Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BUDAPEST118
2007-01-30 09:38:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Budapest
Cable title:
HUNGARY: NAMES OF INFLUENTIAL WOMEN
how-toVZCZCXYZ0007 RR RUEHWEB DE RUEHUP #0118 0300938 ZNR UUUUU ZZH R 300938Z JAN 07 FM AMEMBASSY BUDAPEST TO SECSTATE WASHDC 0683
UNCLAS BUDAPEST 000118
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR S/WE: SASHA MEHRA AND GERDA LANE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KWMN PHUM PREL HU
SUBJECT: HUNGARY: NAMES OF INFLUENTIAL WOMEN
REF: SECSTATE 202341
UNCLAS BUDAPEST 000118
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR S/WE: SASHA MEHRA AND GERDA LANE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KWMN PHUM PREL HU
SUBJECT: HUNGARY: NAMES OF INFLUENTIAL WOMEN
REF: SECSTATE 202341
1. (U) Embassy Budapest recommends the inclusion of the
following names in reftel contact list:
Dr. Klara Dobrev: The wife of Prime Minister Ferenc
Gyurcsany, Dr. Dobrev has become an influential albeit
informal advisor to her husband and an energetic spokesperson
for his government. A lecturer at a Budapest law school, she
has also made health care a priority issue with her energetic
outreach efforts to encourage healthy lifestyles among
Hungarian children. The daughter of an influential Communist
official, Dr. Dobrev has often been the target of criticism
from the opposition but remains the most powerful woman in
Hungary.
Katalin Szili: The Speaker of Parliament and a senior member
of the governing MSZP party, Szili narrowly missed election
to the Presidency in 2005 and is discussed as a potential
candidate for the party leadership. She has used her office
to venture into foreign affairs, travelling extensively and
focusing in particular on the integration of neighboring
states into Euro-Atlantic institutions.
Dr. Ibolya David: Member of Parliament and leader of the
independent opposition Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF),Dr.
David is consistently ranked among the most popular political
figures in Hungary. The MDF's success in passing the
threshold required for representation in Parliament was
widely seen as a reflection of her personal charisma, and she
remains far more popular than the party she leads. A former
Minister of Justice, she has used her position in Parliament
to stake out the middle ground between the Socialist-led
government and the rightist opposition. She is now working
to raise her international profile and is currently planning
on a trip to the U.S.
Foreign Minister Kinga Goncz: The daughter of former
President Arpad Goncz, the FM was a surprise appointment to
PM Gyurcsany's cabinet. Her background is primarily in
social issues, and the opposition has made much of her
alleged "lack of experience" in diplomacy. Nonetheless, she
has been active in representing Hungary abroad, including a
meeting with the Secretary in Washington last fall.
Szilvia Krizso: As the host of the prime-time information
program "Este" on Hungarian Public Television, Krizso
attracts an audience of between 500,000 - 1,000,000 Monday -
Friday.
2. (U) Embassy POC on Women's Issues is Political Officer CJ
Hamilton.
FOLEY
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR S/WE: SASHA MEHRA AND GERDA LANE
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KWMN PHUM PREL HU
SUBJECT: HUNGARY: NAMES OF INFLUENTIAL WOMEN
REF: SECSTATE 202341
1. (U) Embassy Budapest recommends the inclusion of the
following names in reftel contact list:
Dr. Klara Dobrev: The wife of Prime Minister Ferenc
Gyurcsany, Dr. Dobrev has become an influential albeit
informal advisor to her husband and an energetic spokesperson
for his government. A lecturer at a Budapest law school, she
has also made health care a priority issue with her energetic
outreach efforts to encourage healthy lifestyles among
Hungarian children. The daughter of an influential Communist
official, Dr. Dobrev has often been the target of criticism
from the opposition but remains the most powerful woman in
Hungary.
Katalin Szili: The Speaker of Parliament and a senior member
of the governing MSZP party, Szili narrowly missed election
to the Presidency in 2005 and is discussed as a potential
candidate for the party leadership. She has used her office
to venture into foreign affairs, travelling extensively and
focusing in particular on the integration of neighboring
states into Euro-Atlantic institutions.
Dr. Ibolya David: Member of Parliament and leader of the
independent opposition Hungarian Democratic Forum (MDF),Dr.
David is consistently ranked among the most popular political
figures in Hungary. The MDF's success in passing the
threshold required for representation in Parliament was
widely seen as a reflection of her personal charisma, and she
remains far more popular than the party she leads. A former
Minister of Justice, she has used her position in Parliament
to stake out the middle ground between the Socialist-led
government and the rightist opposition. She is now working
to raise her international profile and is currently planning
on a trip to the U.S.
Foreign Minister Kinga Goncz: The daughter of former
President Arpad Goncz, the FM was a surprise appointment to
PM Gyurcsany's cabinet. Her background is primarily in
social issues, and the opposition has made much of her
alleged "lack of experience" in diplomacy. Nonetheless, she
has been active in representing Hungary abroad, including a
meeting with the Secretary in Washington last fall.
Szilvia Krizso: As the host of the prime-time information
program "Este" on Hungarian Public Television, Krizso
attracts an audience of between 500,000 - 1,000,000 Monday -
Friday.
2. (U) Embassy POC on Women's Issues is Political Officer CJ
Hamilton.
FOLEY