"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT - AUR"
An International Newsletter
The Latest, Up-To-Date
In-Depth Ukrainian News, Analysis, and Commentary
"Ukrainian History, Culture, Arts, Business, Religion,
Sports, Government, and Politics, in Ukraine and Around the World"
BUYING INTO THE VERKHOVNA RADA
The citizen will no longer have HIS/HER DEPUTY in Parliament.
Subordination of the deputies to the bosses and not to the electorate
[article two]
"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT - AUR" - Number 582
Mr. E. Morgan Williams, Publisher and Editor
Washington, D.C., Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, October 12, 2005
--------INDEX OF ARTICLES--------
"Major International News Headlines and Articles"
1. UKRAINE-MACROECONOMIC SITUATION-SEPTEMBER 2005
MONTHLY REPORT: By Olga Pogarska, Edilberto L. Segura
SigmaBleyzer Emerging Markets Private Equity Investment Group
Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, October 12, 2005
2. BUYING INTO THE VERKHOVNA RADA
The citizen will no longer have HIS/HER DEPUTY in Parliament.
Subordination of the deputies to the bosses and not to the electorate.
COMMENTARY: Professor Roman Serbyn, Canada
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 2
Washington, D.C., Wednesday,, October 12, 2005
3. UKRAINE: THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
"Let there be no mistake that the United States remains firmly committed
to helping Ukraine become a vibrant democratic market-oriented member
of the international community."
PRESENTATION: by David Kramer
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia
Session II: Assessing Ukraine's "Center of Gravity
Panel II: Contemplating the "Geopolitical" Dimension
Ukraine's Quest for Mature Nation Statehood Roundtable VI
Ukraine's Transition to an Established National Identity
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
Washington, DC, September 27/28, 2005
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 3
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, October 12, 2005
4. OPEN LETTER OF THE EMBASSY OF UKRAINE TO THE USA
Acceptance of new adoption dossiers from US citizens is suspended
The Embassy of Ukraine to the USA
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, October 11, 2005
5. TORTURE STILL TAKES PLACE IN UKRAINIAN JAILS-OMBUDSMAN
Associated Press, Kiev, Ukraine, Tue, October 11, 2005.
6. UKRAINE AND EURO-ATLANTIC INTEGRATION
REMARKS: By F. Stephen Larrabee, RAND
Session II: Assessing Ukraine's "Center of Gravity
Panel II: Contemplating the "Geopolitical" Dimension
Ukraine's Quest for Mature Nation Statehood Roundtable VI
Ukraine's Transition to an Established National Identity
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
Washington, DC, September 27/28, 2005
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 6
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, October 12, 2005
7. INTERNATIONAL BANKING GROUP SEB STUDYING
INVESTMENTS OPPORTUNITIES IN UKRAINE
UNIAN, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, October 11, 2005
8. HUMANITARIAN SUPPLIES CONFISCATED BY KYIV CUSTOMS AGENTS
Total confiscation of medications has never happened before
in the 19 years of Volunteers in Medical Missions (VIMM)
PERSONAL LETTER: from Lisa Prytula, RN
Volunteers in Medical Missions In Ukraine
St. Paul, Minnesota, Monday, October 10, 2005
9. NURSE LISA PRYTULA FINDS HER ROOTS ON MISSION TO UKRAINE
By Brian Bonner, Pioneer Press
St. Paul, Minnesota, Sun, Aug 21, 2005
10. FIRST LADY KATERYNA YUSHCHENKO VISITS CHICAGO HOSPITALS
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, October 8, 2005
11. YUSHCHENKO EXAMINES PROJECTS FOR KYIV'S DEVELOPMENT
8,000-10,000 Snowball trees for famine-genocide memorial
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, October 10, 2005
12. FIRST LADY COMMEMORATES FAMINE VICTIMS
Laid a wreath on the monument in Chicago to famine victims
Urges lighting of candles on November 26, Famine Victims' Day
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, October 10, 2005
13. "DESTINED TO BE A UKRAINIAN"
James Mace in Ukraine's sorrowing memory
By Mykola ZHULYNSKY, Member of the Ukrainian National
Academy of Sciences, Director of the Taras Shevchenko
Institute of Literature, and Parliamentarian
The Day Weekly Digest in English, #29
Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, September 27, 2005
14. RUSSIA WEIGHS WHAT TO DO WITH LENIN'S BODY
Still find Lenin on statues, murals and placques in Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan
By C. J. Chivers in Moscow, The New York Times
New York, New York, Sunday, October 5, 2005
15. PARIS FASHION TRENDS FAVOR ROMANCE
Every designer has a peasant blouse, Jean Paul Gaultier looked to Ukraine
Carol Mongo, AP Worldstream, Paris, France, Monday, Oct 10, 2005
=============================================================
1. UKRAINE-MACROECONOMIC SITUATION-SEPTEMBER 2005
MONTHLY REPORT: By Olga Pogarska, Edilberto L. Segura
SigmaBleyzer Emerging Markets Private Equity Investment Group
Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, October 12, 2005
SUMMARY:
[1] In August, Ukraine's gross domestic product (GDP) contracted for the
first time during the last six years, bringing the cumulative figure to a
modest 2.8% year-over-year (yoy).
[2] Over January-July 2005, the consolidated budget registered a surplus of
about 1.1% of period GDP on the back of improved tax enforcement and tax
administration.
[3] The government approved the draft state budget for 2006 with a 2% of
GDP deficit and further increases in social expenditures with
over-optimistic economic growth.
[4] Consumer price inflation accelerated to 14.9% yoy in August;
inflationary pressures continue to grow.
[5] The National Bank of Ukraine is undertaking liquidity restraining
measures aimed at containing high inflation; however, the targeted year-end
inflation is likely to be surpassed, while the banking system may experience
a deficit of liquid funds.
[6] The likelihood that Ukraine will join the WTO before the end of the year
slightly diminished given that passing of required WTO legislation through
the parliament has been lingering.
[7] At the beginning of September, the government and a number of other
top officials were dismissed; the new Prime Minister of Ukraine became
Mr. Yekhanurov.
ECONOMIC GROWTH
In 2003-2004, Ukraine was one of the best-performing economies in the world,
with GDP growth rates of 9.5% yoy and 12.1% yoy respectively. However, since
the beginning of 2005, the country has experienced a dramatic slowdown in
economic growth to 2.8% yoy over January-August.
In August alone, for the first time in the last six years, GDP showed a 1.6%
yoy contraction. The sharp deceleration of Ukrainian GDP growth should be
partly attributed to a high base effect, rising energy prices and declining
world demand for metals. However, there may be another important reason.
Political turbulence at the end of 2004/beginning of 2005 and the ensuing
drastic change in the country's management, with sometimes controversial
movements (like the re-privatization issue and attempts to introduce price
controls), resulted in a sharp downturn in both domestic and foreign
investments.
Considering current macroeconomic performance, the government down
graded its GDP forecast for 2005 in mid-September to 4% yoy, down from
6-6.5% yoy.
Out of the GDP growth slowdown by 9.3 percentage points (pp) over
January-August 2005 from a record high 12.1% yoy growth in 2004, almost
40% is explained equally by deceleration in manufacturing and agriculture
and another 30% by the recession in domestic trade.
Despite the good harvest this year, value added in agriculture increased by
a moderate 3.1% yoy over the period, decelerating from impressive 29.5% yoy
growth in the respective period last year. Partly owing to high base effect
(21.3% yoy increase over January-August 2004), domestic trade reported a
4.3% yoy decline.
The main reason for this decline was a reduction in wholesale trade rather
than in retail trade, which actually expanded thanks to rising household
demand. The reduction in wholesale trade is linked to the drastic slowdown
in manufacturing, which showed modest 3.5% yoy growth compared with a
16.5% yoy increase in January-August 2004.
With the completion of large infrastructure and repair works, construction
has been contracting since the beginning of the year. Because of a high base
effect, the sector reported a 7.7% yoy decline, negatively contributing to
GDP growth.
Following a two-month decline, industrial output rebounded in August,
expanding by 1% yoy. Cumulative growth, however, kept decelerating to
3.5% yoy compared to 14.4% yoy in the corresponding period last year.
The major reason for growth deceleration in the sector was poor performance
of metallurgy and machine-building. The decline in metallurgy is mostly
related to lower international prices for steel. Over January-August,
metallurgical output shrunk by 3.2% yoy compared with almost 15% yoy
growth in the respective period last year.
Another important reason is lower investments in machinery and equipment
by local enterprises due to political uncertainties and the stalled
privatization process. The growth in machine-building slowed from above
33.5% yoy over the respective period in 2004 to a moderate 6.6% yoy this
year.
On the upside, increasing household incomes drove expansion of food
processing, the second largest industry after metallurgy. Over the period,
the food industry expanded by 14% yoy, slightly higher than the 13.4% yoy
growth recorded in the respective period last year.
FISCAL POLICY
Over January-July 2005, the consolidated budget surplus reached UAH
2.75 billion (about $545 million), which is equivalent to 1.1% of period
GDP. So far, the growth of consolidated budget revenues outpaced that of
expenditures.
In real terms, budget revenues went up by 32.5% yoy to UAH 70 billion
($13.8 billion), while expenditures grew by 29.5% yoy to reach UAH
67.2 billion ($13.3 billion).
Successful budget execution on the back of decelerating economic growth
may indicate improvements in tax enforcement and administration.
Over the period, collections from enterprise profit tax and import duties
increased by 44.5% yoy and 53% yoy in real terms, respectively.
Value added tax reported the largest increase in receipts, by a real 72%
higher than in the corresponding period last year. However, this success is
somewhat exaggerated due to accumulation of VAT refund arrears in the
amount of UAH 2.9 billion (almost $575 million) as of September 1st.
Despite the current favorable budget balance, a drastic deceleration of
economic growth may weaken the ability of fiscal authorities to collect
enough budget revenues to finance debt obligations and generous social
expenditures. Over January-July, social payments grew by a real 58.5% yoy
and will continue to increase.
Starting September 1st, the government once again raised wages for budget
sector employees by 15% and the minimum wage by 7% to UAH 332 ($65.7).
As a result, the so far positive fiscal outlook may reverse in the fall this
year.
In mid-September, the government approved the draft fiscal budget for 2006
and passed it to the parliament for consideration. Next year, state budget
revenues and expenditures are estimated at UAH 118.7 billion ($23.5 billion)
and UAH 127.4 billion ($25.2 billion). The deficit is forecasted to reach
almost UAH 10 billion (about $2 billion).
Although it represents less than 2% of 2006 GDP, it is more than 40% yoy
higher due to larger amounts of credits to be allocated from the budget.
Despite rather moderate growth of both revenues and expenditures, the
successful execution of 2006 budget parameters may be quite a challenging
task.
Taking into account this year's macroeconomic performance and expected
further worsening of external conditions, the government's forecast for GDP
growth for 2006 looks overly optimistic. In addition, the government will
need to solve the problem with VAT refund arrears.
