Chinatown of Budapest

Ying Wang Huai, the owner of Budapest's Taiwan restaurant left China 41 years ago fleeing the communists. But, he said "I liked one thing about Mao Tze Dong; the Chinese under him were poor but they didnct have to take anything from any other country." Nevertheless he kept his Chinese passport. "In 5 years from now on there will be 20 million Chinese here and my passport will be very valuable," he predicted.

After 40 years in the catering business, traveling between Hong Kong, Belgium and Portugal he opened the first Chinese restaurant in Hungary in '87. He now has 30 employees, two thirds of them Hungarians.

Over the last four years Chinese restaurants and shops have mushroomed all over Budapest. People wear Chinese-made tenis shoes, T-shirts, silk blouses, down jackets,etc. because Chinese merchandise is more affordable for the average Hungarian who can't pay Western prices. Some say that they ruined the Hungarian textile industry, but others say that it was doomed to ruin nevertheless.

There are an estimated 15,000 Chinese in Budapest, according to Gabriella Dvorak, spokeswoman of the Hungarian National Police, 10,000 of them are here technically as tourists. The police have started to regard the increasing Chinese community as a curse and have enacted new restrictions on Chinese residents. Now they extend their residence permits on a month by month basis, while the other foreigners get one year permits.

The Way to Europe, a Chinese weekly, established in May 1994, with a circulation of 3,000-4,000 targetting Chinese people living in Hungary and in neighboring countries - is full of complaints about this treatment.

What is unique about the Chinese community in Hungary, besides standing in line at the police stations, is that they set up businesses here after 1990 - and they didn't start from the bottom, as in Western Chinese communities where you can trace them back to the 19th century.

"When I saw the movie 'A Native from Bejing in New York' about a dishwasher who becomes a multimillionaire, I cried," said Yu Ming, the chief representative of HABA-SPED, a company that imports clothes. "It is our story, it's my story. We have a hard life."

Considering their numbers and the economic clout they might have, nobody is dealing with them in an organized way. The Hungarian and Chinese Friendship Association, born in '59, has a policy of open friendship toward all Chinese all over the world but they list only 400 members, of which 150 are doctors.

"After 1990, when they came by thousands because there was no need for a visa -- because of Hungarian ex-communist official inertia -- and their aim was to reach Austria or Italy. We realized that we didn't know whom we were dealing with," said Barna Talas, president of the association. "They are strange guys: they don't show their cards, they like money, they are primitive, uncultured. We decided to stop dealing with new arrivals until they organized and got an official spokesman."

He has tried to help Chinese doctors by knocking at official doors. If a Hungarian doctor studies Chinese medicine for 3 weeks in Vienna, he gets a diploma that enables him to practice it on patients; a Chinese doctor, though he has 9 years of study, can't practice here.

One of the lonely robins trying to bring the spring of harmony between Hungarians and Chinese seems to be Tamas Derce, the mayor of Budapest's 4th District. He succeeded in making a sister-city pact with the Chinese city Handan, in June. "I have a reason to be proud that of the 3200 townships in Hungary, we are the first ones who have done this since '90." And starting with '95 Chinese will be taught at the Babics High School in the 4th district. Cultural exchanges will start, bands and dance groups will travel between China and Hungary, Chinese art exhibitions are planned for September in Hungarian galleries.

"No serious politician or businessmen can ignore China," said Derce. "It's time for Hungary to follow the American and German examples, grabbing business opportunities there. The Hungarian relationship with China stopped not from political reason but from mere carelessness."

As if agreeing with Derce, on his next trips abroad Hungarian President Arpad Goncz, will stop in China, where he will be accompanied by 30-40 businessmen.

When asked how he views Hungarian-Chinese relations, Chinese Ambassador Chen Zhi-Liu said that, "Now, after all the ups and downs, apart from the residence permits, we don't have special problems. We have discussions with the Hungarian side. Though the foreign minister, the consular department, even the police station showed understanding, sometimes I couldn't understand Hungarian decisions. We do agree that the few Chinese criminals should be punished by Hungarian authorities, but the main body of the Chinese here are not refugees-- they've brought capital here and obey the law."

Hungary welcomed foreign investment in the early '90s, so the Chinese brought their capital here thinking it's paradise on earth for business. "It's a similar phenomena to the gold rush," said Ji Dong Tian. "Due to its geographical position and the switch to the free market, Hungary became their Alaska or California. Many thought that by owning a company in Hungary it would be easier to get into the European Community in the future."

Now Chinese complain that though they pay all the taxes asked by Hungarian laws, provide jobs for unemployed Hungarians, transformed Hungary into an European Hong Kong -- a collecting place for merchandise that goes from Hungary to neighboring countries - their investments are no longer protected because of the new visa policy.

In the last half year only 31 Chinese were denied residence visas. "They feel very insecure, more than they should. They don't fight too much to grow roots," says Polony Peter, director of Marco Polo, a consulting company that deals mainly with Chinese. "Their aim here is to get rich quickly, if possible with a minimal investment and no personal involvement. Even when they do settle down they have a strong loyalty to the Chinese homeland, they don't even try to learn Hungarian. So they live in a country in which they get rich but in the meantime they keep a big distance between them and that country."

"The idea came to us because they are our best customers," said Judit Torok, the Las Vegas Casino's managing director. " Asians like gambling, lots of them come to our casino. So we organized this party to which they could come to meet each other. We asked the Taiwan restaurant to help us and cook typical Chinese New Year's food. We had a raffle, a Chinese band, the traditional lion dance with a terrific costume, and indoor fireworks. We invited 400 people, but around 1000 came. We intend to do it every year."

It is not an organic colony - in a short period of time they came here from all over China. Husbands came here to work, leaving their families at home. Some bring them here, some don't want to. Some bring their children, but then realize that in a Hungarian school the kids won't learn Chinese properly, so they send them back home.

Doctor Song Zhi Lan, said she'd like to help Hungarian patients by introducing traditional Chinese medicine here. She consults twice a week for free poor patients. "I haven't seen my family for three years now," she said." I'd like to have them here, but not by bringing them by the back door." But no visas are available for them, though all her family are doctors.

"The Hungarian government shouldn't worry about the Chinese, they will go back or to another country," said Hu Zeng Lang bitterly. Though he is a writer he also does business here. "I don't know how to do business, I don't like it, but I have to, otherwise I can't stay here."

The Chinese Business Association of Hungary, affiliated with the European Chinese Business Association, was established in 1993 with the aim to unite the Chinese people from Hungary. Many of its 2,000 members - from around 2,000 Chinese companies in Hungary - are worth more than $20 millions. "They have the means to establish factories here and employ locals, but without long-term visas they can't invest," said Zhang Jian, the president of the association. "Now if you want to open a business in Hungary you have to go first to the Hungarian embassy in Beijing to get permission. But for those who already have a business here, it's an abnormal situation," he said.

"We can't just take our money out again by closing the businesses, for it took a lot of effort and time to establish them," said Zhang Jian. "If some go away without paying the rent and telephone bills, or smuggle drugs or people across the border," - actually national police records show only 15 Chinese criminals in the last half of year - " it's not significant for the majority. But Hungarians automatically think that all Chinese are alike."

Written for The Prague Post but I am unaware if they printed it or not. So do they.
Summer 1994