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Action Ukraine Report

"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT"
In-Depth Ukrainian News, Analysis, and Commentary

"The Art of Ukrainian History, Culture, Arts, Business, Religion,
Sports, Government, and Politics, in Ukraine and Around the World"

CANADIAN AMBASSADOR ANDREW ROBINSON SPEAKS OUT

"The lessons of history must not only be learned, however, they must be
integrated into a people's attitude towards their own present and their
children's future. This year's Presidential election in Ukraine is one which
is of great importance for Ukraine's future. The Ukrainian leadership has
committed itself, on paper, to an electoral process which is free and fair,
an electoral process which respects Ukraine's international obligations,
and which is consistent with Ukraine's aspirations regarding Europe and
NATO.

Canada for its part, has strongly encouraged Ukraine to live up to its
obligations, but I must say in all frankness that we are concerned by what
we have seen over the last six months, in municipal elections in Krasny Luch
and Mukacheve, and in Parliamentary bi-elections, for example at Donetsk
and Odessa. In all of these there have been violations and irregularities
too numerous to mention, and we have conveyed these concerns to the
Ukrainian authorities. Many of our colleagues in NATO and the OSCE
feel likewise, and have done the same." [Canadian Ambassador to Ukraine,
Andrew Robinson, article one]

"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT" Year 04, Number 93
Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC), Washington, D.C.
Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA), Huntingdon Valley, PA
morganw@patriot.net, ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net
Washington, D.C.; Kyiv, Ukraine, SUNDAY, June 6, 2004

-----INDEX OF ARTICLES-----
"Major International News Headlines and Articles"

1.BICENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF MENNONITES' SETTLEMENT
IN MOLOCHANSK, ZAPORIZHYA REGION, UKRAINE
Address by Canadian Ambassador Andrew Robinson on the occasion
of a bicentennial anniversary of Mennonites' settlement in Ukraine
Maple Leaf News, Vol. 9, Canadian Embassy in Ukraine
Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, June 6, 2004

2. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT CAUTIOUS ON FILLING
ODESSA-BRODY OIL PIPELINE WITH ONLY CASPIAN OIL
UT1, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 3 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Jun 03, 2004

3. PACE RAPPORTEUR SEVERINSEN NOTES DANGER FOR
UKRAINIAN MEDIA COVERING VIEWPOINTS OF OPPOSITION
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 3 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Thursday, Jun 03, 2004

4. OPPOSITION PAPER EDITOR BEATEN IN EASTERN UKRAINE
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 5 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Saturday, Jun 05, 2004

5.UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL STAFF ACCUSED OF CENSORING
NEWS COVERAGE BY UKRAINE'S REGIONAL TV STATIONS
"Temnyk for five hryvnyas. By bus or through train conductor"
ANALYSIS: Based on information from Mykola Tomenko,
Head of the Parliamentary Committee for Freedom of Speech
Ukrayinska Pravda web site, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian 19 May 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Saturday, Jun 05, 2004

6. PRESIDENTIAL AIDE REGRETS 60TH D-DAY ANNIVERSARY
WOULD TAKE PART WITHOUT UKRAINE'S PARTICIPATION
President Kuchma congratulated Allied leaders on the landing in Normandy
Interfax-Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, June 4, 2004

7. FROM D-DAY TO V-DAY: HOW DO UKRAINIANS FIT IN?
COMMENTARY by Dr. Roman Serbyn
Professor Emeritus of History, University of Montreal
Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Saturday, June 5, 2004

8.UKRAINE ORPHANS STRUGGLE WITH POVERTY, DISABILITIES
By Anna Melnichuk, Associated Press, Pugachevka, Ukraine, June 5, 2004

9. SUPPORTERS OF PRO-RUSSIAN CHURCH HOLDS PICKET
DEMANDING RETURN OF CATHEDRAL IN WESTERN UKRAINE
UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 2 Jun 04

10. MEDICINE IN THE UKRAINE
Malaysians attend Crimea State Medical University in Simferopol, Ukraine
By Karen Chapman, The Star Online
Petaling Jaya/Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, June 6, 2004

11. IN HIS MEMORIES OF ODESSA, A POET PAYS TRIBUTE TO HIS
FOREBEARS: "DANCING IN ODESSA" BY ILYA KAMINSKY
Odessa, Ukraine, A pearl of a cosmopolis and an imaginary city
BOOK REVIEW by John Timpane
"Dancing in Odessa," By Ilya Kaminsky, Tupelo Press. 58 pp. $16.95
Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Friday, June 4, 2004

12. NEW INTERNATIONAL UKRAINIAN FESTIVALS WEBSITE
Up to date information Ukrainian festivals, celebrations around the world
Yevshan Newsletter, Beaconsfield, Ontario, Canada, June 4, 2004

13. THE WASHINGTON GROUP (TWG) LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
TWG Conference Open to the General Public
Friday, June 11 - Sunday, June 13, 2004, Arlington, Virginia
By George Masiuk, TWG Conference Chairman
The Washington Group (TWG), Washington, D.C., June 2, 2004
========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER ONE
========================================================
1. BICENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY OF MENNONITES' SETTLEMENT
IN MOLOCHANSK, ZAPORIZHYA REGION, UKRAINE
Address by Canadian Ambassador Andrew Robinson on the occasion
of a bicentennial anniversary of Mennonites' settlement in Ukraine

Maple Leaf News, Vol. 9, Canadian Embassy in Ukraine
Kyiv, Ukraine, Sunday, June 6, 2004

Address by Canadian Ambassador Andrew Robinson
Sunday, June 6, 2004 - Molochansk, Zaporizhya Region, Ukraine

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is with great pleasure that I come here today to participate as
Ambassador of Canada in the two hundredth anniversary of the settlement by
Mennonites in Zaporizhya region and this town of Molochansk . I was present
here for the official opening of the Mennonite Centre in 2001, and I am
happy to return and to see signs of growth which the community is
undergoing.

The newly unveiled monument symbolizes technological progress and hope - the
two main things Mennonites brought with them when they first came here and
were welcomed by the local people. Over the years, they integrated fully
into the local economy and made an important contribution to its development
and progress along with Ukrainians and other nationalities. They lived in
peace and harmony, shared their values and traditions, and worked hard to
achieve better lives for their children.