Moreover, there are some losses expected in tax revenues due to the 2
percentage points (pps) reduction in the payroll tax and the 0.75 pps cut in
the rate of duty on non-cash foreign exchange operations.
On the expenditure side, the government increased investment spending (the
development expenditures), although their share in total budget expenditures
remained at a negligibly low 20% level.
The rest will be directed to finance substantial social obligations taken in
2005 and additional increases in pensions and the minimum wage scheduled
for 2006. As a result, the actual fiscal gap in 2006 may be higher than the
targeted figure.
Another socially-oriented budget coupled with two-digit inflation and slow
economic reforms may have negative effects on the country's overall
economic development in the medium-term.
The targeted budget deficit for 2006 is planned to be financed through
increases in privatization revenues and new borrowings. In 2006, the
government plans to receive UAH 8.1 billion ($1.6 billion) from
privatization. The ambitious target may be realistic in case a number of
strategic enterprises (like Ukrtelecom, Odessa port plant, etc.) are
included in the privatization program for next year.
This year's poor privatization performance should be primarily attributed to
the controversial re-privatization issue. Over January-August 2005, receipts
from privatization amounted to UAH 694.3 million, representing less than
10% of the targeted amount (UAH 6.99 billion).
At the same time, the privatization plan for 2005 may still be fulfilled if
the re-sale of Kryvorizhstal is successful. The auction is scheduled for
October 24th with an asking price of $2 billion for 93.02% of shares.
However, fair and transparent resolution of the Kryvorizhstal deal will not
be sufficient to revive the privatization process since there are about 30
more enterprises whose privatization may be reconsidered.
Moreover, recent scandals regarding the re-privatization of Nikopol
Ferroalloy Plant negatively affected Ukraine's international image. Hence,
the crucial condition for the privatization process to be successful this
and next year is extensive government actions to improve Ukraine's
investment climate and international image.
According to the draft budget law for 2006, new borrowings on both domestic
and external markets will amount to UAH 11.6 billion ($2.3 billion). At the
same time, service and principal payments are estimated to reach UAH 10.1
billion ($2 billion). As a result of fairly low net borrowings, the public
debt-to-GDP ratio is expected to decline to about 14%.
Unlike this year, the government has decided to place greater weight on
external borrowing in 2006 - UAH 7 billion ($1.4 billion), out of which $500
million is expected to be received from International Financial Institutions
(IFIs).
In 2005, the government actively issued domestic T-bills to compensate for
modest privatization revenues and reduce the cost of external borrowings.
Over January-August, domestic debt increased by 8% year-to-date (ytd) to
UAH 22.6 billion ($4.4 billion) while external debt declined by 4.5% ytd to
$11.6 billion. A slight increase in external debt during July-August may be
attributed to an increase in the country's obligations to the World Bank
under the Second Programmatic Adjustment Loan (PAL-2) and the First
Development Policy Loan (DPL-1).
MONETARY POLICY
In August, the monthly consumer price index (CPI) remained unchanged from
the previous month's figure. Although it kept increasing in annual terms to
14.9% yoy, the achieved inflation level may be considered a success in light
of considerable inflationary pressures from ongoing growth in gasoline
prices, loose fiscal policy and NBU purchases of foreign exchange.
Favorable consumer price performance in August should be attributed to
deceleration of food inflation to 18.5% yoy on the back of slower price
growth for sugar, meat and potatoes.
However, further increases in social payments, which stimulate consumption
(particularly of lower income groups, whose spending on food accounts for
the largest share of their basket), may reverse this trend in the coming
months.
Gasoline prices gained 11.8% month-over-month (mom), contributing to
further acceleration of non-food prices. In annual terms, however, non-foods
reported the lowest rate of inflation, 5.1% yoy. The recent surge in
gasoline prices will spur rapid growth in transportation tariffs, which
already advanced by 21% yoy.
Together with an almost 11% yoy increase in the cost of public utilities,
they caused service tariffs to accelerate to 10.3% yoy. In August, the
producer price index (PPI) continued to decelerate, reaching 14.6% yoy in
July.
Considering the economic growth slowdown and worsening of Ukraine's
foreign trade balance, the National bank of Ukraine (NBU) adhered to the
policy of maintaining exchange rate stability. Following the sharp hryvnia
appreciation in April, the official exchange rate remained almost unchanged
at UAH/$5.05 during May-September.
The cash exchange rate showed larger short-term volatility in both
directions responding to the rumors regarding possible further hryvnia
strengthening and political instability.
It is very likely, however, that the exchange rate will remain stable
through the end of the year. The main objective of monetary policy in 2006,
defined by the NBU, will be stability of the national currency exchange
rate.
At the same time, the NBU reserved some flexibility in its actions,
forecasting the average exchange rate for next year within a rather wide
range - UAH/$5.0-5.2.
So far, to keep the national currency stable, the NBU has continued to
purchase the surplus of foreign currency on the interbank market. The net
purchases of foreign currency in August amounted to $736 million, up from
$397 million a month before. This allowed the NBU to further replenish its
gross international reserves to $14.5 billion at the end of August.
However, being aware of the inflationary nature of such measures, the NBU
tried to reduce speculative inflow of foreign exchange into the country. In
particular, starting September 9th, the NBU introduced a 20% reserve
requirement on foreign currency loans with a maturity of less than 180 days
attracted from abroad.
To balance the foreign exchange market, the central bank partly liberalized
interbank trading at the beginning of September. Commercial banks were
allowed to buy and sell foreign currency during the same trading day, while
previously individual banks could be either seller or buyer of foreign
currency. At the same time, the NBU continued the practice of partial
purchases of excess foreign currency supply in August.
To contain inflation, the central bank raised its refinancing rate in
mid-August by 0.5 percentage points (pps) to 9.5%. On September 1st, it
tightened regulations on reserve requirements (reserve requirements on
deposits were raised from 7% to 8%, commercial banks were required to
form 100% of the required reserves on a daily basis, up from 80%).
Although some of the measures were slightly softened shortly thereafter
(daily formation of requires reserves were allowed at 90%), the NBU limited
commercial banks' access to the central bank's refinancing resources.
Despite these measures, it is unlikely that the targeted year-end inflation
level of 9.8% yoy will be achieved. The reason lies in the limited monetary
influence on inflation so far.
As a result of the new regulations, September registered an increase in
interest rates on the interbank market while commercial banks experienced a
shortage of liquid financial resources. Since interbank resources became
more expensive, commercial banks started to increase their interest rates on
deposits.
During the first eight months of the year, the average deposit interest rate
declined from an annual 9.2% in January to 7.6% in August, which is below
the average inflation rate for the period. In addition, banks actively
sought alternative financial resources through issuing bonds or negotiating
syndicated credits.
However, it is expected that the credit interest rate will start growing in
the near future. Declining credit interest rates since the beginning of the
year allowed commercial banks' lending activities to grow at an accelerating
pace. The growth of bank credit to the private sector increased to 42.8% in
August, up from 30.5% yoy in January.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND CAPITAL
In January-July, the surplus in the trade of goods account declined to $118
million, more than 20 times lower than in the same period last year. For the
fifth month in a row, the merchandise trade balance reported a deficit of
$263 million in July.
At the same time, the deficit narrowed slightly compared to the previous
month due to considerable deceleration of imports growth to 15% yoy, down
from 31% yoy in June. Cumulatively, the growth of imports exceeded that of
exports by three times.
For the first time since mid-2002, monthly exports declined by almost 1%
yoy in July. Robust growth in the previous months, especially in the first
quarter of 2005, allowed exports to report cumulative 7.5% yoy growth over
January-July.
By product breakdown, cross border metals sales remained the largest
contributor to growth of goods exports over January-July. At the same time,
drastic deceleration of exports growth since April 2005 may be explained by
the substantial reduction in the pace of metallurgy export expansion from
above 50% yoy in 2004 to below 20% yoy over January-July 2005.
The deceleration is explained by lower world demand for metals and April's
sharp national currency appreciation. Exports of machinery and equipment
account for the second largest share in total merchandise exports. However,
it declined by 14.7% yoy in January-July, in contrast to the more than 30%
yoy growth in 2004.
On the imports side, imports of energy resources, accounting for the largest
share in total imports, advanced by 11% yoy over the period. Oil and gas
imports were on the decline in July, explaining total imports deceleration
that month. On the positive side, machines and equipment imports increased
by 35.5% yoy.
Sharp deceleration of exports and acceleration of imports in the first half
of 2005 resulted in a narrower current account (CA) surplus as compared with
the previous year. In fact, the CA surplus in 1H 2005 was more than 40% yoy
lower.
Despite expected further worsening of Ukraine's foreign trade balance
through the rest of the year, it is unlikely to be strong enough to erode
the CA surplus altogether by the end of the year.
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS AND REFORMS AFFECTING
THE INVESTMENT CLIMATE
Following continuing dissent among top country officials, the President of
Ukraine dismissed the government of Ms. Yulia Tymoshenko and the Secretary
of the National Security and Defense Council Mr. Poroshenko on September
8th.
A few days earlier, the State Secretary of Ukraine Mr. Zinchenko resigned,
emphasizing corruption at top levels. The President appointed Mr. Yekhanurov
as acting prime minister.
From the second attempt, only after Mr. Yushchenko enlisted the support of
the "Regions of Ukraine" party of his former rival Mr. Yanukovich, the
Ukrainian parliament endorsed Mr. Yekhanurov as Prime Minister of Ukraine.
According to EC representatives, Ukraine may still be granted market
economy status from the EU in the fall this year. Obtaining such status will
expedite Ukraine's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and
may enhance negotiations on signing a free-trade agreement with the EU.
At the same time, due to the recent government reshuffle, the beginning of
talks regarding joining the WTO was postponed until mid-October. In the
meantime, however, Ukraine continued its negotiations to complete bilateral
agreements on joint access to the market of goods and services.
In September, Ukraine signed the respective protocol with Iceland and signed
the memorandum on mutual understanding on Ukraine's joining the WTO with
Peru.
However, to enter WTO by the end of 2005, Ukraine should endorse all
necessary legislation and sign the agreements on joint access with the
remaining 10 countries, including the US and Australia, during the next two
months.
At the end of August, the United States lifted trade sanctions imposed on
Ukraine in 2002, recognizing Ukraine's government efforts in the field of
intellectual property rights protection.
At imposition, the cost of the sanctions (in the form of 100% duty on 23 of
Ukraine's export goods) was estimated at $53 million. The lifting of the
sanctions may be the first step on the way to granting Ukraine functioning
market economy status from the US. -30-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CONTACT: Olga Pogarska, Kyiv, opogarska@sigmableyzer.com.ua
NOTE: To read the entire macroeconomic report in a PDF format with
several color charts and graphics click on the following link:
http://www.sigmableyzer.com/files/Ukr_Monthly_Ec_Report_09_05.pdf
=============================================================
2. BUYING INTO THE VERKHOVNA RADA
The citizen will no longer have HIS/HER DEPUTY in Parliament.
Subordination of the deputies to the bosses and not to the electorate.
