LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (08/28/05)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Motyl's analysis one of the best

Dear Editor:

Prof. Alexander Motyl's analysis, "Reassessing Ukraine, or why the big picture matters" (August 14), is one of the best commentaries on developments in Ukraine that I have read recently.

Some of Ukraine's friends have been suffering from mood swings, from euphoria engendered by the Orange Revolution and President Viktor Yushchenko's stirring inaugural address on the "maidan" to disallusionment with the Ukrainian government's performance and with the behavior of some of its members and others in the Yushchenko entourage.

Prof. Motyl deserves our thanks for putting everything into perspective.

Ukraine needs our moral support as it undertakes what will be a long and difficult transformation to a genuine democracy and market economy. Patience must be our watchword.

Richard W. Murphy
Bethesda, Md.

The letter-writer is senior associate, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

Motyl's optimism is much-needed

Dear Editor:

In The Ukrainian Weekly, on August 14, Prof. Alexander J. Motyl wrote an article titled: "Analysis: Reassessing Ukraine, or why the big picture matters."

His essay, in contrast to most writings and opinions on the same or similar subject matter by political or economic analysts (including Westerners such as Anders Aslund from the Carnegie Endowment), shows a healthy commonsensical - and much-needed and uplifting - optimism in regard to the present and future democratic transformation of Ukraine.

To understand Ukraine politically in the summer of 2005 - a little more then seven months since the Orange Revolution - Prof. Motyl leads the reader through his critical reassessment of the problems that faced and still face the young Ukrainian democratic establishment.

He points out that Ukraine suffered a multitude of tragic and catastrophic events in the 20th century, and that it entered into an independent state in 1991 with its post-colonial and post-Soviet oppressive burdens. Prof. Motyl writes: "Ukraine consisted of territory, a population and bureaucrats, but lacked the institutions that transform a territory, population and bureaucrats into a functioning economy, society and state." As the first president of Ukraine, Leonid Kravchuk, stated: "Mayemo to scho mayemo" (We have what we have).

Only the last 14 years of independence were conducive to the development of political institutions needed for the transformation of Ukraine into a Western-style state with civil society and the rule of law, which culminated and beautifully expressed itself in the Orange Revolution in November-December 2004. Prof. Motyl notes that "2004 may come to represent a rupture with the past and a breakthrough to a new future for Ukraine's intellectuals, artists and youth."

In regard to Ukraine's politicians' and policy-makers' behavior and doings, and the relationship between journalists and the government, Prof. Motyl sees little difference between them and their ilk in other Western countries. Also, the phenomenon of oligarchs, nepotism and cronyism, which is new to Ukraine, existed and still exists in many countries, including the United States.

It easy for some Western analysts to criticize the efforts, struggles and mistakes of the young Ukrainian economic and political elite, who forgot that it took their democracies many "formative generational experiences" to arrive where they are now, and Prof. Motyl suggests that we "treat the extremist language of analysis ... with an enormous grain of salt."

Ukrainian society is entering the period of the great relearning, when new sets of values or ethics in government, and society as a whole, will emerge.

Prof. Motyl predicts a bright future for Ukraine; we hope that his prophecy will come true.

Myroslaw Burbelo, M.D.
Westerly, R.I.

Famine-Genocide story must be told

Dear Editor:

It is unbelievable that the Ukrainian government cannot find a place for the Holodomor-Genocide museum in Kyiv. (See The Weekly, July 17.) For 72 years we kept the secret of our loved ones who perished so unjustly in 1932-1933.

The Holodomor was political repression of our nation. Our ancestors died during the Holodomor, Stalin's man-made genocidal famine. Our loved ones who perished by the excruciating torture of starvation are crying in their mass graves to be recognized as descent, honest, hard-working people.

I am a survivor and a witness of the atrocities that were committed against my people. I was 5-6 years old when my parents were arrested and sent to Siberia to die there. My sister died of starvation. My brother was a political prisoner sentenced for three years and sent to Siberia with 3,000 other students from his university. Over 10 million Ukrainians died a slow, agonizing death. We cannot forget - this is our history.

I survived by wandering in the street and begging.

Today, finally, we can speak openly. We must be positive about our motherland. At the same time, there is no more intimidation, no falsification of our history. To be recognized we have to work hard in exposing and broadcasting our suffering and humiliation under the Soviets.

Eugenia Dallas
Los Angeles

HURI suggestion: take a look online

Dear Editor:

We at the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute appreciate the efforts of Taras Kuzio and Orest Deychakiwsky (August 7) to highlight those individuals and institutions contributing to a better understanding of modern-day Ukraine.

Perhaps the authors were unaware, however, of the active role of HURI in coordinating recent programs and activities relevant to current Ukrainian history and politics.

We refer you and your readers to: http://www.huri.harvard.edu/husi.html and http://www.huri.harvard.edu/newsarchives.html.

Tymish Holowinsky
Cambridge, Mass.

The letter-writer is executive director of the Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard University.

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