The Countess Antónia Zichy Award, named after the wife of the martyred Prime Minister Count Lajos Batthyány, has been awarded to Katalin Bogyay, President of the Hungarian United Nations Association, member of the Advisory Board of iASK, by the Hungarian Batthyány Foundation. The Count Lajos Batthyány Prize was awarded this year to Imre Kónya, the initiator of the Opposition Round Table, founded in 1989.

Margit Batthyány-Schmidt, President of the Foundation, said that the awards are given to those who “through their outstanding and exemplary activities provide a practical and pragmatic response to the social, economic and political challenges of our time, in proportion to the opportunities and necessities”.

At the request of the Hungarian Batthyány Foundation, a 7-member Selection Committee reviewed the nominations received and made its recommendations to the Board of Trustees. The main patron of this year’s awards was Reformed Bishop Zoltán Balog. Zoltán Balog, quoting the words of Lajos Batthyány, drew attention to the importance of a “culture of respect”, adding that this is what makes the two laureates stand out in cultural and public life. He added that Katalin Bogyay was able to create prestige in cultural diplomacy of which Hungary is still proud today.

In particular, Katalin Bogyay has made an unparalleled contribution as an ambassador of Hungarian culture to the United Nations and UNESCO, among others.

Katalin Bogyay said that today, Antónia Zichy would be described as an exemplary, creative, determined, proactive, and value-creating woman who served the public as a Hungarian aristocrat. Becoming a public servant is a matter of habitus, choice, and decision,” the former UN Ambassador added.

Watch the interview – in Hungarian – with Katalin Bogyay on the occasion of the award below!