Central European Activists Hear Call to Hold onto Christian Ideals by Christian Democrat President

From: "Christian Peoples Alliance
" A huge political rally in East Central Europe marking twenty years of liberation from
communism has heard a call to hold fast to Christian Democratic ideals by the President
of the Christian Peoples Alliance party in Britain, David Campanale. Held in Tusnad in
northern Romania, the event was attended by 5,000 predominantly young people from
Hungary, Ukraine, Slovakia and the republics of former Yugoslavia, as well as current
politicians in the European Christian Democratic movement, the European Peoples Party.

"As with the crises of a devasted Europe in 1945, the end of communism in 1989 and now
the global credit crunch in 2009, it is Christian Democrats who must step forward. Our
shared continent needs to hold fast to the ideals that have guided Europe from economic,
moral and political darkness towards hope and light. In doing so we must champion the
Christian Democratic values of social solidarity, greater equality, the rule of law and liberty."

David Campanale was the first politician from western Europe to speak at revolutionary
public meetings in Transylvania during the Romanian Revolution in Christmas 1989. An
idea he had at the time to convene an annual 'Open University' to discuss culture, arts and
political ideals around the future of Europe has now become one of the biggest festivals of its
kind in the region. This year the event was attended by President Basescu of Romania, former
Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban and Bishop Laszlo Tokes MEP, whose role in
Timisoara as a local Calvinist priest began the Romanian Revolution.

Recalling events of twenty years ago, David Campanale said his speech in the city of Sfîntu
Gheorghe (or Sepsiszentgyörgy) about the city's namesake and patron of England, St George
still rang true:

"Dragons of fear, consumerism, selfish individualism and the me-first culture all need to be
slayed. Not by force, but by vision inspired by the Christian ideals of love and political service.
Our continent is committing collective suicide because of the abandonment of the principle of
respect for life, the collapse of the married family and deepening inequality. According to the
European Commission, birthrate is now 1.53 per woman and the number of workers per
pensioner over 65 will halve from four to two by 2040. The economics of our continent is
unsustainable. It is up to us to champion a different and more humane future, just as Christian
politicans did at other times of crisis."

Other Christian politicians sharing the platform with the President of the English Christian
Democrats each agreed with the need to hold onto Christian ideals - including Shadow
Hungarian Foreign Secretary of FIDESZ, Janos Martonyi, 'MEP of the Year' Gal Kinga of
FIDESZ, Romanian human rights activist, Smaranda Enache, and Romanian MEP and former
Calvinist minister, Csaba Sogor. As elected politicians, their parties are members of the
European Peoples Party grouping in the European Parliament.'

ENDS

For more information:
press@cpaparty.org.uk or call 07873 625396 or visit www.cpaparty.org.uk

I should note Tokes was a Reformed bishop, not a priest.