Many years after, the communist regime forced Mennonites, as well as many
other ethnic minorities, to flee the land which had become home for
generations. The hardships and suffering were enormous. Many, of those who
left, found their way to Canada and helped build the country which would
guarantee them rights to live and work without oppression, in a society
governed by the rule of law and democratic principles.

The suffering endured by the Mennonites, by other minorities and by the
Ukrainian people as a whole during the Stalinist period is well known. Also
known, now, is the extent of the crimes committed by Stalin, including the
crime of distortion of Ukraine's history. Events such as this commemoration
of Mennonite settlement here are a positive contribution to a fuller
understanding not just of the history of the Mennonites, but of the history
of Ukraine .

But have the lessons of history been learned well enough? Winston Churchill
said, "a nation that forgets its history is doomed to repeat it". We know
today about the crimes of the authoritarian regime under Stalin. Such crimes
were possible because the operating principles of the regime were
authoritarianism, secrecy and terror. The Stalinist regime, as well as its
successors, had no respect for its own people, no respect for the rule of
law, and no respect for the rights of individuals, no belief in democracy.

The lessons of history must not only be learned, however, they must be
integrated into a people's attitude towards their own present and their
children's future. This year's Presidential election in Ukraine is one which
is of great importance for Ukraine's future. The Ukrainian leadership has
committed itself, on paper, to an electoral process which is free and fair,
an electoral process which respects Ukraine's international obligations,
and which is consistent with Ukraine's aspirations regarding Europe and
NATO.

Canada for its part, has strongly encouraged Ukraine to live up to its
obligations, but I must say in all frankness that we are concerned by what
we have seen over the last six months, in municipal elections in Krasny Luch
and Mukacheve, and in Parliamentary bi-elections, for example at Donetsk
and Odessa. In all of these there have been violations and irregularities
too numerous to mention, and we have conveyed these concerns to the
Ukrainian authorities. Many of our colleagues in NATO and the OSCE
feel likewise, and have done the same.

We are also concerned about restrictions and pressures on freedom of the
media, because a free media is a vital component of a democratic electoral
process. We, and many other friends of Ukraine, are concerned by the lack
of respect for the rule of law, and by the inconsistency and subjectivity of
court decisions.

We view Ukraine as a modern European state, one which, on numerous
occasions, has expressed its aspirations to move towards fuller integration
into NATO and European institutions. Canada has made it clear that it is
willing to help Ukraine to do this. However, without a fair and democratic
process in this year's Presidential elections, there is serious concern that
Ukraine will fail to meet the standards associated with membership in these
institutions.

Today, many Mennonites come back to the land of their ancestors to help
communities in today's Ukraine to overcome economic and social hardships, to
contribute to democratic and civil society development, education of young
people and care for the elderly. They also bring back their democratic
values to assist Ukraine in its proclaimed aspiration towards full democracy
and market reform. This, together with the development of civil society,
respect for the rule of law, and willingness to stand up for ones rights are
the best way to ensure that the lessons of history are learned, not
repeated.

Recognizing the strong Mennonite sense of community, I am pleased to
announce today the Canadian Government's support of the project of the
Mennonite Centre to introduce respite care in Molochansk and surrounding
area. We have decided to make a Canada Fund contribution in the amount of
$9,000 dollars to be used by historic Molochansk hospital for the benefit of
the community.

I salute the strength of the bonds of the Mennonite community which has kept
its traditions, values and sense of community despite much travail of the
200 years which have passed since the founding of Mennonite settlement in
this region. I congratulate all those who have worked so hard to make the
celebration of this two hundredth anniversary possible.

Merci de votre attention. Dyakuyu za uvahu. (END)
=======================================================
MENNONITE MOLOCHNA 2004: A BICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
OF MOLOCHNA MENNONITE LIFE, 1804-2004, 2-9 June 2004

Press Office, Embassy of Canada, Kyiv, Ukraine, Wed, June 2, 2004

The year 2004 marks the bicentennial of Mennonite settlement in the
Molochnaia River basin of southern Ukraine . In a week-long series of
events, from June 2 to 9, Mennonites and others from four continents are
gathering in towns and villages of the settlement and nearby cities for an
academic conference, concert, religious services, memorial unveilings,
lectures, a museum exhibition, and special tours and cruises. V. Peter
Harder, Canada's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, himself the son of
Molochna Mennonite parents, praises the bicentennial celebration, saying
that it will "further strengthen the ties between Canada and Ukraine."

>From their first settlement in 1804 until their tragic departure as
deportees or refugees in World War II, Mennonites played a unique role in
the Molochna region as engines of modernization, as keen observers who
recorded change in their communities and larger surroundings, and as a
challenge to the ideological principles of the Soviet system. Since the fall
of Communism, Mennonites from the West have returned to the area, where
they now offer humanitarian aid and seek to create sustainable, locally led
development programs.

Highlighting the celebrations will be the Sunday, June 6th unveiling of a
memorial to the original settlers, preceded by a religious service and
followed by a luncheon. The grey granite memorial, a stylized traditional
threshing stone and an anchor - the first evincing technological progress
and second Christian hope and faith - will stand before the Tsentralschule
in the main square of Halbstadt/Molochansk, the one-time administrative
centre of the settlement. Symbolizing modern Ukraine's efforts to embrace
its multi-ethnic past, a Ukrainian folk orchestra and choir from the
Melitopol State Pedagogical University will perform traditional Mennonite
Kernlieder hymns.

Other memorials will pay tribute to key themes in the up-and-down Molochna
Mennonite story. In the village of Vladovka/Waldheim plaques will celebrate
the founders of the Waldheim hospital and a farm implements factory,
recognizing Mennonite leadership in industry and medical care. A cemetery
marker will recall Bogdanovka/Gnadenfeld's dynamic role in the religious,
educational, and administrative life of the area.

Finally, two inscribed granite benches installed at the
Svetlodolinskoe/Lichtenau railway station will memorialize the tragedy of
Mennonite life in Soviet times. In the words of Peter Klassen, co-chair of
the International Mennonite Memorial Committee, the benches "strikingly
symbolize Mennonite life: a people moving on - to new opportunities, new
homes, new challenges; also, a compelling symbol of people forced to move to

unknown destinations, facing hardships often cruel, traveling into exile,
prison, slave labour camps."