COMMENTARY: Professor Roman Serbyn, Canada
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 2
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, Wednesday, October 12, 2005
That the change in the Ukrainian electoral system, to be introduced this
fall for the 2006 elections, would increase and not diminish political
corruption was obvious to anyone the least bit familiar with Ukrainian
politics and the pitfalls of proportional representation.
Ukraine began with constituency/riding elections, switched to a hybrid
system of half constituency - half party list.
This was bad enough, but then, during the presidential elections, a
nefarious deal arrived at by the self-serving deputies pushed the electoral
system to a new low by abolishing the constituency half and making the
election of the whole 450-member VR based only on party lists.
I have raised the issue several times on the internet to argue against
this system which did no good for other countries (Eastern European
countries in the interwar period, Western European countries
after WWII, ... Israel even today...).
There are many reasons why this system is bad, especially for a young
democracy like Ukraine.
I used the term "otamanshchyna" to draw attention to the entrenchment
of new party bosses who will control the deputies by controlling the
electoral lists, and the subordination of the deputies to the bosses and
not to the electorate.
The citizen will no longer have HIS/HER DEPUTY in Parliament.
Now a Radio Liberty report shows us another phenomenon: buying into
the party list. The price can go as high as $14,000,000US.
This is not a exorbitant price for complete immunity from prosecution for
whatever crime an oligarch/mafioso has committed in the past or is still
to commit in the future, during his tenure as deputat.
Apparently one such "poor soul" has already bought a spot on the pro-
government party "Narodnyj sojuz-nasha Ukraina", for himself and his
son, for $14,000,000USD (not clear if the price was for both or for each).
Politicians are denying this new national sport, but the electoral
commission is flooded with reports about it.
And this is not limited to the national elections; a similar situation
exists on all levels of city (etc,) council (rada) elections. Except that
the stakes are not as high and the prices are lower. -30-
=============================================================
Send in names and e-mail addresses for the AUR distribution list.
=============================================================
3. UKRAINE: THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
"Let there be no mistake that the United States remains firmly committed
to helping Ukraine become a vibrant democratic market-oriented member
of the international community."
PRESENTATION: by David Kramer
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Europe and Eurasia
Session II: Assessing Ukraine's "Center of Gravity
Panel II: Contemplating the "Geopolitical" Dimension
Ukraine's Quest for Mature Nation Statehood Roundtable VI
Ukraine's Transition to an Established National Identity
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
Washington, DC, September 27/28, 2005
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 3
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, October 12, 2005
Thank you very much, Ambassador Miller and thank you to the organizers
of the conference taking place in this hall today.
I have attended a few of the Roundtables in the past as an observer, so it
is a real honor to be here as a speaker on one of the panels and also an
honor to be here with such a distinguished group on the dais.
I am pleased to see a number of familiar faces in the audience, including
one of my predecessors, Ambassador Steve Pifer and generally see a lot of
very keen observers and analysts and experts in the room. It's a rather
daunting challenge to get up here.
Let me address the subject of this panel from the perspective of the US
government, or more precisely, from the US State Department.
Let me start by pointing out how far we have come in our relationship with
Ukraine. Since Ukraine's independence was restored in 1991, US Ukraine
relations have admittedly had its share of ups and downs.
The high points have included our cooperation in the war on terror and
participation in the various arms reduction agreements, but, as you all
know, in the last half of the 1990's and the first few years of this
century, relations for all intense purposes were in a holding pattern.
During that time, the US never forgot Ukraine's strategic importance nor did
we lose faith in Ukraine's people. But, for a number of reasons well known
to this audience, we faced serious obstacles to closer cooperation between
our two governments, even if there were deeper relations being formed
between our two societies.
CHOICE FOR FREEDOM AND DEMOCRACY
I'm very happy to say that the choice made by Ukraine's people last year for
freedom and democracy managed to put relations on a new, different track.
The United States stands firmly in support of democracy in Ukraine and the
efforts to deal with the various challenges, political, economic, military,
including anti corruption efforts and economic reform.
All of these remain goals of the United States; to stand in support of
Ukraine as it moves towards closer and deeper Euro Atlantic integration.
US FIRMLY COMMITTED TO HELP UKRAINE
Let there be no mistake that the United States remains firmly committed to
helping Ukraine become a vibrant democratic market- oriented member of the
international community.
As you know back in April, President Bush and President Yushchenko signed a
New Century Agenda that laid out a number of concrete areas of cooperation
and covered issues such as promoting democracy and freedom, fighting
terrorism, supporting Ukraine's NATO aspirations, combating the spread of
weapons of mass destruction and strengthening economic reform.
We have also pledged cooperation to fight organized crime, trafficking in
persons and to deal with the deadly scourge of HIV AIDS and tuberculosis.
Let me run down a few of these items during my panel presentation. Indulge
me while I itemize the progress we have made and the tasks that face us, as
we look to the next few years.
NATO MEMBERSHIP
On NATO, the United States led the push to offer Ukraine an Intensified
Dialogue on NATO Membership. Ukraine's relationship with NATO depends
now on Ukraine's own wishes and its own time table, that is, on its ability
to forge domestic support for NATO membership and its willingness to meet
NATO's performance-based standards.
Progress on various reforms political, military and economic and democratic
parliamentary elections in March 2006 will be crucial. But, again, the
United States stands fully committed to helping Ukraine with its
aspirations.
MILITARY CONTRIBUTION IN IRAQ
On Iraq, the United States has deeply appreciated Ukraine's' sustained
military contribution in Iraq. Ukraine has consulted with us and coalition
partners as it conducted a phased withdrawal and we appreciate that Ukraine
has committed to continuing to assist Iraq in training and reconstruction
projects.
Ukraine's contributions to the efforts in Iraq are an excellent example of
Ukraine's interest to be a solid contributor to global peace and stability
and we are grateful.
Non proliferation is another area in which we have made good progress with
Ukraine. In dealing with this agenda, that issue has been difficult in the
past. We welcome Ukraine in becoming a key partner in preventing the illegal
export of military arms.
WTO MEMBERSHIP
On WTO, Ukraine has taken several important steps toward WTO membership
and there has been progress on the bilateral front. In July, the Rada passed
legislation that will strengthen intellectual property rights and reduce
discriminatory trade measures.
Still there is a lot to be done and we hope that the Rada, takes up the
necessary legislation this fall so that we can move towards completing our
bilateral WTO negotiations with Ukraine, as President Bush has pledged to
do.
TARIFF SANCTIONS REPEALED
In response to the passage of IPR legislation, earlier this year in July,
the United States repealed 100 percent tariff sanctions that were imposed
and we are also conducting a special "301 out of cycle review" of Ukraine's
status as "a priority foreign country".
We are also considering whether to restore GSP benefits. So, as Ukraine
takes further steps on the economic reform front, the United States not only
is willing to help, but is willing to respond.
NON-MARKET STATUS
On non-market economy status, it is important to point out this is not a
political decision. In order to gain market economy status, Ukraine needs to
put into the past statist policies and document concrete economic reforms.
JACKSON-VANIK AMENDMENT PROVISIONS
On Jackson-Vanik. As you know, for more than a decade, Ukraine has complied
with Jackson Vanik Amendment provisions and the United States, the Bush
Administration, strongly supports Ukraine's graduation from Jackson-Vanik to
the extension of permanent normal trade relations to Ukraine.
FREEDOM SUPPORT ACT
The US is using Freedom Support Act funds for technical advisors and
assistance programs as well as other means to assist Ukraine with a whole
range of economic issues. We are encouraging our partners to continue and
increase their support assistance as well, since it is obviously in the
interest not just of the United States but all of Europe, for Ukraine to
become a strong success story.
EURO ATLANTIC INTEGRATION
There is nothing exclusive about our approach. We support Ukraine's Euro
Atlantic integration. As I said already, a prosperous free Ukraine with
strong Democratic institutions is in everyone's interest. That kind of
Ukraine is an asset to all of Ukraine's neighbors.
The bottom line is that free market democracies work well together and
mutually support each others' citizens, their freedom and their commerce.
Ukraine has demonstrated that it is a good, strong partner. We deeply
appreciate Ukraine's contributions to the war against terror and its
contributions in Iraq.
Most recently, Ukraine provided important air lift capacity supporting
humanitarian relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina and we are grateful for
that as well.
Although challenging days may lie ahead as Ukraine's domestic political
situation works its way through various issues, Ukraine has the opportunity
to consolidate and make permanent the reforms that will insure democratic
prosperous future with a Europe "whole, free and at peace". And as it does
so, it can count on the United States to become a strong ally. -30-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: The above text was transcribed from a recording of the speech
by David Kramer. The text was transcribed by the Ukrainian
National Information Service (UNIS); Ukrainian Congress Committee
of America (UCCA), Michael Sawkiw, President, Washington, D.C. and
the Center for US-Ukrainian Relations (CUSUR), Walter Zaryckyj,
Director, in New York City. Text published by The Action Ukraine Report
(AUR), Number 582, Article 3, Wednesday, October 12, 2005.
=============================================================
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==============================================================
4. OPEN LETTER OF THE EMBASSY OF UKRAINE TO THE USA
Acceptance of new adoption dossiers from US citizens is suspended
The Embassy of Ukraine to the USA
Washington, D.C., Tuesday, October 11, 2005
WASHINGTON - Starting September 19, 2005, the Children Adoption
Center of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine suspended
the acceptance of new adoption dossiers from US citizens.
According to the Children Adoption Center, the decision to stop accepting
certain dossiers was based mainly on the past non-compliance of some
families with post-adoption reports, which are required by the Ukrainian
law.
According to the Children Adoption Center, the new procedures do not affect
dossiers that have already been accepted, unless the prospective adopting
parents have failed to register and provide reports about the previously
adopted Ukrainian children.
As the United States is the country whose citizens adopt the largest number
of the Ukrainian children, the Government of Ukraine is deeply concerned
with the fate of hundreds of the adopted children we have no information
about.
Taking into consideration the above-mentioned the Embassy of Ukraine to
the USA kindly requests your cooperation in two matters.
FIRST, we need cooperation in promoting the registration of Ukrainian
children adopted by US citizens and SECOND, in providing the Consulates
of Ukraine with post-placement reports from American adoptive parents
whom you may have contact with regards to this issue.
The Embassy of Ukraine is obliged to act in accordance with the Ukrainian
law which states that the Embassy shall supervise the registration of the
adopted children and maintain the database of the post-placement reports
about them.
Registering your child allows the adopted child to be added onto the list of
Ukrainian citizens residing in the United States.
Please be advised that in accordance with the Ukrainian law, the adoptive
parents signed an agreement with the Government of Ukraine to:
[1] maintain the Ukrainian citizenship of the adopted child until the
age of eighteen,
[2] to register the child with the appropriate diplomatic mission of
Ukraine, as well as
[3] to submit to the diplomatic mission periodical reports about the
child's well-being and
[4] to allow the representatives of the diplomatic mission to contact
the child directly.
