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BOX-FOLDER-REPORT: 29-3-71
TITLE:             Hungarian Daily Background
BY:                
DATE:              1956-12-14
COUNTRY:           Hungary
ORIGINAL SUBJECT:  ERS
THEMATIC SUBJECTS: Hungary--1956 Revolution, Strikes, Political Persecution

--- Begin ---

FROM THE EVALUATION AND RESEARCH SECTION 14 DECEMBER I956.

HUNGARIAN DAILY BACKGROUND. 
/Up to 1200 hrs December 13/

1./ The General Strike

The 48 hours general strike officially ended on December
12 at 2400 hours. On the grounds of reports received from Radio
Kossuth, Gavro ALTMANN /"Borba"/ and PAP it can be stated that
most of the BUDAPEST enterprises were empty. In many localities
even the members of the workers councils have gone home. The town
traffic has been suspended, the production in the Csepel Ironworks
has been stopped.

We have few reports from the smaller towns. ALTMANN reports
there is a general strike in DEBRECEN. We were informed by radio
Kossuth that work was stopped at the PECS enterprises too. Radio
Kossuth, enumerating the mines, mentioned only a few mines in
county Borsod and in the PECS area. It omitted to mention the
mining center of TATABÁNYA, presumably because it is strike-bound.

In the afternoon hours, the opinion spread in several
enterprises that the strike had to be continued. In this way
the workers wanted to protest against the arrest of Sándor RÁCZ,
president of the BUDAPEST Central Workers' Council, and Sándor BALI,
Workers Council member. According to an AP report, the two workers
leaders fell into a snare laid by the KÁDÁR government. They were
called to a conference in the Parliament but were arrested before
entering the building.

The attitude of the population was very hostile toward
the strike breakers. On Radio Kossuth, Ferenc STEINER, president
of the autobus workers council, complained that the drivers of
the buses in operation were insulted and spat on by the passengers.
Finally the passengers were forced by the followers of the strike
to get out and the buses had to return to the garage. Demonstrators
wanted to turn over one bus.

2./ Situation After Official End of the Strike.

Up to noon December 13, we have reports on BUDAPEST only.
According to the leading article of "Népszabadság", the strike was
not a success.

[page 2]

So far, it cannot be estimated what percentage of the
BUDAPEST workers reported at their places of work Dec 13. AP
reports that tens of thousands of BUDAPEST workers came out on
strike again, a few hours after returning to their factories
at the end of the two-day strike. The new walk-out was a protest
against the arrest of RÁCZ and BALI. There was a total walk - out
in the industrial eleventh district of BUDAPEST, which has many
textile and tool plants.
Three factors indicated the continuation of the strike:
a./ With the arrests of RÁCZ and BALI the government was again
provoking the workers.
b./ A great part of the workers wish to continue the strike.
c./ The coal and raw material shortages forced the factories
to "be idle anyway.

The country's economy has now been paralyzed, both by
strikes and also the disintegration of the centralized economic
machinery. In its morning broadcast, Radio Kossuth referred to
these results. "It is not a question of painting the devil on the
wall," the broadcast said, "when we express the fear that as a
result mass unemployment may be produced. Factories would be
forced to stop work, not because people were on strike, but
because there was neither electric current nor coal."

3./ Further Information On Demonstrations.

At the beginning of the week there were demonstrations In
several provincial towns. Up to now we knew about demonstrations
in EGER, MISKOLC, MAGYAROVAR, SALGOTARJAN, BEKESCSABA and BATTOITYA.
According to information received by "Borba", similar demonstrations
were held at KECSKEMET, approximately 70 kilometers from BUDAPEST.
The demonstrating masses were dispersed by Hungarian policemen
and Soviet soldiers who shot in the air. Similarly, Soviet soldiers
and Hungarian policemen on December 12 dispersed demonstrators in
BUDAPEST at Morics Zsigmond square, Rakoczi street and UJPTCST.
From an article in "Nepszabadsag" December l2, we known about
demonstrations held in HODMEZOVADARHELY in the Yugoslav and

In the course of demonstrations held in recent days, the
police and Soviet soldiers generally fired in the air to disperse
the crowds. They avoided bloody provocation, evidently to avoid
giving ground for an even greater mass-demonstration, or the use
of arms still in the hands of the population. The government
constantly fears armed clashes. Probably this explains why the

[page 3]

Presidential Council, expanded its decree on martial law, so that
if the accused is found guilty by a summary court of any of the
charges triable by such a court, a verdict of guilty will carry
the sentence of death.

4./ Demonstrations Of Peasants In County EEKES.

We learn from Radio Kossuth's program "Faluradio" on
December 13, that several villages in county BEKES "suddenly became
more restless." Unrest followed an article which appeared in
"Neplap", the BEKESCSABA newspaper, calling upon the old leaders
to resume their positions. The population of Dobozs village was
called together three times by high officials, trying to force
the old leaders upon them, but the population rejected them each time.
They stick to the leaders who were put on the local council during
the revolution. It is evident from the article that the old county
and district leaders in county Bekes returned to their positions,
but this process was prevented in the villages by the population.
The rejected RAKOSI-ists' claims that they were elected /November 1954.
The reply of the county Bekes peasants, according to a message
read on Radio Kossuth, is the following: "Everybody knows that,
at that time, the people elected were not those whom the people,
the village, chose. They can repeat and put down in writing that all
the peasants of county Bekes are against having these persons
back."

End

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