members of the Hungarian minority as a result of the period 1945 -1948. The 'Csemadok' became part of the National Front at the end of 1951 in harmony with the political line of the Communist Party.