At the intellectual center of Molochna 2004 will be a four-day international
conference. The conference's official host is the Melitopol State
Pedagogical University , located on the doorstep of the Molochna Mennonite
community. But due to the recent tragic events in Novobogdanovka, the
working location of the conference has been moved here, to the Zaporizhzhe
Intourist Hotel.

Some forty scholars from Austria, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands,
Paraguay, Russia, Ukraine, and the United States, building upon the
successes of Khortitsa '99 (the first such international gathering), will
explore subjects across the humanities and social sciences on all aspects of
the history of the Molochna Mennonites and their interaction with their
neighbours.

Gerhard Hildebrandt, a distinguished German Mennonite churchman and
well-known historian of Molochna Mennonite background, lauds the
bicentennial commemoration as a "noble, neglected duty that we owe to the
memory of our fellow believers." (END)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Molochna 2004: Mennonites and their Neighbours, 1804-2004
International Scholarly Conference, Zaporizhzhe, Ukraine, June 2-5, 2004
http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/canadaeuropa/ukraine/doc/Conference%20Program-e
n.doc [paste link together]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Press office, Embassy of Canada, 31 Yaroslaviv Val Street, Kyiv 01901
Ukraine, Tel. 464-1144/204-3269, www.kyiv.gc.ca
http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/canadaeuropa/ukraine/press02062004-en.asp
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER TWO
Current Events Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/events/index.htm
=========================================================
2. UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT CAUTIOUS ON FILLING
ODESSA-BRODY OIL PIPELINE WITH ONLY CASPIAN OIL

UT1, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 3 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Thursday, Jun 03, 2004

KIEV - [Presenter] Azerbaijan can sell Ukraine oil it needs to fill the
Odessa-Brody oil pipeline. An intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in
the oil sector was signed today in the presence of the Ukrainian and
Azerbaijani presidents [Leonid Kuchma and Ilham Aliyev]. At the same time,
Kuchma was cautious while speaking on the long-term prospects for filling
the Ukrainian pipeline with only Caspian oil. Maksym Drabok reports on the
results of the Ukrainian-Azerbaijani talks. [Passage omitted: reception
ceremony]

[Correspondent] Kuchma was cautious speaking about the long-term prospects
for filling the Ukrainian pipeline with only Caspian oil, as the world's
largest energy project - the Baku-Ceyhan oil and gas pipeline - is to be
commissioned in the first quarter of next year.

[Kuchma, in Russian] One does not have to be an outstanding economist to
estimate the volumes of extracted oil and the capacities of this
[Baku-Ceyhan] pipeline, which indeed will be of strategic importance, as it
will deliver oil to the Mediterranean Sea and farther on to all the markets
of the world, and the further prospects of the Odessa-Brody oil pipeline in
this respect.

For that reason, yes, being our strategic partners and close friends, they
[Azerbaijan] are ready to sell us, to sell Ukraine a couple of million
tonnes of oil so that we fill the Odessa-Brody pipeline and keep waiting for
another five to 10 years, indulging in vain hopes. [Correspondent] For his
part, Aliyev diplomatically said the following.

[Aliyev, in Russian] Azerbaijan politically supports the Odessa-Brody
pipeline. As for the commercial side, it is up to organizations dealing with
economic issues to establish their priorities. [Passage omitted:
Correspondent lists eight accords signed. Kuchma says Ukraine backs
Azerbaijan in the Karabakh conflict with Armenia. Aliyev says Ukraine's
position on Karabakh commands great respect.] [Audio and video available.
Please send queries to kiev.bbcm@mon.bbc.co.uk] (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER THREE
Ukrainian Culture Gallery: http://www.ArtUkraine.com/cultgallery.htm
=========================================================
3. PACE RAPPORTEUR SEVERINSEN NOTES DANGER FOR
UKRAINIAN MEDIA COVERING VIEWPOINTS OF OPPOSITION

UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 3 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Thursday, Jun 03, 2004

KIEV - Hanne Severinsen, a rapporteur of the Parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe [PACE], has noted the danger that exists for mass media
which cover the viewpoints of the opposition. She said this at a news
conference in Kiev today.

She said that "a danger does exist for the existence of the mass media,
which cover the viewpoints of the opposition and this is not a very good
situation". She added that "the worst things which are covered by the
[state] UT1 channel are led by coverage instructions", Severinsen said. "I
know that the channels show what is in these coverage instructions", she
added.

Severinsen said that many public organizations exist in Ukraine, which can
monitor this. In her view, Ukraine finds itself in a "much better situation"
than Russia, where after the last elections there is virtually no
opposition. She stressed that "you have a more pluralistic society and you
should stick to this". [Passage omitted: Severinsen to meet Prosecutor-
General Henadiy Vaslylyev later today] (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER FOUR
Current Events Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/events/index.htm
=========================================================
4. OPPOSITION PAPER EDITOR BEATEN IN EASTERN UKRAINE

UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, 5 Jun 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Saturday, Jun 05, 2004

KHARKIV - Andriy Voytsekhovskyy, the editor of the young Socialists'
newspaper Gremuchaya Smes [Explosive Mixture] and a local correspondent of
several publications (Tovarysh [newspaper linked to the Socialist Party],
[opposition newspaper] Hrani and Novyny Nashoyi Ukrayiny), has been beaten
up in [eastern Ukrainian city of] Kharkiv.

The victim told UNIAN that he was attacked on Komsomolske Shose in the
Holodna Hora area not far from his house at about 0100 on 3 June [2300 gmt
on 2 June], when he was coming home from work. Voytsekhovskyy said that
three unidentified athletic-looking individuals (the journalist himself was
an athlete in the past) suddenly surrounded him, knocked him down, stomped
on him and robbed him.

The journalist was not sure whether he was beaten up for his professional
activity but he said that he has long been in "strong opposition to the
authorities" (he has been a Socialist Party member for about 10 years) and
"has been leading the opposition press".

