Upon the invitation of Viktória Ferenc, Member of the European Parliament of Transcarpathian origin representing the interests of the local Hungarian community and member of the Patriots for Europe Group, Ildikó Orosz, President of Ferenc Rakoczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian University, and Kornélia Hires-László, Head of the university’s Antal Hodinka Linguistics Research Center, visited Strasbourg between October 6 and 8, 2026.
During personal meetings, they provided information on the daily life of the Transcarpathian Hungarian community, the challenges experienced under wartime conditions, and the enforcement of minority and language rights, with particular focus on the current situation of Hungarian public and higher education. The direct dialogue provided an opportunity for Members of the European Parliament to gain first-hand insight into the community’s experiences and the challenges facing educational institutions. Discussing the state of education was particularly critical during these meetings, as the Ukrainian parliament is expected to vote on October 12 on a legislative amendment affecting the educational rights of national minorities, including Transcarpathian Hungarians.
During the visit, consultations were held with György Hölvényi, MEP for the Christian Democratic People’s Party; Eszter Lakos, Head of the TISZA Party EP Group Delegation; and Zsuzsanna Borvendég, MEP for Our Homeland Movement and member of the Europe of Sovereign Nations Group. They also attended the delegation meeting of Fidesz–KDNP. On October 7, they held talks with Kinga Gál, President of the Fidesz–KDNP EP Delegation and First Vice-President of the Patriots for Europe Group. On the third day of the visit, they reviewed the situation of minority Hungarian education with Annamária Vicsek, representative of the Vojvodina Hungarian community, and received information on the legal frameworks ensuring mother-tongue education and the enforcement of minority rights for the Vojvodina Hungarian community.
A key highlight of the program was the meeting of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on Traditional Minorities, National Communities and Languages on October 8, where Ildikó Orosz and Kornélia Hires-László jointly presented the preliminary results of the project titled Language APL – Cross-border linguistic accessibility in public life, implemented with the support of Interreg (HUSKROUA/23/S/3.1/011). Carried out in a Hungarian, Ukrainian, and Romanian partnership under the professional coordination of the Antal Hodinka Linguistics Research Center, the project aimed to support minority language use, promote multilingual access, and encourage economic cooperation based on linguistic diversity. It was particularly gratifying that linguistic accessibility activities associated with the University of Rakoczi could be presented at a European Parliament forum. The presentation drew attention to linking research with practical initiatives, as well as the work of local institutions and civil society organizations supporting minority language use.
