tee 3 at

~ Corn harvest in the Babo

Ina State Farm.

The aluminum factory at Ajka.

Hungary 30 years later

By Ann Peter

T. BUDAPEST
hirty years ago, as the Soviet
Army advanced step by step driv-
‘ng the nazi army from Hungary,
Placards of the Hungarian Com-
| Munist Party, the Social Demo-
Cratic Party and others rallying

| ‘Ne Hungarian people advanced

| With it. (The posters on this page -

illustrate the fight against fascism
and the program of national recon-
Struction after the people’s vic-
tory. ) :

_It took 108 days to liberate Buda-
| Pest alone, leaving the city largely

€stroyed. Three quarters of its:

quildings were either completely
€stroyed or badly\damaged and
‘ne-fourth of the population was
€ft without a roof over its head.
ll the bridges spanning the Dan-
River between both parts of

€ city were blown up by. the
Nazis. Few factories remained

Whole and all transportables were

taken away by the retreating fas-
cists. There was neither gas nor
electricity, no fuel, no food nor
medical supplies. Epidemics and
starvation threatened the city.
Nationally, 40% of Hungary’s
wealth was laid waste; 25% of the
productive forces were destroyed
as was one half of its main rail-

road lines: 360,000 dwellings were .

razed. Cattle, machine tools, ve-
hicles were all taken by the nazis.
‘And over 600,000 Hungarians,
the majority of them Jews, were
either killed in battle or wilfully
murdered by the nazis. ;

It was amidst that situation that
the Soviet Union came to Hun-
gary’s aid, and the Hungarian
Communist Party, after 25 years
of illegality, rallied the left wing
forces and mobilized the nation
for clearing the ruins and rebuild-
ing the country even as the battles
were still raging.

The’ Communist Party was the

first, as early as November 1944,

to propose a program for the dem-.

ocratic reconstruction and prog-

pp RSE ee

The Hungarian Railroad Workers’ Union Stands Guard

ress of Hungary. Setting priori-

ties, it worked tirelessly to rebuild.

the railways, roads and factories.
It fought against inflation which
had reached fantastic proportions
due to speculation and black mar-
keting.

[. the parliamentary elections
of 1947, the Communist Party be-
came“the largest in-the country;
in. 1948, at a jointseongress, the
Communist and Social Democra-
tic parties merged forming the
Hungarian Workers’ Party. This

opened the way to further united:

action so that in the 1949 parlia-
mentary elections the. left -bloc
won 95.6% of the votes. During
that year the democratization of
the armed forces was completed,
purging the state apparatus of re-
maining reactionary elements.
Now, the way toward the socialist
reorganization of the country was
open. Z s
Even before April 4th, 1945, Lib-
eration Day, the land was distrib-

~

ORT ALL

KESHAJOS

OH

uted to the over 600,000 landless
peasants Then followed the na-
tionalization of the factories,
mines and banks. Hungary, once
known as the country of three mil-
lion beggars, began to pull itself
together aided in no small meas-
ure by the Soviet Union.

The 30 years of the Hungarian
Peoples’ Republic, behind which
lie the hard work of the Hun-
garian people, -the sacrifices of
the early years and the gradual
transition to a better life, are
graphically described by the ‘fol-
lowing figures.

From an economy based on un-
developed industry and agricul-
ture, Hungary now takes its place
among the industrialized coun-
tries, boasting of a modern indus-
try and a mechanized agriculture.

Before the war, industry em-
ployed 900,000 workers; today it
employs 1,900,000. Since 1938 its
fixed capital grew three fold and
industrial production seven fold.
Industry and building make up
54% of the national income today.

Ee

All Hands Take Part in Rebuilding — Hungarian Communist

_ Before the war, over 2 mil-
lion peasants (with their families,
4.5 million) lived off the land. To-
day 1.1 million. work in coopera-
tive and state farms; output had
increased over 60% by 1973, and
agriculture accounts. for 17%of
the national income. a

_ In 1938 some 23,000 apartments
were built; in 1974, 88,000, making
a total of one million since libera-
tion. .

In 1938 there were 10,500 doctors
in Hungary; in 1973 there were
25,600.

In 1938 1.1% of secondary school
graduates graduated from univer-
sity; in 1973, 4.4%. ;

In 1938 a little over 9 mil-
lion books were published in Hun-
gary; in 1973,’ 64 million books
were published. _

In 1938 there were 419,000 ra-
dios; in 1973 there were 2.5 mil-
lion.

In 1938, 220,000. Hungarians tra-
veled abroad, in 1973, 2,180,000
Hungarians visited foreign coun-
tries as tourists.

WORLD MAGAZINE

PACIFIC TRIBUNE—FRIDAY, MARCH 28, 1975—Page 9