It is especially important for the Ukrainian Government to know where the
adopted Ukrainian children have been placed and how they are progressing
in the United States. Through regular reports, the Ukrainian Government is
informed of the children's development with their adoptive parents.
The Embassy of Ukraine thanks all American families that provide us with
information about the progress of their Ukrainian children. We really
appreciate it.
The Embassy of Ukraine kindly asks those who forgot or refused to provide
us with this information to do so as soon as possible. Please send the
reports along with pictures of your children so that we may follow their
development throughout the years.
Please understand that your neglect to inform the Ukrainian authorities
about your adopted children blocks the process of the Ukrainian orphan
children adoption by American families.
For your convenience, information on the consular registration of Ukrainian
adopted children is available online at
http://www.ukraineinfo.us/consular/adoption-registration.html.
A sample of the post placement report is available online at
http://www.ukraineinfo.us/consular/adoption-report.html.
To facilitate communication, the reports can be forwarded via e-mail to:
adoption@ukremb.com or can be sent by mail to the Consular Office of
The Embassy of Ukraine at 3350 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20007.
If you have any contact with adoptive parents, organizations, agencies or
persons who may benefit from this information, the Embassy of Ukraine
kindly asks you to pass this information along so that everyone may
become well informed.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact the Consular Office of
the Embassy of Ukraine via fax at (202) 333-7510 or by email address at
adoption@ukremb.com.
The Embassy of Ukraine appreciates any assistance in compiling this
information because this in turn will help keep the adoption process open
for the American families. -30- [Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
==============================================================
5. TORTURE STILL TAKES PLACE IN UKRAINIAN JAILS-OMBUDSMAN
Associated Press, Kiev, Ukraine, Tue, October 11, 2005.
KIEV,Ukraine - Ukraine's human rights ombudsman acknowledged
Tuesday that torture still occurs in Ukrainian jails but pledged the
government was committed to fighting it.
Ombudsman Nina Karpachova met with representatives of the Council of
Europe's anti-torture committee, who are in Ukraine for two weeks to
investigate reports of torture against Ukrainian prisoners. "The previous
government did not show any interest in such issues," said Karpachova,
pledging that President Viktor Yushchenko had made the issue a priority.
The Ukrainian police force gained notoriety for its heavy-handed tactics and
corruption during the decade-long tenure of former President Leonid
Kuchma.
After his inauguration in January following the Orange Revolution,
Yushchenko launched an overhaul of the police and other law enforcement
and intelligence agencies which has led to thousands of dismissals.
But in September, Amnesty International sharply criticized Ukraine for what
the human rights group called its continuing failure to clamp down on
torture and police maltreatment.
A separate study published earlier this year by the independent Institute
for Social Research in the eastern city of Kharkiv said that 62.4% of former
detainees complained of ill-treatment after arrest.
More than 44% accused interrogators and policemen of twisting their arms,
legs or necks, while 32.8% said they were punched or kicked. The margin of
error for the poll wasn't given.
Last Friday, Karpachova met with Yushchenko to discuss the problem. After
the meeting, Yushchenko ordered Prime Minister Yuriy Yekhanurov to
investigate reports of torture against prisoners, Karpachova said. -30-
==============================================================
6. UKRAINE AND EURO-ATLANTIC INTEGRATION
REMARKS: By F. Stephen Larrabee, RAND
Session II: Assessing Ukraine's "Center of Gravity
Panel II: Contemplating the "Geopolitical" Dimension
Ukraine's Quest for Mature Nation Statehood Roundtable VI
Ukraine's Transition to an Established National Identity
Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
Washington, DC, September 27/28, 2005
The Action Ukraine Report (AUR), Number 582, Article 6
Washington, D.C., Wednesday, October 12, 2005
I will focus my remarks on Ukraine and Euro-Atlantic integration because
I believe that Euro-Atlantic integration is the only viable option for
Ukraine. Let me begin by putting the Orange Revolution in a broader
geo-political context.
The Geo-Strategic Significance of the Orange Revolution
The Orange Revolution is of major geopolitical significance. Ukraine is
not just any country. It was the lynchpin of the former Soviet empire - the
keystone in the Arch, as Sherm Gernet rightly called it.
Events in the Ukraine will have a significant impact on the former Soviet
space, especially Western CIS. If the Orange Revolution succeeds, the
pro-Western course in Georgia and Moldova will be reinforced.
Lukashenka will be isolated and weakened - will have a harder time
surviving.
Even Russia will be affected. As former Russian Prime Minister Igor Gaidar
has noted, the Orange Revolution is the first stone cast against the ediface
of managed democracy in Russia.
Ukraine has a historic chance to become a part of the Euro-Atlantic
community of democracies. But the path will not be easy. Desires and
ambitions are not enough. Ukraine will be judged on its performance not
its promises. Words will have to be matched by concrete deeds.
At this historic moment, leaders of the Orange Revolution cannot afford to
fall into fratricidal internal warfare. They need to put aside their
differences and emphasize what unites them not what divides them. If
they fail to do this, an historic opportunity at integrating Ukraine into
Euro-Atlantic structures may be lost.
There is a danger that if the leaders demonize each other during the
electoral campaign, it will be difficult to cooperate after the election is
over.
Thus, how the leaders of Orange Revolution manage their internal differences
in the period leading up to the March elections will be important and will
have an important affect on Western attitudes and prospects for Ukraine's
integration in Euro-Atlantic institutions.
Ukraine and the European Union
Let me now say a few words about the twin tasks of Euro-Atlantic
integration. First, the European Union. The EU's attitude toward Ukraine
has not fundamentally changed since the Kuchma period. The EU regards
Ukrainian membership as premature and as a "distraction." The real issue,
in EU eyes, is the need for economic reform.
In effect, the EU has adopted an attitude of "constructive ambiguity." It
is not ready to offer a membership perspective, but it does not exclude it
either. As Commissioner Ferrera-Waldner put it, "the door is both shut and
open."
The EU favors a series of "small steps" which will enhance Ukraine's
qualifications for membership over time. This strategy may work in the
short run, but it is not sustainable over the long run.
Yushchenko needs to be able to show concrete results and demonstrate to
the population that painful sacrifices are needed to carry out reforms to
bring concrete benefits. Otherwise, popular support for reform may begin to
decline.
The membership perspective is the "golden carrot" that provides the
incentive for reform and makes painful sacrifices politically palatable.
That is the lesson from Eastern European experience; the same is true in
Ukraine.
The French and Dutch referenda may result in a pause ("period of
reflection") in the enlargement process over the short run. But they may
not have much affect on Ukraine over the long run.
Ukraine is not likely to be ready to join the EU before 2016. In the
meantime, Ukraine needs to do its homework. This will require steady
and unified leadership at the top.
Ukraine and NATO
NATO membership may prove easier to attain. The requirements are less
rigid. The time frame is also shorter. Ukraine received Intensified
Dialogue status at the Vilnius Ministerial in April 2005.
If Ukraine does its homework, MAP is possible by the time of the NATO summit
in fall 2006. Membership could be achieved by time of the summit in 2008.
But there are no guarantees: the chances for membership will depend heavily
on Ukraine's performance. Reforms introduced by Defense Minister Anatoli
Gritsenko point in the right direction but need to be followed up by further
concrete action.
The low popular support for NATO is a problem. Polls show that currently
only about 22% of the Ukrainian population favors NATO membership. This is
the result of decades of communist propaganda and anti-NATO propaganda by
Yanukovych during his presidential campaign.
But polls also show that 40-45% of the population has no opinion about NATO.
Many of these could be mobilized to support NATO by an effective government
campaign.
Popular support for NATO membership was below 40% in several Eastern
European candidates accepted in the recent round of enlargement (Slovenia,
Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria). All managed to increase popular support for
NATO membership through effective campaigns to educate their publics.
The same could occur in Ukraine. The situation could thus look quite
different by the 2008 summit.
But everything depends on Ukraine's performance and Ukrainian leadership
avoiding fratricidal internecine warfare. Ukraine's leaders have to put the
interests of the country as a whole above individual political ambitions.
They also need to forge an internal consensus within NATO in favor of
Ukrainian membership. The US can help, but ultimately, Ukraine has to do
the heavy lifting.
The Need for an Internal "Strategic Compromise"
This will require Ukrainian leaders to show political responsibility and
maturity. What is needed is a "strategic compromise" between the two
main leaders of the Orange Revolution.
Both should begin an internal political dialogue - quietly, behind the
scenes - so that they can work together after the elections to bring Ukraine
into Euro-Atlantic structures. -30- [Action Ukraine Report Monitoring]
==============================================================
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==============================================================
7. INTERNATIONAL BANKING GROUP SEB STUDYING
INVESTMENTS OPPORTUNITIES IN UKRAINE
UNIAN, Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, October 11, 2005
KYIV - A delegation of top mangers of the international banking group SEB
(Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB, Sweden) arrived in Kyiv on a working
trip on Monday, with a view of studying investment opportunities in Ukraine
and prospects for the AZHIO Bank, a member of the SEB Group, AZHIO
Bank Governor Stanislav Arzhevitin told a press conference Monday,
Ukrinform reports.
According to SEB Group President Lars Thunell, Ukraine has entered the
phase of economic development, during which the financial sector is growing
two - three times faster.
Thus, the Group's top managers sees good prospects for its business, taking
into consideration competition advantages, such as experience and
international network of financial institutions and capital.
Mr Thunell introduced new President of the SEB Group Annika Falkengren,
who will take the office on November 10.
As Lars Thunell told the journalists in Kyiv, he had been invited to take
the position of the Executive Vice Chairman of the International Financial
Corporation and he will also enter the World Bank Group of Governors.
Before the appointment as the SEB Group President Annika Falkengren
worked Deputy Group Chief Executive.
The SEB Group was established by the Wallenberg family and next year will
mark its 150th anniversary. Presently, the Group is being represented in 20
countries and runs 680 branches and representations, serving five million
clients, of whom 2.1 million are being serviced through the Internet.
The Group has got profits of 1.7 bn. Swedish crowns with growth of 5.7 bn.
Swedish crowns. Some 50 percent of its profits the Group gained beyond
Sweden.
The AZHIO Bank has completed the first stage of integration to the Group.
Four basic divisions have been established while reorganizing: crediting,
retail banking business, corporative and finances and financial monitoring.
The work to bring the bank in compliance with the SEB standards is underway.
The bank has introduced 25 year-hypothec crediting and is readying proposals
of internet banking. -30- [Action Ukraine Report (AUR) Monitoring Service]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK: http://www.unian.net/eng/news/news-87753.html
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8. HUMANITARIAN SUPPLIES CONFISCATED BY KYIV CUSTOMS AGENTS
Total confiscation of medications has never happened before
in the 19 years of Volunteers in Medical Missions (VIMM)
PERSONAL LETTER: from Lisa Prytula, RN
Volunteers in Medical Missions In Ukraine
St. Paul, Minnesota, Monday, October 10, 2005
Hello, friends!
