Imre Mező ( 1905-1956)
Born into a family of poor peasants in Ramocsaháza, Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, Mező became apprenticed to a tailor in Kisvárda. After serving his time, he emigrated in 1927 to Belgium, where he became involved in the labour movement. He joined the Belgian Communist Party in 1929 and was charged with heading a group of Hungarian communists in Antwerp. In 1936, he and his wife volunteered for the international brigade fighting in the Spanish Civil War. He saw action in the Madrid district and was severely wounded twice. After the civil war, he was interned by the French authorities for illegal communist activity. On his release, he became an organizer of the provincial French resistance. The French Communist Party sent him to Paris in 1943, where he headed a group of foreign communists. He took part in preparing for the Paris uprising of August 17, 1944 and in directing the fighting in the southern arrondissements. Mező returned to Hungary in June 1945 and worked for the Budapest apparatus of the Hungarian Communist Party and HWP, later heading the Organization Department of the party's Greater Budapest Committee. In 1950, he became secretary of the Budapest HWP Committee. In 1953-4, he headed the Production Department of the trade-union federation Szot, but in 1954, he was secretary of the Budapest party committee again, as a sympathizer with Imre Nagy. On July 18, 1956, he became a member of the HWP Central Committee. He spoke at several debates of the Petőfi Circle (including the partisans' meeting and the press debate). On October 23, 1956, he headed a deputation from the Budapest party committee calling for the party leadership to authorize the demonstration. He became a member of the HWP Central Committee Military Committee on the same day. On October 30, Mező was inside the HWP headquarters in Köztársaság tér during the siege. When resistance was abandoned, he was among the parliamentarians to emerge from the building. They were fired upon and Mező died of his injuries a few days later.
Please send comments or suggestions.