What is more, on that day members of the union of young Socialists picketed
the [Kharkiv regional] state administration, demanding the pullout of
Ukrainian soldiers from Iraq. The [Kharkiv] Zhovtnevyy district police
station told UNIAN that a criminal case has been launched over the beating
and that an investigation is under way. (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER FIVE
Check Out the News Media for the Latest News From and About Ukraine
Daily News Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/newsgallery.htm
=========================================================
5 UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL STAFF ACCUSED OF CENSORING
NEWS COVERAGE BY UKRAINE'S REGIONAL TV STATIONS
"Temnyk for five hryvnyas. By bus or through train conductor"

ANALYSIS: Based on information from Mykola Tomenko,
Head of the Parliamentary Committee for Freedom of Speech
Ukrayinska Pravda web site, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian 19 May 04
BBC Monitoring Service, UK, in English, Saturday, Jun 05, 2004

The presidential administration is trying to influence news coverage by
Ukraine's regional TV companies, the Ukrayinska Pravda opposition web site
has written. The presidential administration has been compiling videotapes
of selected news reports broadcast by central TV channels and imposing them
on regional broadcasters.

Based on information from the head of the parliamentary committee for
freedom of speech, Mykola Tomenko, the web site looked at reports sent for
regional broadcasters to air, concluding the selection was tendentious and
anti-opposition. The site quoted Tomenko as saying that the video footage
"offered" to the regional companies left them with little or no time for
airing their own programmes and amounted to political censorship.

The following is an excerpt from an unattributed article entitled "Temnyk
for five hryvnyas. By bus or through train conductor" and published on
Ukrayinska Pravda on 19 May; subheadings inserted editorially:

It will soon be two years since [United Social Democratic Party of Ukraine
leader] Viktor Medvedchuk came to head the presidential administration.
Along with him, the building in Bankova Street [presidential administration]
received the know-how of the United Social Democratic Party of Ukraine
[USDPU] called "temnyk" [informal coverage guidelines], which since then has
become an indispensable part of "creative interpretation of reality" not
only at the three national channels controlled by Medvedchuk but also at the
other state-owned, communal and private TV companies.
Over this time the temnyk has mutated both in form and substance. In view of
the fact that temnyks are at times intercepted and made public, the
circulars have switched from firm demands to milder ones: "the subject is
important and topical", "wide comment is requested"... [ellipsis as
published] That is, although it is pressure in essence, they look like
simple recommendations in their form.
The way in which the secret directives are communicated has mutated as much:
from overt directives faxed to a newsroom, to zip-files addressed to a
specific person and containing certain peculiarities (knowledge of who leaks
information to different "sewage collectors") and to instructions for TV
chiefs by telephone.
However, knowledge of how the main information policy directorate [MIPD]
of he presidential administration particularly disseminates its
"recommendations" has so far been very incomplete.
Besides, as it has turned out, it has delivered its products by train and on
Avtolyuks buses [regular passenger bus services between cities]. On Tuesday
[18 May] the Supreme Council's [parliament's] Freedom of Speech [and
Information] Committee made public several instructions which the
presidential administration, according to the committee's information,
regularly dispatches to directors-general of the Crimean state-owned TV
company and other regional state-owned TV companies. What is at issue this
time is videocassettes with material which is "suggested for use" in
regional broadcasting by the regional state-owned companies.
That the MIPD filters out not only events but also video coverage has been
known previously. Among the numerous requirements of temnyks one could
frequently come across a note to get some video from the [pro-USDPU]
Alternatyva broadcasting company, the Inter channel [controlled by
Medvedchuk] or the like. So when, for example, [coordinator of the
propresidential parliamentary majority Stepan] Havrysh was declaring [Prime
Minister Viktor] Yanukovych a single [presidential] candidate, attentively
looking at one camera, there was no doubt as to the origins of the episode.
Yet more has recently become known about the life of this video material.
The chairman of the [parliamentary freedom of speech] committee, Mykola
Tomenko, told Ukrayinska Pravda that he had received this kind of temnyks
from a representative of the press and information department of one state
regional administration.
The recently discovered type of temnyks is a letter printed under the
presidential administration's letterhead, which notifies directors-general
of the Crimean state-owned TV company and the other regional state-owned TV
companies that they "will be sent a cassette" containing material collected
over several days. What kind of material it is can be seen from the subjects
of episodes which local state-owned TV channels were "offered", or, in fact,
according to Tomenko, "forced to disseminate". This material is as follows:
DEO REPORTS TO AIR
"The video report about a meeting between the Ukrainian president and the
president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, on 24 December [2003]
during the Ukrainian president's working trip to the city of Kerch"
(document of the MIPD of the Ukrainian presidential administration dated 26
December 2003 No 17-11/550). Viewers were offered a three-minute video of
how [Ukrainian President Leonid] Kuchma gave the Kerch channel to Russia
"free of charge".
"The recorded `In Person' programme with [chairman of the parliamentary
Committee for National Security and Defence] Heorhiy Kryuchkov, a Ukrainian
MP, broadcast on 23 December [2003]" (document of the MIPD of the Ukrainian
presidential administration dated 26 December 2003 No 17-11/550). On that
day, as is known, the opposition actively blocked the work of parliament
with audio sirens, protesting against amendments to the constitution.
"The recorded 'In Person' programme with political scientist Oleksandr Finko
broadcast on 24 December" (document of the MIPD of the Ukrainian
presidential administration dated 26 December 2003 No 17-11/550).
Apparently, this temnyk mistakenly cited the wrong name of a political
scientist from [propresidential political analyst Mykhaylo] Pohrebynskyy's
centre. His name is Anton, and he is mentioned in temnyks of 2002, along
with a request to say that "the Central Council [Tsentralna Rada in
Ukrainian, highest governing body in Ukraine in 1917-18 that sought
Ukraine's autonomy from Russia] was social democratic". Next to this was a
note asking to "consult O.Finko!!!" [Passage omitted: video report about
UEFA's seminar]
"The recorded 'Prote' [However] programme of the One Plus One channel
broadcast on 19 April [2004]. The subject: mayoral election in the
[Transcarpathian Region] town of Mukacheve" (document of the MIPD of the
Ukrainian presidential administration from 23 April 2004 No 17-11/178). It
said that Our Ukraine [members] drank too much vodka and that [Our Ukraine
MP] Roman Bezsmertnyy picked a fight with policemen from [the special police
unit] Berkut.
"The video episode about the need to amend the Ukrainian constitution (based
on the material of the [pro-presidential] 2000 newspaper) from the 'Visti
Tyzhnya' [Week's News] programme of the First National Channel broadcast on
16 February (document of the MIPD of the Ukrainian presidential
administration dated 18 February 2004 No 17-11/52)." There is no need to
explain the material of the 2000 newspaper.
"The video episode by the Inter TV channel from 23 March about the
activities of international financial expert George Soros" (document of the
MIPD of the Ukrainian presidential administration dated 26 March 2004 No
17-11/123). That is the episode where [Communist] MP Leonid Hrach sincerely
said that Soros's visit posed a threat that events [similar to events] in
Kosovo would take place in Ukraine. The fact that, in addition to their
salaries, Georgian officials receive additional payments from the American
"financial speculator" was mentioned as a special argument proving Soros's
insidiousness. [Passage omitted: video footage of Kuchma's meeting with the
head of the committee for combating corruption]
"The video episode about a meeting between Ukrainian President Kuchma and
the head of the State Committee for TV and Radio, Ivan Chyzh, on 19 March
where he informed the head of state of the results of the committee's work
in 2003" (document of the MIPD of the Ukrainian presidential administration
dated 26 March 2004 No 17-11/123).
It was the meeting where Kuchma described as "a political order" the
statements by international organizations regarding pressure on freedom of
speech and the mass media in Ukraine after Radio Kontynent had been shut
down and Radio Liberty taken off the air in the FM band. [Passage omitted:
video episode about a TV programme with Serhiy Kivalov, chairman of the
Central Electoral Commission]
Each of the letters ends with a note saying that on a certain date "you have
to collect a video cassette which was sent from Kiev by overnight trains and
Avtolyuks buses. We ask you to swiftly inform us on receipt of the video
material." Then followed a signature - "head of the MIPD of the presidential
administration [Serhiy] Vasylyev [former manager of the Alternatyva TV and
radio company]". The cassette, as a rule, contains four to eight episodes
which last a total of 30-80 minutes.
POLITICAL CENSORSHIP
The main accusation which the head of the Freedom of Speech Committee brings
against the mentioned cassettes is that in such a way journalists of local
state-owned TV companies "are physically left without any room to air their
own material in information programmes" if they broadcast these episodes.
"Video material imposed by the presidential administration takes up the
lion's share of the total broadcasting time of regional state-owned TV
companies which is allotted for information programmes," Tomenko notes.
"As a result, journalists of state-owned regional TV companies become extras
in their own TV companies who, instead of covering vital problems of their
regions, have to watch the formation of the clumsy yet completely 'uniform
information policy' of the presidential administration, which, in reality,
is nothing else than political censorship," he stresses.
Ukrayinska Pravda has not managed to learn whether the head of the MIPD
believes the dissemination of the cassettes to be "political censorship" or
humanitarian assistance to those who are needy and starved of information.
Ukrayinska Pravda asked him for comment for three times; however, his
secretary said that Vasylyev was in a meeting from 1600 to 1900 and was not
available to answer our questions. In fact, the same thing happened 18
months ago when we asked for his opinion.
So the questions whether the cassettes are really dispatched, what aim is
being pursued, how the material is selected, why episodes from commercial TV
channels are sent off and how much such charity costs and who pays for it
are hanging in the air. So is the question whether regional TV companies
return the cassettes to the presidential administration or keep them as a
gift. [Passage omitted: speculation about how costly this may be] (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER SIX
The Genocidal Famine in Ukraine 1932-1933, HOLODOMOR
Genocide Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/famineart/index.htm
=========================================================
6. PRESIDENTIAL AIDE REGRETS 60TH D-DAY ANNIVERSARY
WOULD TAKE PART WITHOUT UKRAINE'S PARTICIPATION
President Kuchma congratulated Allied leaders on the landing in Normandy