I have returned exhausted (physically & emotionally) from the poorest
villages affected by Chornobyl in northern Ukraine.
With a small team of 7 American docs & nurses, we served over 1,200
people, mostly the elderly and orphans. The living conditions are poor and
no improvements were noticeable since last year's medical mission trip to
the same marginalized villages.
Indeed fuel prices are ~ 3 x higher and corruption is rampant. Yushchenko's
administration was dismissed and the political climate was turbulent.
Upon arrival, all of our medications were confiscated by customs agents in
Kyiv! This was a terrible blow to the Volunteers in Medical Missions (VIMM)
team.
VIMM and each team member individually contributed more $ and we
purchased what we could in local pharmacies. However quantities, selection
and funds were limited.
Gratefully, our eyeglasses, medical equipment & supplies, toothbrushes &
toothpaste, and toys were not confiscated.
We managed to conduct 6 clinic days and visit 3 orphanages. These
underserved people have great physical, psycho-social needs and seemed
appreciative of our efforts.
The elderly especially suffer from chronic diseases such as hypertension,
diabetes, osteoarthritis, and coronary artery disease that are well-managed
in the USA.
The orphans suffer from lice & worm infestations, degenerative diseases,
and lack the basics of dental care. Toys and treats brought big smiles &
hugs.
It was a challenging 2 week experience but I have learned much about the
corruption that prevents the delivery of charitable health care.
I am so grateful for all of my friends, family and community who supported
this work.
I ask for your prayers as I plead with VIMM not to pull out of Ukraine. In
the organization's 19 year history serving around the world, total
confiscation of medications has never happened. I will present a renewed
plan to VIMM's board of directors soon.
While Americans cannot affect political change in Ukraine, we can provide
some comfort & basic health services, just one village at a time.
Wishing you a blessed day.
Lisa Prytula, RN
St. Paul, Minnesota (lisapwsp@msn.com)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOOTNOTE: Lisa Prytula has just informed The Action Ukraine Report
that she has been notified by the leadership of the Volunteer's in Medical
Missions's board that VIMM will shut down their program in Ukraine
because of the many difficulties VIMM has faced from the authorities.
It is very sad that the authorities in Ukraine continue to harass private
voluntary humanitarian organizations. Below you will find an article
about the recent mission to Ukraine. EDITOR
============================================================
9. NURSE LISA PRYTULA FINDS HER ROOTS ON MISSION TO UKRAINE
BY Brian Bonner, Pioneer Press
St. Paul, Minnesota, Sunday, Aug 21, 2005
ST. PAUL - The villages around Chernobyl, Ukraine, scene of the
catastrophic 1986 nuclear accident, are hardly ideal tourist destinations.
But they are where a West St. Paul woman will spend two weeks of her
vacation this year.
Lisa Prytula, a registered nurse whose parents are from Ukraine, is
volunteering to provide basic medical care to some of the poorest residents
of the former Soviet republic of 48 million people.
"This is something I dreamed of doing," said Prytula, 37, who works at
United Hospital in St. Paul. "There's an urgent need. Villages surrounding
Chernobyl are grossly underserved by the Ukrainian government."
By helping those Ukrainians, Prytula also is getting in touch with her own
roots. Her parents were part of the diaspora of Ukrainian émigrés who came
to America after World War II.
Prytula grew up in suburban Detroit. She learned to speak Ukrainian
fluently, spent time in summer camps learning about the nation's culture and
developed a strong interest in the country.
More than a year ago, seeking to find a charitable outlet for her interests,
she did an Internet search combining Ukraine and medical missions. That
led her to Volunteers in Medical Missions (www.vimm.org). The Seneca,
S.C.-based organization has been doing relief work in many nations since
1986, according to its Web site.
With the assistance of Alexander Kravchenko, a Baptist minister from
Zhytomir, Ukraine, the group has been working in Ukraine for five years,
Prytula said.
She made her first trip to Ukraine last year, as part of a group of 20
doctors and nurses who volunteered their time and served 2,000 people.
"It was a beautiful way to see the country and the people," Prytula said.
"They are so very grateful and so very depressed."
She leaves for her second trip Sept. 16. Along with Dr. Carl Jones, she will
lead a delegation of seven people to the same villages she visited a year
ago.
Walter Anastazievsky, a Ukrainian-American who lives in Shoreview,
praised the project. "I can think of few causes as worthy as this one,"
Anastazievsky wrote in an e-mail newsletter he circulates called
UkraineWatch. "Rest assured that this assistance is getting through to
people who really need it."
Altogether, Prytula estimates the trip will cost her only $2,000 because she
stays in the homes of families in Zhytomir, a provincial capital west of
Kiev, about a three-hour drive from the villages served.
She and the group are collecting donations of various items and money for
the purchase of prescription drugs. "We're allowed to take four 70-pound
suitcases," she said.
She attends St. Katherine's Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Arden Hills and
collected donations from parishioners there.
For anyone seeking to cure health problems, the area near Chernobyl, is rich
with patients. Residents suffer all forms of ailments, some of which are
going untreated, Prytula said. Smoking rates are high, and depression and
alcoholism go hand in hand. Many men don't live past 60; some families live
without running water or electricity.
The primary care checkups are administered in clinics or makeshift
operations set up in community centers and churches.
Some of the areas she is visiting are supposed to be uninhabited because of
radiation danger, Prytula said, but people have returned to claim ancestral
homelands or simply never left.
"We do see tuberculosis. There's a lot of hypertension, a lot of
cardiovascular diseases," Prytula said. "We're treating non-healing wounds
for diabetics. We distribute a lot of patient education materials."
Perhaps the toughest personal experience came, she said, when she visited a
woman who was dying of some sort of abdominal ailment. The woman lived in
an old home with dirt floors and no doors. The most Prytula was able to do
for her was to provide pain-relief and anti-diarrhea medication.
In Ukraine, the medical profession suffers from low salaries and don't have
the supplies. Nurses lack the same autonomy that their American counterparts
enjoy, Prytula said.
Since Viktor Yushchenko came to power as president following last year's
Orange Revolution, the government has at least talked more about improving
the health care provided to citizens, Prytula said. "Under Yushchenko there
are some encouraging signs," she said.
Volunteers in Medical Missions is a Christian organization, she said, but
doesn't get involved in proselytizing. "We're all just Christians. I am an
Orthodox Christian. I grew up in a very traditional Orthodox home," she
said. But converting people to a particular faith is "not the mission of the
organization," Prytula said.
HOW TO HELP
Call Lisa Prytula at 651-451-9624 or e-mail her at lisapwsp@msn.com.
Prytula is seeking donations of items including toothbrushes and toothpaste,
eyeglasses for reading, children's vitamins, aspirin, hydrocortisone cream,
smoking cessation patches and stethoscopes. Items sought for orphans
include socks and mittens, Beanie Babies, Barbie dolls, markers and small
Nerf balls. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Brian Bonner can be reached at bbonner@pioneerpress.com.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOOTNOTE: As was mentioned above because of the way the VIMM
delegation was treated in Ukraine by the authorities VIMM has decided
not to work in Ukraine in the future. EDITOR
==============================================================
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10. FIRST LADY KATERYNA YUSHCHENKO VISITS CHICAGO HOSPITALS
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, October 8, 2005
KYIV - In Chicago, Kateryna Yushchenko visited several hospitals: the Rush
University Medical Center, one of the biggest hospitals in the city, the
Schreiners' Hospital for children with orthopedic and neurological
pathologies and the Ronald MacDonald Children's Hospital.
The First Lady was accompanied by Melody Hugh, a founder of the Bridges
Across the Atlantic charitable organization.
Mrs. Yushchenko spoke with doctors and heads of these medical institutions
and urged them to cooperate with Ukrainian hospitals within the framework of
the Hospital To Hospital program.
They agreed that American specialists would share standards to treat
retarded children, prevent HIV/AIDS perinatal transmission, screen deafness
and prevent sudden death with their Ukrainian colleagues.
They also agreed that, in the middle of November, four children's physicians
from Ukraine would practice in Chicago.
The President's wife also met with representatives of the Chicago Department
of Public Health, the Ukrainian Medical Association of North America (UMANA)
and the Global Medical Foundation, an NGO whose motto is To Serve Mankind.
Members of this foundation render free medical aid to the people of the
Philippines, Egypt, Ecuador, Mexico, Bolivia, Romania and Ukraine. There are
many Ukrainian doctors at the Global Medical Foundation.
At those meetings its participants agreed that, sponsored by the Ukrainian
Medical Association of North America, Ukrainian doctors would be able to
practice in the United States next year.
The UMANA representatives spoke about the Doctor-Net system, an Internet
network of doctors to exchange information on difficult cases of diagnostics
and treatment. In 2006, several UMANA representatives will visit Ukrainian
hospitals. -30- [The Action Ukraine Report (AUR) Monitoring Service]
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK with photo: http://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/data/5_3362.html
==============================================================
11. YUSHCHENKO EXAMINES PROJECTS FOR KYIV'S DEVELOPMENT
8,000-10,000 Snowball trees for famine-genocide memorial
Ukrainian News Agency, Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, October 10, 2005
KYIV - President Viktor Yuschenko has become acquainted with the
conceptual projects for Kyiv's development. The projects were presented
to the President, Premier Yurii Yekhanurov, Chairman of the Verkhovna
Rada Volodymyr Lytvyn and Kyiv Mayor Oleksandr Omelchenko on the
territory of the future museum Art Arsenal.
As Yuschenko told journalists, he has examined the projects and concepts
of Kyiv's development for the next 5-10 years. "A good conceptual way for
Kyiv's development during the next years has been founded. It will be an
interesting city of Kyiv, an interesting project, and I'm confident the
descendants will be thankful for this work," Yuschenko said.
Yuschenko noted that at present, there is 50 million square meters of
housing in Kyiv, and after the projects are carried out, the hosing area
will grow by over 20 million square meters. New territories will be
developed through clearing round 7,000 hectares of industrial zones,
including those in the city's downtown.
It is planned to clear 5,000 hectares through revisions and rational use of
the areas currently occupied by the Defense Ministry. As for the rest, new
territories will be developed in Kyiv.
During their visit to the museum, the visitors paid special attention to the
development of the area from the Paton Bridge alongside of the right bank
to Korchuvate-2.
"These are several micro districts, on the basis of which a conceptual
access to the Dnipro River was designed -how to show Dnipro to the
community and city residents, how to locate [houses, facilities] on these
beautiful historical slopes that today bear the colossal scenery, how to
join them with Dnipro, its bays, lakes, and to bring the single landscape
to its historical views, and how to perform nonviolent location of
architectural forms and reach new functional decisions," Yuschenko said.
It is planned that on October 11, public councils will be formed, which will
take part in discussions of these projects, and also in their conceptual
design.
"The matter concerns tens of billions of dollars in investments, that we
plan to perform in the next 5 years. We were discussing how to perform work
in such a way, so that Dnipro's slopes begin to speak about that glorious
national history, which still has not been brought to millions of people,"
Yuschenko said.
