EDITORIAL: 15th anniversary of sovereignty declaration (07/17/05)

EDITORIAL

15th anniversary of sovereignty declaration

Fifteen years ago, on July 16, 1990, we were witness to the Ukrainian Parliament's adoption of the Declaration on State Sovereignty of Ukraine, a historic document that proclaimed the primacy of Ukrainian laws over those of the Soviet Union and underlined that the people of Ukraine, "citizens of the republic of all nationalities," were the sole source of power and authority in the Ukrainian republic.

The vote in the Parliament, too, was historic: 355 votes for and only four opposed. And that was in a Parliament (then known as the Supreme Soviet of the Ukrainian SSR) where the Communists still held the majority.

The document stated that henceforth Ukraine would control its own affairs in all spheres of activity: the economy, the environment, international relations, the military and culture. It stated also that the Ukrainian SSR exercises authority on all of its territory and proclaimed the inviolability of Ukraine's borders. Most notably, in its first section, titled "Self-Determination of the Ukrainian Nation," the declaration stated that "The Ukrainian SSR, as a sovereign national state, develops within existing boundaries on the basis of the realization of the Ukrainian nation's inalienable right to self-determination."

Furthermore, the declaration underscored that it would serve as the basis for a new constitution and laws of Ukraine, and that its principles are to be "utilized in the preparation of a new union agreement." As well, the document proclaimed Ukraine a non-nuclear state that would not accept, produce or procure nuclear weapons.

The title and sections of the document were approved, and debated, over the span of several days, beginning on July 11 when the declaration's title was approved. Ultimately, on July 16, the deputies voted on the declaration in its entirety.

The adoption of the Declaration on State Sovereignty of Ukraine, following a morning roll call vote in the Parliament, was greeted by the people's deputies with a standing ovation and tumultuous applause. Later that day, the deputies voted 339-5 to proclaim July 16 a national holiday in Ukraine. Deputy Henrikh Altunian noted that the declaration was the first step toward the freedom of the people of Ukraine and called on his fellow deputies to observe a moment of silence for Ukraine's fallen heroes - from Hetman Petro Konashevych Sahaidachny to poet and human rights advocate Vasyl Stus - who had fought for decades for Ukraine's freedom.

There was rejoicing on the streets of Kyiv after the historic vote. "As the deputies made their way out of the building for lunch, each and every one of them was greeted with flowers and rounds of applause," reported Stanislav Lazebnyk, the first deputy chairman of the board of the Ukraina Society, known as the Association for Cultural Relations with Ukrainians Abroad.

It was clear at the time that the adoption of the Declaration on State Sovereignty of Ukraine was the result of democratic processes then roiling and unraveling the USSR. This newspaper opined that the document could be compared to the Third Universal of 1917, (whereby the Ukrainian Central Rada proclaimed the Ukrainian National Republic, and defined its territory and its federal relationship with Russia) which led to the Rada's Fourth Universal and the proclamation of independent Ukrainian statehood. "This declaration, too, may be the crucial step toward complete independence of Ukraine," we wrote.

Indeed, the national holiday known as Sovereignty Day would soon be eclipsed. On August 24, 1991 - a year, a month, a week and a day after Ukraine demonstrated for all the world to see that Ukraine, and no one else, would determine its own destiny - came the proclamation of Ukraine's independence - the fulfillment of a dream cherished by generations of Ukrainians.

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