Interfax-Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, June 4, 2004

KYIV - Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma has on behalf of the nation and
the government congratulated the Allied leaders on the 60th anniversary of
the Allied forces' landing in Normandy and on the launch of the second
front.

"This is one of the major events in the context of the Second World War,"
Kuchma was quoted as saying by the deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential
administration and the head of the main analytical department, Vasyl Baziv,
at a briefing in Kyiv on Friday.

"The joint fighting of our nations against the Nazis threat has become a
bright example of successful cooperation between the nations and states, of
overcoming global challenges for the sake of peace and prosperity," the
document reads.

Baziv said it was regrettably that the celebrations to mark the 60th D-Day
anniversary would take part without Ukraine's participation. (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER SEVEN
Historical Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/histgallery.htm
=========================================================
7. FROM D-DAY TO V-DAY: HOW DO UKRAINIANS FIT IN?

COMMENTARY by Roman Serbyn
Professor Emeritus of History, University of Montreal
Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Saturday, June 5, 2004

Judging by the attention given to the 60th anniversary of D-Day, we can
expect even much prominent celebrations next year of the 60th anniversary of
Victory in Europe (May 8th). Especially in Europe where the day after will
be Europe Day (May 9th). My question is: how will Ukrainians (and Ukraine)
fit into these commemorations? The Ukrainian diaspora has less than a year
to prepare itself for these events.

>From what I know, Ukraine is preparing to have grand celebrations of the
60th anniversary of Victory Day (May 9th). A couple of years ago Ukraine
announced that it would take the initiative to organize joint celebrations
of all the CIS countries of this anniversary. Thus, while the rest of Europe
(except Russia & Belarus) celebrate the end of the Nazi scourge and the
birth of a new united Europe, Ukraine will turn its back on Europe and
plunge into the "liberal empire" of the "single economic space".

Ukraine will be pushed more and more into Eurasia and further and further
away from Europe. (Just imagine for a moment that Ukraine is admitted to EU
tomorrow; next year all of Europe celebrates V-Day on May 8th and Europe
Day on May 9th while Ukraine only watches Europe on May 8th, celebrates
V-Day on May 9th and Europe Day in a staggered ryth weeks later.) This is
the way things will happen, unless Ukrainians do something to change them.