HOLODOMOR MONUMENT-MEMORIAL
He also got acquainted with a project of the monument-memorial to people
who died as a result of Holodomor (famine genocide) in 1932-1933.
Yuschenko noted that in November, it is planned to plant 8,000-10,000 of
snowball trees on slopes near the Slavy Park, which will be turned to east.
One snowball tree will be brought from each village that suffered from the
famine.
"This will be Kyiv's visiting card in the full measure, and the most
important - the deep tribute to our history," the President said.
Apart from this, the President said he had examined a project for the
development of a park near the botanical gardens named after Hryshko and
the Vydubytskyi Cloister.
A total of 14 conceptual projects were presented to the President, including
the general plan for the development of Kyiv and its suburbs before 2020,
the Art Arsenal project, the concept of reconstruction and development of
the territory near the Vydubytske Lake alongside of the Dnipro embankment,
propositions on the creation of a governmental spiritual center in the
Nyzhnia Telychka industrial zone.
Apart from this, projects for the development of industrial zones and the
Halernyi Island were also presented. As Ukrainian News reported, on
October 7, President Viktor Yuschenko set up a council for creating a
culture and art museum in Kyiv called Art Arsenal. -30-
==============================================================
12. FIRST LADY COMMEMORATES FAMINE VICTIMS
Laid a wreath on the monument in Chicago to famine victims
Urges lighting of candles on November 26, Famine Victims' Day
Press office of the President of Ukraine Victor Yushchenko
Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, October 10, 2005
KYIV - Kateryna Yushchenko laid a wreath on the Monument to 1932-1933
Famine Victims near the St. Andrew's Church in Chicago. Then she took part
in a multi-confession requiem to commemorate the victims led by prominent
choir conductor Ivan Trukhly.
In her speech, the First Lady stressed, "The new Ukraine knows that the
Ukrainian community in the U.S. spared no effort to make the world learn
about the Famine." "The U.S. Congress was first to name it genocide," she
noted.
The President's wife told the Ukrainian community in Chicago about a
large-scale state program to commemorate all Famine victims.
It stipulates measures to found a National Memory Institute, pass a law on
political and legal assessment of the Famine, and provide full access to
relevant archives.
The First Lady also urged the Ukrainian community of North America to
commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the tragedy and light candles on
November 26, Famine Victims' Day. "I know the big Ukrainian family will be
united in its grief on that day," she said.
Then Kateryna Yushchenko attended a festival of Kyiv liturgical music in the
St. Andrew's Cultural Center and visited the Ukrainian Museum in Chicago.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK with photo: http://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/data/5_3352.html
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: The Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA) will be assisting
in the famine/holodomor/genocide commemorations in Kyiv during
November of this year. The Federation needs to raise several thousand
dollars for expenses related to the Holodomor Exhibition to be held in
the Ukrainian House. Donations can be made out to the Ukrainian
Federation of America and sent to the Federation at 930 Henrietta
Avenue, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006. Please designate your donation
for the Dr. James Mace Memorial Holodomor Fund. EDITOR
==============================================================
13. "DESTINED TO BE A UKRAINIAN"
James Mace in Ukraine's sorrowing memory
By Mykola ZHULYNSKY, Member of the Ukrainian National
Academy of Sciences, Director of the Taras Shevchenko
Institute of Literature, and Parliamentarian
The Day Weekly Digest in English, #29
Kyiv, Ukraine, Tuesday, September 27, 2005
My heart is breaking as I read the book of reminiscences and tributes, Day
and Eternity of James Mace, published under the editorship of Larysa
Ivshyna.
Just like the two languages of this publication, the American and Ukrainian
halves of Jim's heart have opened up to us thanks to The Day's staff and
editors, who funded the books as a tribute to their prolific colleague and
collaborator.
This book is the newest addition to The Day's unique Library Series, which
has captured the hearts of both our readers and all those who are interested
in Ukraine's history, culture, church affairs, problems of historical
relations between Ukraine and Russia, Ukraine and Poland, and Ukraine
and Europe.
All these topics are covered in such books as Ukraina Incognita, Dvi Rusi,
and Wars and Peace, or Ukrainians and Poles: Brothers/Enemies, Neighbors.
Looking at us from the newsprint-design cover of the book, Day and Eternity
of James Mace, is a somewhat sad face with deep-set, dark eyes - the face
of our Jim whose untimely passing was a blow to many people throughout the
world.
"YOUR DEAD HAVE CHOSEN ME," SAID JAMES MACE
James Mace shared his heart, heating it up on the raging fire of the memory
of the Holodomor. He burst into the frenzied atmosphere of Soviet
authoritarianism and the post-genocidal rape of historical memory, and his
heart could not withstand this superhuman exertion.
James Mace possessed a childlike sensitivity to injustice, and responded
with his heart to the Ukrainian reality, as though this land and people had
raised him to adulthood. He genetically inherited all our tragic grievances
and pain.
"Your dead have chosen me," said James Mace, after listening to hundreds
of sincere and desperate eyewitness accounts from Ukrainians who had
survived the Holodomor of 1932-33 or suffered profound psychological
traumas brought on by the tragic loss of their family and friends.
There is no need to recount how James Mace became committed to the
Ukrainian cause. He wrote an autobiography of sorts, entitled "Facts and
Values: a Personal Intellectual Exploration."
Serving as the introduction to the newly published book, it outlines Mace's
magnificent path of civic and creative achievements in the name of Ukraine.
James recounts how and when this path began with an almost naive sincerity
and without any allusions to his outstanding contribution to the restoration
of historical truth.
The same is true of his many other publications between 1994 and 2004,
including his weekly columns in the English-language digest of The Day.
Together with his curriculum vitae this book features 124 of his articles,
only a small part of his extensive publications list.
Likewise, the people who shared their memories in the book form only a small
percentage of those who remember James Mace and would like to put their
memories on paper.
I MET JIM MACE FIRST IN 1989
I am one of those who did not submit their reminiscences of Jim on time for
publication. I was lucky to meet him in 1989 at the Harvard Ukrainian
Research Institute. At the time James Mace was the staff director of the US
Commission on the Ukraine Famine.
I do not recall our conversation in much detail, but I remember one
important thing. James was determined to visit Ukraine, so we discussed
his possible trip.
I helped put him in touch with some Holodomor researchers, who had
enthusiastically started their own search for archival documents, recorded
witness accounts, and unveiled memorials in villages once obliterated by the
famine.
James established especially close ties with the writer Volodymyr Maniak
and his wife Lidia Kovalenko, who lived in the same apartment building on
Chkalov Street (now Oles Honchar Street) as I did.
Our neighbor was the writer Oleksa Musiyenko, who had compiled a Martyrs'
List of victims of communist tyranny, including Holodomor victims.
At the time Maniak and Kovalenko were compiling a unique book entitled
Famine 1933. The People's Memorial Book, and their apartment was filled to
overflowing with documents, eyewitness accounts, lists of villages wiped out
by famine, etc. James Mace often visited their place.
I have never forgotten the image of James enveloped in a cloud of cigarette
smoke, his head bent over some archival document. Volodia Maniak, who was
always utterly exhausted from overwork, has been gone a long time, killed in
a car accident. His wife Lidia did not survive him for much longer; her
heart was unable to bear the separation from her husband.
A heart attack claimed Oleksa Musiyenko while he worked. Many others who
revealed to the world and to Ukrainians the dark pages of communist
atrocities committed against our people are also gone.
COMMITTEE FOR THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE HOLODOMOR
I recall the March 17, 1993, meeting of the committee to organize the events
commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Holodomor in Ukraine. On February
19, 1993, Ukraine's first president Leonid Kravchuk issued an order "On
Events to Commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Holodomor in Ukraine."
As the organizing committee's chairman (I was deputy prime minister at the
time), I recommended and secured the appointment of the then Illinois State
University Professor James Mace as one of my deputy chairmen.
During his trip to Kyiv in 1990, Ivan Drach and I met with James at the
Ukraina Association in Zolotovoritska Street, where he shared his opinions
concerning the preparations for the commemoration of the victims of the
1932-1933 Holodomor.
CONSIDERED HOLODOMOR PREMEDITATED ACT OF GENOCIDE
He spoke quickly, in English in those days, and the translator could not
keep up with him. Even then he considered the Holodomor a premeditated
act of genocide aimed at the spiritual, moral, linguistic, and cultural
extermination of the Ukrainian nation.
He was arguably the first to stress the need to recognize this manmade
famine as an act of ethnocide.
At that time no Ukrainian historian, not to mention the government, dared to
speak in such an honest manner about the Holodomor of 1933.
That is why James Mace was attracted to the People's Movement of Ukraine
(Rukh), represented by Ivan Drach, Vyacheslav Chornovil, Mykhailo Horyn,
Yevhen Sverstiuk, Yevhen Proniuk, and others.
During his first visit to Ukraine in 1990 James suggested creating an
institution in Kyiv that would be similar to Jerusalem's Yad Vashem - a
museum of memory and mourning with an affiliated research institution.
At the time Mace was a member of the board of the International Institute on
the Holocaust and Genocide in Jerusalem, and his opinions and proposals
were very important to us.
We had a detailed discussion of issues concerning the preparation of the
first international conference dedicated to the 60th anniversary of the
Holodomor. He provided the names of foreign scholars who could
substantiate the fact that an act of genocide had taken place.
He also invited distinguished international experts, in particular the
author of the fundamental study Accounting for Genocide, Helen Fein, as
well as Leon Cooper and Robert Conquest.
I think it was in those days that James Mace began thinking about settling
down in Ukraine. The main reason behind his decision was the fact that the
archives had started to open up, although this was a slow process and the
archives were not open to everybody, just trusted, official researchers.
James was counting on this, for it was his dream to continue and expand his
search for the causes and consequences of this national catastrophe.
First off, he wanted to organize the Ukrainian translation and publication
(in Ukraine) of the three-volume compilation of Holodomor eyewitness
accounts that had been published by the US Congress.
As staff director of the US Commission on the Ukraine Famine, James Mace
brought the first copies of these eyewitness accounts to Ukraine. Everyone
who spoke with James was simply shell-shocked by these accounts.
At the time James Mace knew more about the Holodomor than anyone else
and could discuss this horrible tragedy within the context of numerous
phenomena and processes in the USSR.
Apart from the three volumes of famine survivors' accounts, he also brought
the first volume of studies containing archival materials discovered in the
West, where they were smuggled out of Ukraine during World War II.
James Mace lacked documentary evidence from Soviet archives, because
access was next to impossible for him. However, he knew where to look, as he
had accumulated a tremendous amount of experience while working with the
English historian Robert Conquest on a project to study the Ukrainian
Holodomor at the Harvard Ukrainian Studies Institute.
We all know the role James played in the publication of Conquest's book on
the Ukrainian famine, Harvest of Sorrow. James Mace was an extraordinarily
humble individual, not inclined to publicly acknowledge his great service to
Ukraine.
