Odesa town hall meeting marred by politicians' squabble (03/29/98)

Odesa town hall meeting marred by politicians' squabble

by Khristina Lew
Ukrainian Congress Committee of America

ODESA - Nearly 4,500 young people waited for more than an hour in the Palace of Sport here on March 17 while representatives of the Odesa City Council and Ruslan Bodelan, head of the Odesa Oblast Council, squabbled over who would address the town hall meeting organized by the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America's Focus: Ukraine program.

The upcoming elections to Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada have charged the political atmosphere in the seaport city of Odesa, pitting supporters of Odesa Mayor Eduard Hurvits against supporters of Mr. Bodelan.

Mr. Bodelan arrived at the town hall meeting prepared to deliver a separate address to the gathering. Focus: Ukraine Project Director Tamara Gallo explained to Mr. Bodelan that no one candidate was permitted to address the town hall meeting separately or be given preference, rather, all candidates must participate in the program as equals with other representatives of political parties and blocs.

Mr. Bodelan refused to participate in the group event, claiming that, as head of the Odesa Oblast Council, which assisted in organizing the Chervona Ruta Music Festival held in conjunction with the town hall meeting, he had a right to receive preferential treatment and should address the audience separately.

Representatives of the Odesa City Council, who also claimed to have assisted in organizing the music festival and town hall meeting, then joined the fray, insisting that Mr. Bodelan not be permitted to address the gathering. An hour of heated discussion passed before Mr. Bodelan stormed out of the Palace of Sport, taking with him the security guards he had provided to protect the stage and sound equipment.

As the eight representatives of political parties and blocs prepared to ascend the stage to begin the meeting, Chervona Ruta personnel scrambled to provide security. They convinced a contingent of navy cadets, who had come to attend the concert, to serve as security guards.

"Ruslan Bodelan felt that as head of the Odesa Oblast Council he had a right to address our town hall meeting separately. The Focus: Ukraine program is non-partisan and cannot give special preference to any one candidate or political party, no matter who that may be," explained Ms. Gallo.

The meeting took place with no further interruptions. Political parties and blocs represented included: the Labor Party and Liberal Party - Together! bloc, All-Ukrainian Party in Defense of the Motherland, Bloc of Democratic Parties - NEP, European Choice of Ukraine bloc, National Front, Social-Liberal Union bloc, National Democratic Party and the Reform and Order Party.

The final town hall meeting of the Focus: Ukraine program was scheduled to take place in the Ukrainian capital on March 27. Financial support for the final three meetings, which include Kyiv, Odesa and a March 15 town hall meeting held in Mykolaiv, was provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development through The Eurasia Foundation, which on March 16, awarded the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America an additional grant of $17,681 for the Focus: Ukraine program.

On March 23 Focus: Ukraine launched its 10-part MTV-style voter education television series, which aired on Ukrainian television channels UT 1 and UT 2 through March 28. The television series combined video footage from town hall meetings with footage from the Chervona Ruta Music Festival, and incorporates interviews with young voters and contemporary Ukrainian singers.