Ukrainians in the diaspora and in Ukraine should use the year that is left
to steer Ukraine into Europe and away from Putin's Eurasian empire.

1. Ukrainians in the diaspora should develop a program of how things
Ukrainian should and could be included in the 2005 commemorations. We
should prepare materials on Ukrainians in WWII: in the armed forces of
Western nations, in the Red Army.

Special attention should be paid to the UPA and the Ukrainian Division
Halychyna. This work should be undertaken on various level, from the
Ukrainian World Congress to the local communities in various cities. We
should have both written material (memoirs, etc) to people (veterans,
survivors, academics, civic leaders) willing and able to appear on radio &
T.V. Programs before and during these events. Work should start now,
and not wait until the last moment.

2. Ukrainians in Ukraine should work for a reorientation of Ukraine's
involvement, from Eurasia to Europe. On the academic and political level
this means, among other things a rejection of the old Soviet and by
definition anti-Ukrainian myth of the Great Fatherland War (GFW) (Velyka
vitchyzniana vijna) and the reorientation of Victory Day to Remembrance Day.

The myth of the GFW was developed by the Soviet regime as a glue to keep
together the multinational Soviet empire, and unite it around the Russian
core. Today it's strongest defenders in Ukraine are the Communist party, the
Russian Orthodox Church and the Russian chauvinist organizations. The
Ukrainian political elites find it convenient to adhere to it.

The myth consists of three main notions:
A) The Ukrainian people, part of the Soviet people, rose in defense of its
soviet socialist fatherland against the German invader and all those who did
not, or who fought Stalin's Red Army were traitors;
B) Ukraine was liberated by the Red Army;
C) The Ukrainian people were victors over the Nazi Germany.

These are ideological and erroneous interpretations of what actually
happened. A) In the beginning of the war most Ukrainians were either
hostile, or at least luke-warm to the Soviet regime and actively or
passively welcomed the coming of what many thought would be German
liberators. It was only Nazi atrocities that turned them against the
Germans. B) Ukraine was not liberated by only reconquered; it exchanged
one anti-Ukrainian totalitarian regime (Hitler's) for another (Stalin's). C)
If Ukrainians had been victors then they would have been masters of their
fate, and what most Ukrainian farmers wanted was to get their land back,
which they did not get. Stalin called all the subjects of the Soviet empire
simple cogs in a large state machine. Cogs are not victors, they can only
be used for someone else's victory.

The myth of the GFW is preventing reconciliation between Ukrainians who
fought in the three different military formations (even though there were
transfers between them): the Red Army, the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and the
Division Halychyna (and those in other German formations). It is a disgrace
to Ukraine and especially a shame on the Ukrainian political elites that 60
after the war Ukrainians are still divided on this issue and a shame to the
President, the Government and the Parliament of Ukraine, that the only armed
force that formed for the independence of Ukraine is not recognized by this
independent state today.

I am raising these issues in the hope that we can start a fruitful
discussion and not only discuss but make sure that the important upcoming
commemorations do not catch us unprepared. (END)
========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER EIGHT
http://www.artukraine.com/buildukraine/index.htm
========================================================
8. UKRAINE ORPHANS STRUGGLE WITH POVERTY, DISABILITIES

By Anna Melnichuk, Associated Press, Pugachevka, Ukraine, June 5, 2004

PUGACHEVKA, Ukraine - Of the countless Ukrainians suffering aftereffects
of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, 100 or so in this town are among the most
vulnerable. They are the children at the Pugachevka orphanage for the
mentally disabled. Victims of disease, genetic problems or their parents'
alcohol and drug abuse, they've been left in a stinking compound 80 miles
from the site of the 1986 reactor explosion and fire that spewed a cloud of
radiation over much of Europe.

Already weakened by their disabilities and by the orphanage's minimal care
and inadequate food, their bodies are under siege by the radiation that
still contaminates the area. They are especially plagued by bone fractures
because radioactive strontium replaces calcium, making their bones brittle.

Children in the most contaminated parts of Ukraine are twice as subject as
other children to musculoskeletal problems and connective tissue disease,
the Kiev Midwifery and Pediatrics Institute says. "In fact, they are social
outcasts," says the orphanage's director, Ivan Guliyev. "They have no
future. They cannot be adopted for the society. But they are God's children
and have the right to live and be helped."

Little help comes from the government. Social service funding in Ukraine has
virtually vanished as the economy stumbles through the post-Soviet
transition and corruption eats away at public funds. "The government gives
us 1.6 hryvnas a month per person to buy so-called `pure foodstuffs' since
we live in the officially recognized Chernobyl-contaminated zone," Guliyev
says. That's about 30 cents.

"How much food that's pure from radiation can we buy for that -- and where?"
he asks. With government funding all but gone, the orphanage must rely on
foreign donors to help keep even its small comforts.

Seven years ago, Fletcher Brothers, founder and director of Freedom Village
USA, which works with troubled teenagers in America, met a Ukrainian
emigrant who was aware of the troubles besetting orphans in his homeland. At
the man's urging, Brothers visited Pugachevka and five other orphanages in
the region.

"I couldn't stand by and do nothing as long as it was in my power to make a
difference," Brothers says. Since then, Brothers' group has donated $132,000
to the orphanage, or more than three times what it gets from the government
each year, Guliyev says. "The nation shows its true colors through its
attitude toward those in need," the director adds bitterly.

The orphanage's 60 workers try to show different colors, at least by keeping
the children clean and neatly dressed. "I've gotten used to them, as if they
were normal," says nurse Valentyna Moshkivska. "But there's obviously
constant great psychological pressure."

Although the halls sometimes reek of feces -- or of the harsh disinfectant
used to clean up -- the orphanage has some pleasant aspects. It consists of
small cottages hidden among pine trees. An orchard, a garden and a pig farm
add an air of rural calm. Some flowers bloom in well-tended plots.