James Mace participated in the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of
the Holodomor as the premier authority on the causes and consequences of
the famine-genocide and political reprisals in general.
I must admit that we tried to capitalize on this fact, always pointing to
his decisive role in compelling the US Congressional and Presidential
Commission to provide a well-grounded answer to the key questions of
whether there indeed was a famine in Ukraine in 1932-33 and what it was
like.
James was a godsend to us at a time when the Communist Party of Ukraine
was starting to inch toward official recognition of this famine, but only as
the result of a mistaken policy adopted by Stalin and his associates. The
localauthorities sensed this "thaw" in the party's policy, which was
evidenced
by two events that took place with the participation of James Mace.
ATTEMPT TO UNVEIL MONUMENTS TO HOLODOMOR
The first was an attempt to unveil a monument to Holodomor victims on the
initiative of the Ukrainian association Memorial, which was then headed by
Volodymyr Maniak, in a village outside Uman that had been wiped out during
the famine.
Local party activists refused to issue permission for the unveiling
ceremony, which is why we decided to intimidate them by involving an
American scholar.
Yet even the presence of a foreigner did nothing to break the authorities'
resistance to our attempts to pay tribute to the Holodomor victims. So we
held a solemn meeting at a local site of mass burials.
The second event was the unveiling on September 11, 1993, of the Mound of
Sorrow (Kurhan Skorboty) near Mharsk Monastery. A rainy squall and gusts
of cold wind shook the church bells, sending shivers through the freezing
soldiers standing there with evergreen and flower wreaths, forcing the choir
singers to huddle closer together and the kobzars rushing to pack their
banduras.
Borys Oliynyk delivered an emotional and exalted speech. He had made
tremendous efforts to ensure that this Mound of Sorrow would rise above the
land of Poltava and its sorrowful bells would awaken our memory.
In a passionate and emotional speech Yuri Shymko, the Canadian president
of the World Congress of Free Ukrainians, lashed out against the communist
regime.
James Mace spoke slowly and his brief speech resonated with a profound
sense of this horrible tragedy. It seemed to me that when James spoke, the
wind subsided and the people began listening more attentively.
He stood there, chilled to the bone, in a white overcoat, like a lone dove
that had miraculously descended on this sea of people black with sorrow.
He stood there and cried. Or maybe it was rain streaming down his cheeks.
Who can tell now with any certainty when the process of becoming a Ukrainian
was completed in the consciousness of this American?
JAMES TOOK UP THIS TRAGEDY AS A CHALLENGE TO DESTINY
It was a process not only of accumulating knowledge about the Ukrainian
Holodomor and Ukrainian history, but also becoming emotionally and
psychologically attached to the millions of its innocent victims.
James took up this tragedy as a challenge to destiny, and it immersed his
sensitive, compassionate soul in the dark abyss of people's memory, for so
long chained and contained by official bans.
I read all of his articles and weekly reactions to various events, which
were carried by The Day, and was always amazed by his sensitive,
emotionally acute, and politically expert response to this unsettled world
beset with problems.
It is a sort of autobiography of his public commiseration with the fate of
Ukraine and the world, which further emphasizes his true greatness and
significance for Ukraine. It seems to me that he kept more in his heart than
he put on paper.
Still, I was impressed by how much he managed to write. After all, his
tireless efforts were phenomenal, and I must bow my head in gratitude to his
wife, the journalist and writer Natalia Dziubenko-Mace, who helped him to
reveal himself to the people through his writing.
Although we did not see it, she always watched with concern as he burned up
on the inside, devoured by the fire of empathy and constant worries about
the fate of Ukraine, which became his home.
Certainly, we must name a street in his honor or dedicate a monument to him,
but will such immortalization be tribute enough to his selfless devotion and
passionate love for his new homeland?
SEPTEMBER 12, 1993, DAY OF SORROW AND MEMORY
Ivan Drach and I drew up plans to create a monument to the victims of the
Holodomor. By this time James Mace had already moved to Kyiv and was
actively participating in the work of organizing committee.
Time was running out, and by September 1993 we had already planned the
Days of Sorrow and Memory for Holodomor Victims and the closing events
that were to take place in Kyiv on September 12.
Clearly, this commemoration would have been incomplete without a memorial.
The artist and sculptor Vasyl Perevalsky submitted a design. We reviewed it
and talked about how we could build this monument and where.
I look at the photo on the back jacket of the book, Day and Eternity of
James Mace: an image of a mourning mother symbolizing Ukraine victimized
by famine. On her chest is a symbolic cross: a child with his arms
outstretched. James especially liked this monument.
Only God knows how we managed to build it so quickly and erect it in a
decent spot without any bureaucratic holdups.
On September 12, 1993, this monument on St. Michael's Square was
consecrated by representatives of every confession in Ukraine, and
delegations from all parts of the country brought handfuls of chornozem,
Ukraine's fertile topsoil.
The unveiling ceremony was attended by President Leonid Kravchuk,
Parliamentary Speaker Ivan Pliushch, and Prime Minister Leonid Kuchma.
James Mace was among them, feeling very anxious and worried.
JAMES MACE HAD MANY DREAMS
Many plans were afoot in those days. James Mace nurtured the idea of
creating a genocide institute. He eventually headed such an institution,
but, unfortunately, only on a voluntary basis.
We tried to find a place for a memorial to commemorate the victims of the
Holodomor and political reprisals. We contemplated restoring cemeteries in
lost villages, marking burial sites, and compiling a register of all famine
victims.
We also thought of a way to commemorate all the churches that were
destroyed throughout Ukraine, the peasant families that had been cut down
by the scythe of the Holodomor, and the lost folk traditions, and to
rekindle the spiritual centers that had been extinguished by this national
catastrophe.
James Mace had many dreams. He was a unique American whose heart,
sensitive to other people's pain and suffering, became overwhelmed with
concern for Ukraine's destiny. -30-
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINK: http://www.day.kiev.ua/149181/
PHOTO: September 12, 1993, St. Michael's Square in Kyiv. Commemoration
of Famine Victims of the 1932-33 Holodomor. In photo: Mykola Zhulynsky,
Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine and Chairman of the Committee to
Organize a series of events commemorating the 60th Anniversary of the
Holodomor in Ukraine, and Professor James Mace, Deputy Chairman of
the Organizing Committee. Photo by Oleksa Ivanhchenko
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOOTNOTE: The new book, " Day and Eternity of James Mace"
published by The Day in Kyiv, in English or in Ukrainian, is available
from the www.ArtUkraine.com Information Service. If you are
interesting in finding out how to order the new book please send an
e-mail to ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net. EDITOR
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE: The Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA) will be assisting
in the famine/holodomor/genocide commemorations in Kyiv during
November of this year. The Federation needs to raise several thousand
dollars for expenses related to the Holodomor Exhibition to be held in
the Ukrainian House. Donations can be made out to the Ukrainian
Federation of America and sent to the Federation at 930 Henrietta
Avenue, Huntingdon Valley, PA 19006. Please designate your donation
for the Dr. James Mace Memorial Holodomor Fund. EDITOR
==============================================================
14. RUSSIA WEIGHS WHAT TO DO WITH LENIN'S BODY
Still find Lenin on statues, murals and placques in Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan
By C. J. Chivers in Moscow, The New York Times
New York, New York, Sunday, October 5, 2005
MOSCOW, Oct. 4 - For eight decades he has been lying in state on public
display, a cadaver in a succession of dark suits, encased in a glass box
beside a walkway in the basement of his granite mausoleum. Many who
revere him say he is at peace, the leader in repose beneath the lights.
Others think he just looks macabre.
Lenin's mausoleum still attracts visitors and passers-by. A debate over
burying his body has been reopened.
Time has been unkind to Lenin, whose remains here in Red Square are said
to sprout occasional fungi, and whose ideology and party long ago fell to
ruins. Now the inevitable question has returned. Should his body be moved?
Revisiting a proposal that thwarted Boris N. Yeltsin, who faced down tanks
but in his time as president could not persuade Russians to remove the
Soviet Union's founder from his place of honor, a senior aide to President
Vladimir V. Putin raised the matter last week, saying it was time to bury
the man.
"Our country has been shaken by strife, but only a few people were held
accountable for that in our lifetime," said the aide, Georgi Poltavchenko.
"I do not think it is fair that those who initiated the strife remain in the
center of our state near the Kremlin."
In the unending debate about what exactly the new Russia is, the subject of
Lenin resembles a Rorschach inkblot test. People project their views of
their state onto him and see what they wish. And so as Mr. Poltavchenko's
suggestion has ignited fresh public sparring over Lenin's place, both in
history and in the grave, the dispute has been implicitly bizarre and a
window into the state of civil society here.
First came a rush to second the idea, from figures including Nikita
Mikhalkov, a prominent film director and chairman of the Russian Cultural
Foundation, who shares Mr. Poltavchenko's distaste for the relic.
"Vast funds are being squandered on a pagan show," Mr. Mikhalkov told
Russian journalists, saying that Lenin himself wished to be buried beside
his mother in St. Petersburg. "If we advocate Christian ideals, we must
fulfill the will of the deceased."
Then came the backlash. Gennadi I. Zyuganov, leader of Russia's remnant
of the Communist Party, lashed out at proponents of moving the remains,
insisting that Lenin had no wish to be buried elsewhere.
He also made a pre-emptive strike against any suggestion of relocating other
deceased Soviet leaders, who are buried under a lawn behind Lenin's
mausoleum. There, along the Kremlin wall, are the remains of Yuri V.
Andropov, Leonid I. Brezhnev and Konstantin U. Chernenko, as well as
those of Stalin and Feliks Dzerzhinsky, founder of the Soviet secret police.
At a news conference on Friday, Mr. Zyuganov described those who would
dare move those Communist figures as people "who do not know the
country's history and stretch out their dirty hands and muddy ideas to the
national necropolis."
His position has only hardened. "Raising this issue smells of provocation
and illiteracy," Mr. Zyuganov said Tuesday in a telephone interview, during
which he accused President Putin of hiding behind an aide to test the idea
in public. "It seems unlikely that Poltavchenko would come out with a
proposal of such desecration of Red Square without approval from the highest
power."
Lenin, who led the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917, died in 1924 at the age of
53. A near theology rose around him in the ensuing decades.
Depending on who is speaking about him now, he is either a hero or a beast,
a gifted revolutionary or a syphilitic mass murderer. (By some accounts he
died not of strokes, the official cause of death, but of an advanced case of
sexually transmitted disease.)
Some still see in him the architect of a grand and daring social experiment.
Others describe an opportunist who ushered vicious cronies to power,
resulting in a totalitarian police state.
"It is time to get rid of this horrible mummy," said Valeriya Novodvorskaya,
head of the Democratic Union, a small reform party. "One cannot talk about
any kind of democracy or civilization in Russia when Lenin is still in the
country's main square." She added: "I would not care even if he were thrown
on a garbage heap."
