THE POLITICAL ORGANIZATION AND ACTIVITY OF THE HUNGARIAN MINORITY IN ROMANIA FROM 1989 TO 1996

Terzić Predrag (Predrag Terzić, Institut za političke studije, Beograd), terzic84p@yahoo.com

The renewal of party pluralism in Romania occurred in 1989. In addition to the parties supported by the majority of the nation, in that period national minority parties were established as well. As the largest minority in Romania, the Hungarian community has sought to protect their rights and realize interests through ensuring the formation of the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania (UDMR), as an umbrella organization that united many political positions and gained a monopoly on the votes of the Hungarian minority. This paper examines only the first phase of the political organization and activity of the Hungarian minority in Romania, i.e. the period from 1989 to 1996. During this period the UDMR has acted as an opposition political party, but after the 1996 elections it entered the coalition government.

Keywords: Romania, Hungarians, Hungarian minority, the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, DAHR, Uniunea Democrată Maghiară din România, UDMR