For the children, it is home. "Welcome, welcome," a small, drooling girl
says to a visitor. "Welcome," she says, again and again -- one of the few
words she knows. (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER NINE
=========================================================
9. SUPPORTERS OF PRO-RUSSIAN CHURCH HOLDS PICKET
DEMANDING RETURN OF CATHEDRAL IN WESTERN UKRAINE

UNIAN news agency, Kiev, Ukraine, in Ukrainian, Wed, 2 Jun 04

REVNE - Approximately 500 believers of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church
of the Moscow Patriarchate [UOCMP] today picketed the Rivne Region state
administration, demanding that Rivne's Holy Resurrection Cathedral and the
premises of the former eparchial directorate be returned to them.

The head of the Rivne and Ostroh eparchy of the UOCMP, Archbishop
Varfolomiy, spoke at the rally, drawing the attention of the picketers to
the fact that, in accordance with court rulings in 1995-97, the premises of
the eparchial directorate should belong to the UOCMP, but the rulings were
never fulfilled, because the building houses an eparchial chancery and
seminary of the [rival] Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate.

The rally adopted an appeal to the head of the regional state
administration, Mykola Soroka, threatening a civil disobedience campaign
involving days-long picketing of the regional state administration and
hunger strikes if the believers' demands are not met. They also intend to
appeal to Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma and inform Orthodox church
leaders in other countries.

Representatives of the UOCMP explain their claim to the upper (main) part of
the cathedral by the fact that the lower part, which is currently being used
by that church's community, "is too small and poorly ventilated, which is
why many people have to stand outside during the service, which causes
inconvenience both to them and passers-by", protesters said.

In addition, Archbishop Varfolomiy said, the religious community of the
Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate "has already built a
grandiose Holy Virgin's Intercession Cathedral in Rivne with assistance from
the local authorities, so few of the supporters of that denomination now
come to the Holy Resurrection Cathedral".

The head of the regional state administration promised to consider the
demands and proposed that picketers hold negotiations with representatives
of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate, offering to act
as a mediator in the talks. (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER TEN
=========================================================
10. MEDICINE IN THE UKRAINE
Malaysians attend Crimea State Medical University in Simferopol, Ukraine

By Karen Chapman, The Star Online
Petaling Jaya/Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, June 6, 2004

MALAYSIANS seem to be an adventurous lot when it comes to studying
medicine these days. Rather than choosing traditional destinations like the
United Kingdom and Australia, more are finding their way to Eastern
European countries like Russia and the Ukraine.

To date, the Crimea State Medical University (CSMU) in Simferopol has
trained more than 26,000 doctors in the Ukraine, including 2,000 for
countries around the world.

The university first opened its doors to foreigners when six Greek students
arrived to take up their studies in 1961. Today, there are students from 34
foreign countries such as India, Jordan, Lebanon, China, Greece and Morocco.
Currently, 750 Malaysians are studying in CSMU, and in the last two years,
20 have also graduated with medical degrees from the university. Cost is
often a determining factor in medical studies and CSMU is competitive in
this aspect.

THRIVING ABROAD: Some of the Malaysian students enrolled in CSMU.

According to Dr Subendran Arumugam, director of Ukrainian Medical Education
Sdn Bhd, which represents the CSMU in Malaysia, the tuition fees for a
six-year medical programme is RM69,000. ''It works out to RM11,500 per year.
In addition, accommodation in a two or three-bed hostel room is RM850
annually. Most students can survive on between RM300 to RM400 per month,''
he says. Given that cost can be between RM500,000 to RM800,000 in other
countries, Dr Subendran says, more parents are now considering the Ukraine
as an option for medical studies.

Since 2001, the Public Services Department has recognised the Bachelor of
Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degrees from CSMU, so graduates need no
longer sit for a qualifying examination to practise in Malaysia upon
graduation. Dr Subendran says Malaysians should not worry about the language
barrier as the programme is conducted in English.

But, he adds, it is important to be able to speak Russian too as students
will have to deal with patients in their clinical years from the fourth year
onwards. ''During the eight-month pre-medical period, the Malaysian students
will have intensive Russian language classes every day for between five to
six hours a day for three months,'' he says. After three months, when
students have a basic grasp of the language, university staff will start
introducing other subjects such as biology, physics, chemistry and
mathematics.

The university, which was established in 1931, has five faculties, namely
nursing, general medicine, paediatrics, dentistry and clinical pharmacy,
divided into 60 departments. Tests in all the subjects are also continuously
held to ensure students are able to understand what they are learning. The
medical degree is divided into the basic science years (first three years)
and clinical years (final three years).

Out of the 750 students at CSMU, 200 are doing their pre-medical studies.
The rest are in the medical school. Dr Subendran explains that students are
divided into various groups with their own timetables. Each group has 11
students.

''To sit for the examinations, students must have 100% attendance in class
unless they are sick and have a medical certificate from the university's
polyclinic.

''If they do miss a class, they have to pay a fine of about RM2 and make up
for the class by doing extra work for the lecturer. This is to encourage the
students not to miss any classes,'' he says. In the summer time, students
can do their clinical practice in Malaysian hospitals, he adds.

Up to 85% of the Malaysian students in CSMU are living in the hostels. ''It
is more convenient for the students as it is a self-contained campus. The
hostels are also within walking distance from the lecture halls and
laboratories. "Students can get what they want from the shops on campus
such as halal food and go up straight to their rooms without worrying about
having to go into the city,'' he says. Other facilities on campus include a
stadium, swimming pool, tennis courts, polyclinic, cafés and canteens.

For more information on the next intake for CSMU in October, contact
Ukrainian Medical Education Sdn Bhd at 012-496 4384/05-806 4845, fax:
05-806 4845, or e-mail: csmu_krym@hotmail.com (END)
=========================================================
THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER ELEVEN
Historical Gallery: http://www.artukraine.com/histgallery.htm
=========================================================
11. IN HIS MEMORIES OF ODESSA, A POET PAYS TRIBUTE TO HIS
FOREBEARS: "DANCING IN ODESSA" BY ILYA KAMINSKY
Odessa, Ukraine, A pearl of a cosmopolis and an imaginary city

BOOK REVIEW by John Timpane
"Dancing in Odessa," By Ilya Kaminsky, Tupelo Press. 58 pp. $16.95
Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, Friday, June 4, 2004

Among the many, many dreamlike lines in this superb book are two that
stand for the collection, the title, and the city of Odessa itself: "the
city sleeps, / there is no such city." In the poem "Dancing in Odessa," we
read that "the city trembled, / a ghost-ship setting sail."