Others propose moving Lenin on religious grounds, combining words and ideas
rarely associated with the man. Setting aside the matter of Lenin's atheism,
Svetlana Orlova, a deputy speaker of the upper house of Parliament, told the
Interfax news agency on Tuesday that his followers should consider "Lenin's
soul, which has been searching for peace."
Informal polls conducted Monday by the radio station Ekho Moskvy found that
65 percent of people who called in, and 75 percent of people who contacted
the station via the Internet, said that not just Lenin but all of the Soviet
figures should be evicted from Red Square.
But the polls were hardly scientific, and for every Ekho Moskvy listener
there often seems to be another Russian who still believes. "The name of
Lenin is quite sacred," said Nikolai Kishin, 51, a clerk from the Siberian
city of Irkutsk who emerged from the mausoleum on Tuesday, having paid his
respects.
Such opposing views cannot be bridged any time soon, but on one point all
agree: Lenin, the central symbol of the Soviet period, has survived Russia's
transition and found an enduring place in public life.
His once ubiquitous statues may have mostly been torn down in Eastern
Europe, but they scowl at passers-by from the Russian Pacific to the Baltic,
and it is not hard to find him on pedestals, murals or plaques in nations
that have made great show of shaking free from Moscow's reach, including
Kyrgyzstan and Ukraine.
He loiters even in Grozny, the destroyed capital of Chechnya, the region in
southern Russia where separatists have waged war against Moscow for more
than a decade. While he is loved by a dwindling number of followers and
hated by many, he is tolerated for reasons that mix nostalgia, resignation,
political expediency and ennui.
Where Mr. Putin stands is now the central remaining question of Lenin's
future address.
Mr. Putin said in 2001 that he did not want to upset the civic order by
moving the founder's remains. "Many people in this country associate their
lives with the name of Lenin," he said. "To take Lenin out and bury him
would say to them that they have worshiped false values, that their lives
were lived in vain."
Dmitri Peskov, a spokesman for Mr. Putin, said Tuesday that the president's
position was unchanged and that he was not allied with Mr. Poltavchenko and
others who have embraced his idea. "He is not supporting those who are
insisting on removing the body immediately," Mr. Peskov said.
But Ms. Novodvorskaya and Mr. Zyuganov, two politicians who agree on
almost nothing, both say the president is testing the reaction.
Ms. Novodvorskaya suggested that the president could find it useful, at a
time when he is being portrayed as an autocrat, to lead a catharsis of the
Lenin phenomenon. "He is trying to be taken as a democrat in the eyes of the
West," she said. "He is also very fond of playing his comedies of national
reconciliation."
No matter what Mr. Putin decides, there already are indications that time
may ultimately do what no politician has yet achieved. The youngest Russian
adults barely recall the Communist times, and some show little interest in
looking back.
"Lenin," mused Natasha Zakharova, 23, as she walked off Red Square on
Tuesday, admitting that she was not quite sure whose body she had just seen.
"Was he a Communist?" -30- [Action Ukraine Report Monitoring]
==============================================================
15. PARIS FASHION TRENDS FAVOR ROMANCE
Every designer has a peasant blouse, Jean Paul Gaultier looked to Ukraine
Carol Mongo, AP Worldstream, Paris, France, Monday, Oct 10, 2005
PARIS - The Paris pret-a-porter shows that closed this week left clear
indicators for how women should dress for spring-summer 2006: There was
an air of romanticism and dignity in nearly every collection.
Attendance at every catwalk show was packed to the rafters - in contrast to
past seasons, where many seats were left vacant. Many feel that as designers
are creating pretty, romantic and reasonable clothes for "real" women,
interest is on the rise.
Nearly every designer had some version of the peasant blouse, often worn
off the shoulders.
Jean Paul Gaultier looked to the Ukraine, etching his blouses with
needlepoint designs and slipping a vest on top.
Phoebe Philo at Chloe cut hers from English eyelet embroidered cotton, while
Andrew Gn splashed his vibrant Pucci-styled prints on organza blouses belted
over a pencil slim skirt.
Look for the return of the shirtwaist dress. Nearly everyone had a version
of this garment, which buttons down the front from a shirt collar and is
belted at the waist.
At Chanel, they were loose-fitting and splashed with an oversized
houndstooth check in black and white. At Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs sent out
a double-breasted dress in mocha cotton with epaulets and patch pockets.
Smock dresses, tent dresses and loose-fitting shifts will be a cool,
comfortable way to get through the summer in style. They can be as simple
as an English embroidered cotton smock worn over frilly little shorts from
Chloe, or as easy as the loose-fitting flesh-tone sheaths with a touch of
black lace shown at Christian Dior.
Ruffles, flounces and frills were everywhere. They were on the bottom of a
silk taffeta trench coat in Sonia Rykiel's collection, around the neck and
down the front of YSL's shirts under matador bolero jackets, gracefully
cascading down from the hips of Antonio Marras' sumptuous ankle-length
floral gowns at Kenzo, and at the back of the pinstriped redingote jackets
shown at Marithe & Francois Girbaud.
Designers including Valentino and Elie Saab featured soft, floral silk
organza or georgette dresses cut in ruffled tiers cascading down from a
small empire waist or bra top.
After years of hip-hugger skirts and pants, waists are back on the rise.
Even when stovepipe pants are low, they are now cut about two inches below
the waist. The newest look in low waist lines is a cotton suit with a long
torso.
At Nina Ricci and Stella McCartney, low-riding dirndl skirts were shown with
hip-length curvy jackets showing just a sliver of skin.
Also making a comeback were skirts with cummerbund waistlines like those
below-the-knee pencil-thin skirts worn with waist-length tuxedo jackets at
YSL, and dirndl or gathered skirts worn under curvy jackets like those from
Lagerfeld Gallery.
Flower prints, particularly in the faded chartreuse and cranberry tones
found in 1950s draperies, will also be very popular next summer. Look for
mixtures of these prints like those put together in the multiple layered
ruffled dresses at Kenzo, and the soft georgette skirts worn with
contrasting embroidered waist-length jackets at Christian Lacroix.
In a word, the key to getting through next summer in style is romance. Think
pretty, be sweet. -30- [The Actin Ukraine Report Monitoring Service]
==============================================================
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collection of documents, reports and presentations presented by its business
units and organizations. All downloads are grouped by categories:
Marketing; Economic Country Reports; Presentations; Ukrainian Equity Guide;
Monthly Macroeconomic Situation Reports (Romania, Bulgaria, Ukraine).
LINK: http://www.sigmableyzer.com/index.php?action=downloads
"UKRAINE - A COUNTY OF NEW OPPORTUNITIES"
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"WELCOME TO UKRAINE" & "NARODNE MYSTETSTVO" MAGAZINES
UKRAINIAN MAGAZINES: For information on how to subscribe to the
"Welcome to Ukraine" magazine in English, published four times a year
and/or to the Ukrainian Folk Art magazine "Narodne Mystetstvo" in
Ukrainian, published two times a year, please send an e-mail to:
ArtUkraine.com@starpower.net.
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"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT- AUR" - SPONSORS
"Working to Secure & Enhance Ukraine's Democratic Future"
1. THE BLEYZER FOUNDATION, Dr. Edilberto Segura, Chairman;
Victor Gekker, Executive Director, Kyiv, Ukraine; Washington, D.C.,
http://www.bleyzerfoundation.com.
2. KIEV-ATLANTIC GROUP, David and Tamara Sweere, Daniel
Sweere, Kyiv and Myronivka, Ukraine, 380 44 298 7275 in Kyiv,
kau@ukrnet.net
3. ESTRON CORPORATION, Grain Export Terminal Facility &
Oilseed Crushing Plant, Ilvichevsk, Ukraine
4. Law firm UKRAINIAN LEGAL GROUP, Irina Paliashvili, President;
Kiev and Washington, general@rulg.com, www.rulg.com.
5. BAHRIANY FOUNDATION, INC., Dr. Anatol Lysyj, Chairman,
Minneapolis, Minnesota
6. VOLIA SOFTWARE, Software to Fit Your Business, Source your
IT work in Ukraine. Contact: Yuriy Sivitsky, Vice President, Marketing,
Kyiv, Ukraine, yuriy.sivitsky@softline.kiev.ua; Volia Software website:
http://www.volia-software.com/ or Bill Hunter, CEO Volia Software,
Houston, TX 77024; bill.hunter@volia-software.com.
7. ODUM- Association of American Youth of Ukrainian Descent,
Minnesota Chapter, Natalia Yarr, Chairperson
8. UKRAINIAN FEDERATION OF AMERICA (UFA), Zenia Chernyk,
Chairperson; Vera M. Andryczyk, President; Huntingdon Valley,
Pennsylvania
9. UKRAINE-U.S. BUSINESS COUNCIL, Washington, D.C.,
Dr. Susanne Lotarski, President/CEO; E. Morgan Williams,
SigmaBleyzer, Chairman, Executive Committee, Board of Directors;
John Stephens, Cape Point Capital, Secretary/Treasurer
10. UKRAINIAN AMERICAN COORDINATING COUNCIL (UACC),
Ihor Gawdiak, President, Washington, D.C., New York, New York
11. U.S.-UKRAINE FOUNDATION (USUF), Nadia Komarnyckyj
McConnell, President; John Kun, Vice President/COO; Vera
Andruskiw, CPP Wash Project Director, Washington, D.C.; Markian
Bilynskyj, VP/Director of Field Operations; Marta Kolomayets, CPP
Kyiv Project Director, Kyiv, Ukraine. Web: http://www.USUkraine.org
12. WJ Grain, Kyiv, Ukraine, David Holpert, Chief Financial Officer,
Chicago, Illinois.
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"THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT - AUR" is an in-depth, private,
independent, not-for- profit news and analysis international newsletter,
produced as a free public service by the non-profit www.ArtUkraine.com
Information Service (ARTUIS) and The Action Ukraine Report Monitoring
Service The report is distributed in the public's interesting around the
world FREE of charge. Additional readers are always welcome.
If you would like to read "THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT- AUR"
please send your name, country of residence, and e-mail contact
information to morganw@patriot.net. Additional names are welcome. If
you do not wish to read "THE ACTION UKRAINE REPORT" around five
times per week, let us know by e-mail to morganw@patriot.net. If you
are receiving more than one copy please contact us and again please
contact us immediately if you do not wish to receive this Report.
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PUBLISHER AND EDITOR - AUR
Mr. E. Morgan Williams, Director, Government Affairs
Washington Office, SigmaBleyzer Private Equity Investment Group
P.O. Box 2607, Washington, D.C. 20013, Tel: 202 437 4707
Mobile in Kyiv: 8 050 689 2874
mwilliams@SigmaBleyzer.com; www.SigmaBleyzer.com
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Director, Ukrainian Federation of America (UFA)
Coordinator, Action Ukraine Coalition (AUC)
Senior Advisor, U.S.-Ukraine Foundation (USUF)
Chairman, Executive Committee, Ukraine-U.S. Business Council
Publisher, Ukraine Information Website, www.ArtUkraine.com
Member, International Ukrainian Holodomor Committee
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Power Corrupts and Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.
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