Gábor Péter
Encyclopedia
Gábor Péter was a Hungarian Communist
politician, of Jewish origin. Between 1945 and 1952 he was the absolute leader of the State Protection Authority
(Államvédelmi Hatóság) which responsible for many cruelty
, brutality
and political purge
s.
During his early years he worked as a tailor. He took part in the labour movement
s from the last years of the 1920s. In 1931 he joined to the Hungarian Communist Party
.
In January 1945 he was appointed as leader of the Budapest Police Main Command Political Department (PRO). Péter's career rose quickly then: he became leader of the Hungarian State Police State Protection Department (ÁVO) then the State Protection Authority (ÁVH). Under his leadership the organization committed serious illegitimacies and crimes against the humanity. Gábor Péter had big role in the organizing of the show trial
s.
In 1952 he was discharged from his position. Later he was arrested in Mátyás Rákosi
's villa
. According to historian Tibor Zinner, Gábor Péter was present on an official visit. Unexpectedly a handcuff clicked on his hand put back. After that Mihály Farkas
stepped forward from behind the curtain and said: "the game is over". Gábor Péter's wife, Jolán Simon who served as Rákosi's secretary was also arrested.
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
politician, of Jewish origin. Between 1945 and 1952 he was the absolute leader of the State Protection Authority
State Protection Authority
The State Protection Authority was the secret police force of Hungary from 1945 until 1956. It was conceived of as an external appendage of the Soviet Union's secret police forces, but attained an indigenous reputation for brutality during a series of purges beginning in 1948, intensifying in 1949...
(Államvédelmi Hatóság) which responsible for many cruelty
Cruelty
Cruelty can be described as indifference to suffering, and even positive pleasure in inflicting it. If this is supported by a legal or social framework, then receives the name of perversion. Sadism can also be related to this form of action or concept....
, brutality
Brutality
Brutality or brutal may refer to:* Brutality , an American death metal band* Brutality , a 1912 film* Brutality , a finishing move in the video game Mortal Kombat* Brutalist architecture, an architectural style...
and political purge
Purge
In history, religion, and political science, a purge is the removal of people who are considered undesirable by those in power from a government, from another organization, or from society as a whole. Purges can be peaceful or violent; many will end with the imprisonment or exile of those purged,...
s.
During his early years he worked as a tailor. He took part in the labour movement
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
s from the last years of the 1920s. In 1931 he joined to the Hungarian Communist Party
Hungarian Communist Party
The Communist Party of Hungary , renamed Hungarian Communist Party in 1945, was founded on November 24, 1918, and was in power in Hungary briefly from March to August 1919 under Béla Kun and the Hungarian Soviet Republic. The communist government was overthrown by the Romanian Army and driven...
.
In January 1945 he was appointed as leader of the Budapest Police Main Command Political Department (PRO). Péter's career rose quickly then: he became leader of the Hungarian State Police State Protection Department (ÁVO) then the State Protection Authority (ÁVH). Under his leadership the organization committed serious illegitimacies and crimes against the humanity. Gábor Péter had big role in the organizing of the show trial
Show trial
The term show trial is a pejorative description of a type of highly public trial in which there is a strong connotation that the judicial authorities have already determined the guilt of the defendant. The actual trial has as its only goal to present the accusation and the verdict to the public as...
s.
In 1952 he was discharged from his position. Later he was arrested in Mátyás Rákosi
Mátyás Rákosi
Mátyás Rákosi was a Hungarian communist politician. He was born as Mátyás Rosenfeld, in present-day Serbia...
's villa
Villa
A villa was originally an ancient Roman upper-class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became small farming compounds, which were increasingly fortified in Late Antiquity,...
. According to historian Tibor Zinner, Gábor Péter was present on an official visit. Unexpectedly a handcuff clicked on his hand put back. After that Mihály Farkas
Mihály Farkas
Mihály Farkas was a Hungarian Communist politician.From the 1930s he had been a Communist. He lived in Košice and Prague then. He fought in the Spanish Civil War; later he moved to the Soviet Union...
stepped forward from behind the curtain and said: "the game is over". Gábor Péter's wife, Jolán Simon who served as Rákosi's secretary was also arrested.
Source
- Magyar Életrajzi Lexikon 1000-1990.
- Gábor Péter's birth entry Újfehértó births, No. 1906/173.
