EDITORIAL: The 14th anniversary (08/21/05)

EDITORIAL

The 14th anniversary

We're just days away from Ukrainian Independence Day - the 14th anniversary of the historic date of August 24, 1991, when the Verkhovna Rada of the Ukrainian SSR, acting in the wake of the failed coup in Moscow, voted overwhelmingly to adopt the Act of Declaration of the Independence of Ukraine. It was an extraordinary day on which the Communist Party-dominated Parliament voted 321-2, with six abstentions, for an act that proclaimed "the creation of an independent Ukrainian state - Ukraine."

It was, we wrote, Ukraine's crossing of the Rubicon as the country's leaders chose the path toward true independence. The people of Ukraine were, to put it mildly, surprised by the events of August 24, 1991. But they reacted immediately to this concrete manifestation of the Ukrainian nation's centuries-old dream of freedom and independence with celebrations in the streets.

In 2004 Ukraine experienced another unprecedented historic event: the Orange Revolution. This time, however, it was the people of Ukraine who demonstrated their will and their power. They took to the streets to demand a free and fair presidential election; to demand that their votes be counted and, moreover, that they be properly counted.

Just as after the proclamation of Ukraine's independence in 1991 many donned the blue and yellow of the national flag of Ukraine, disguising themselves as patriots of the newly independent state, today many have clothed themselves in the orange color of the revolution of 2004. But the promises of the Orange Revolution are more profound and demand a deeper commitment. And that, perhaps, is why the Orange Revolution at times seems to be stalled; that the Orange blossoms seem to be fading.

Many observers of the scene in Ukraine decry the lack of progress under the new administration; many say that President Viktor Yushchenko and his team have squandered valuable opportunities and wasted precious time. But it must be recalled that, as the saying goes, big ships turn slowly. The expectations after the Orange Revolution were so large and for the most part unrealistic when they anticipated quick transformations and solutions. After all, the task of turning Ukraine's ship of state around is no simple matter.

All shortcomings and disappointments aside, however, the ship appears to be headed mainly in the right direction. And that, in itself, is hugely positive.

We agree with Prof. Michael McFaul who told our Kyiv correspondent that the Orange Revolution "was a seminal event in the history of Ukraine that will be remembered as one of the great events to help make the nation and state of Ukraine." We feel that the revolution fundamentally changed the political landscape in Ukraine and was yet another unalterable step toward Ukraine's development as a full-fledged democratic state.

And thus, as we mark the 14th anniversary of Ukraine's restored independence, we celebrate not only the blue and yellow, but the orange as well. And we recall the promises of the maidan that, we believe, will yet be fulfilled.

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