This Odessa is both a real place - a pearl of a cosmopolis, where poet Ilya
Kaminsky was born - and an imaginary city, a city of memory, a fountain of
images and stories that follow a man from his childhood in that Paris on
the Black Sea to his emigration to the United States. As any ex-pat can
tell you, such a city, by passing from reality to memory, becomes even more
real than when lived in.

This is Kaminsky's first book of poems. At 27 he comes with a voice very
much his own. Like Joseph Brodsky before him, Kaminsky is a terrifyingly
good poet, another poet from the former U.S.S.R. [Soviet Ukraine] who,
having adopted English, has come to put us native speakers to shame.

Kaminsky orchestrates images and symbols ("the shore, the trees, a boy /
running across the streets like a lost god") to create a world of
suggestion and emotion. Urgently, compulsively, repeated images stud the
poems: lamp, shoulder, tomatoes, dance, cloud, the city, snow, the tongue
passing over the skin. But these images change as they cross and recross
the river of memory. He has a delightful way of moving back and forth
between elusive moments and stark directness, as in "Praise":

Then my mother begins to dance, re-arranging
this dream. Her love
is difficult. Loving her is simple as putting raspberries
in my mouth.

This is a gorgeous piece of craft. We pass from long line to short, from a
dance in a dream to popping a berry in your mouth. And I very much admire
the painful balance between the difficulty of her love and how simple it is
to love her. Such movements, which, simply through suggestion and symbol,
manage to tell a kind of story without narrating anything, play like flames
over the surface. I almost cannot bear the loveliness of these lines from
"Musica Humana," a lovely elegy for Osip Mandelstam:

Mother washes
behind my ears. And we speak of everything
that does not come true,
which is to say: it was August,
August! the light in the trees, full of fury. August
filling hands with language that tastes like smoke.

We use colons to explain further, to illustrate what we just said. But
whereas everything before this colon is heartbreakingly direct, everything
after it is turbulently symbolic. The explanation creates more to be
explained. That's what emotions feel like; we seem to understand without
being able to spell it out.

Kaminsky is an inheritor of the muscular Russian take on Symbolism. When
the French Symbolistes hit Russian culture, it changed poetry forever.
Poets such as Marina Tsvetaeva (1892-1941), Mandelstam (1891-1938), and
Anna Akhmatova (1889-1966) remade it in their own image, investing it with
a powerful awareness of history, obsession, and loss, along with some
jagged Russian music. If you want a good introduction to 20th-century
Russian poetry, read these three.

Dancing in Odessa pays homage to them, along with Brodsky, Romanian poet
Paul Celan, and fiction writer Isaac Babel, in sections titled "Musica
Humana" and "Traveling Musicians." Kaminsky mixes prose fragments -
dreamlike accounts of meeting these poets, all of whom died long before his
birth - with poems that capture the spirit of the poet.

It seemed to take about five minutes to read this book, and when I began
again, I reached the end before I was ready. That's how compulsive, how
propulsive, it is to read. It wraps you in a world created by a new and
wonderful poet. It opens new avenues, new things to read and to be
experienced. Thanks to Ilya Kaminsky and Dancing in Odessa, there is such
a city, and it is not asleep. (END)
=========================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER TWELVE
Your financial support for The Action Ukraine Report is needed.
==========================================================
12. NEW INTERNATIONAL UKRAINIAN FESTIVALS WEBSITE
Up to date information Ukrainian festivals, celebrations around the world

Yevshan Newsletter, Beaconsfield, Ontario, Canada, June 4, 2004

Making plans to travel this summer? Take a look at the new website
www.UkrainianFestivals.Com. This site provides you with up to date
information on most Ukrainian Festivals, Community events and celebrations
all over the world. Link: (http://www.yevshan.com)
=========================================================
ACTION UKRAINE REPORT-04, No. 93: ARTICLE NUMBER THIRTEEN
Support The Action Ukraine Report...send a check today.
=========================================================
13. THE WASHINGTON GROUP (TWG) LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE
TWG Conference Open to the General Public
Friday, June 11 - Sunday, June 13, 2004, Arlington, Virginia

By George Masiuk, TWG Conference Chairman
The Washington Group (TWG), Washington, D.C., June 2, 2004

WASHINGTON - The Washington Group (TWG) is celebrating the 20th
anniversary of its founding by hosting a Leadership Conference titled, "TWG
at 20: Reflection, Renewal and Celebration." The conference will be held at
the Key Bridge Marriott hotel in Arlington Virginia, Friday, June 11-Sunday,
June 13.

The conference will feature addresses by the Ukrainian Ambassador to the
U.S. Mykhailo Reznik and former Ukrainian Defense Minister, Kostyantyn
Morozov. The conference will have an Ambassadors' Forum (Amb.Oleh
Bilorus, Amb.William G. Miller, and Amb. Steven Pifer will participate.), a
roundtable discussion on "Ukraine on the Eve of Elections," and a panel, on
"Improving our Professionals' Organizations."

The conference will provide the opportunity for socializing and
entertainment by hosting a Friday evening reception at the Ukrainian Embassy
in Georgetown, a Saturday evening banquet and Zabava to the music of
TEMPO, and a Sunday brunch followed by traditional East European folk
music.

For information call George Masiuk at (202) 863-7317 (d) or (703) 960-0043
(e) or e-mail: GMasiuk@AOL.com. The TWG conference schedule, pricing
information and registration form can be found at the following link:
http://www.TheWashingtonGroup.org or you can use the one published in The
Ukrainian Weekly newspaper in prior weeks. (END)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: The Washington Group (TWG) is an association of Ukrainian-American
professionals with a worldwide network of members. Participation and
membership is also open to those who do not have Ukrainian heritage. The
TWG Leadership Conference is open to the public, one does not have to be
a member of TWG or have Ukrainian heritage to attend.
=========================================================
ARTICLES ARE FOR PERSONAL AND ACADEMIC USE ONLY
=========================================================
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