NEWSBRIEFS

Famine recalled at Notre Dame

PARIS - Within the framework of events to commemorate the 1932-1933 Famine-Genocide, a memorial service was held at the Notre Dame de Paris, in which priests of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Church and the Notre Dame de Paris participated, it was reported on November 14. The service was attended by Ukrainian First Lady Kateryna Yushchenko and about 2,000 public, political, religious figures and foreign diplomats accredited in France. (Ukrinform)

Yushchenko visits UNESCO

PARIS - President Viktor Yushchenko together with his wife, Kateryna, participated in the presentation of the exhibition "Ukraine to the World," held at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris, it was reported on November 16. The exhibition is dedicated to the civilization of Trypillia. The president said that this small exposition is to usher in a series of exhibitions, dubbed "Ukraine to the World" that will enable other nations to discover Ukraine and, maybe, even one's inner self. In accordance with Mr. Yushchenko's agreement with French President Jacques Chirac, in 2006 France will host an enlarged exhibition of Trypillian culture with over 100 artifacts. UNESCO Director General Koichiro Matsuura also participated in the event. He stressed in his speech that UNESCO is ready to cooperate with Ukraine in the cultural sector, including next year's exhibition. President Yushchenko also spoke at a plenary session dedicated to the 60th anniversary of UNESCO's founding. He spoke at length about UNESCO's activity, noting that UNESCO should view its mission as conservation of world cultural heritage, popularization of culture and science, and prevention of any manifestations of intolerance. (Ukrinform)

Yushchenkos visit Petliura's grave

PARIS - President Viktor Yushchenko and First Lady Kateryna Yushchenko, while on a two-day working visit to France on November 15-16, laid flowers at the grave of Ukraine's outstanding statesman and political figure Symon Petliura, who is buried in the Montparnasse Cemetery in Paris. The Ukrainian president, his spouse and members of the official Ukrainian delegation observed a minute of silence to pay tribute to Petliura. (Ukrinform)

Deputies want to abandon pay raise

KYIV - Leaders of the Verkhovna Rada's groups and factions agreed on November 14 to give up the pay raise they were granted as of September, Interfax-Ukraine and ITAR-TASS reported. Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn told journalists that he will sign a relevant directive to reflect this decision, while his deputy, Adam Martyniuk, suggested that the decision must be enacted by law in order to take effect. In September, following a similar increase in wages for Cabinet members, the average monthly pay for legislators rose from $800 to $2,800. (RFE/RL Newsline)

40 percent live below standards

KYIV - Ukrainian Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov said at an economic conference in Kyiv on November 14 that the official incomes of 36.5 percent of Ukrainian citizens are below the country's subsistence minimum, ITAR-TASS reported. Mr. Yekhanurov suggested that many businesses in Ukraine understate their employees' earnings in order to reduce tax payments to the budget. Ukraine's monthly subsistence minimum, which was set by the Parliament in October 2004, amounts to 432 hrv ($85 U.S.). (RFE/RL Newsline)

Lytvyn: WTO deadline was mistake

KYIV - Verkhovna Rada speaker Lytvyn told journalists on November 14 that the Ukrainian government made a mistake by setting a deadline for gaining entry to the World Trade Organization by the end of 2005, Interfax-Ukraine reported. "We made a strategic mistake when we set time frames for joining the WTO without talking about the goal," Mr. Lytvyn said. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Our Ukraine convenes congress

KYIV - On Saturday, November 12, the Our Ukraine People's Union convened its second congress, attended by over 1,300 delegates from all over Ukraine and 53 guests from other political parties and public organizations. President Viktor Yushchenko and Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov were among those attending. Addressing the audience, President Yushchenko congratulated them on the approaching anniversary of the Orange Revolution. He said that after the revolution Ukraine emerged as a new nation, which is moving along the road toward democratization and better political, economic, humanitarian and social processes. President Yushchenko voiced his conviction that Ukraine will be able to become a genuinely European-style nation only if it proceeds on democratic development principles. (Ukrinform)

Yushchenko for democratic coalition

KYIV - President Viktor Yushchenko called on a congress of the pro-presidential Our Ukraine People's Union (OUPU) in Kyiv on November 12 to initiate the creation of a coalition of democratic forces for the 2006 parliamentary elections, Ukrainian media reported. "I am sure we must be the first to show that the authorities mustn't use administrative resources [in the elections]. I will dismiss any representative of the authorities for attempting to use administrative resources in the campaign, even before an investigation," Interfax-Ukraine quoted Mr. Yushchenko as saying. The congress re-elected Vice Prime Minister Roman Bezsmertnyi as OUPU chairman. Mr. Bezsmertnyi told journalists on November 13 that he would like to see Mr. Yushchenko as No. 1 on the party's parliamentary election list. Meanwhile, President Yushchenko said last week that he would want Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov to head the list. (RFE/RL Newsline)

People's Party holds first congress

KYIV - The People's Party and the Our Ukraine People's Union are divided only by their competition, but their programs have much in common, Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn told those attending the first congress of the all-Ukrainian public youth organization Youth For Lytvyn. According to Mr. Lytvyn, the People's Party has not yet decided on the top five names on the party's electoral roll. He said authoritative leaders of youth organizations deserve to be entered in political parties' rolls of candidates. Mr. Lytvyn also voiced his support for the organization's initiative to draw up its own version of Ukraine's national development strategy, dubbed "The Unique Nation." The initiative was made public in the congress manifesto, which notes the need to view the upcoming parliamentary elections as an opportunity for a nationwide dialogue, rather than a run for power. (Ukrinform)

Regions, New Democracy parties ally

KYIV - The Party of the Regions of Ukraine (PRU) and the New Democracy Party have decided to form an alliance. The news was unveiled by Regions Party leader Viktor Yanukovych at the 11th conference of the PRU Luhansk regional organization. According to Mr. Yanukovych, negotiations are under way with other parties. "Even if we fail to unite with them legally, we must unite ideologically," Mr. Yanukovych was quoted as saying by the PRU press service. The New Democracy Party is headed by Yevhen Kushnariov, the ex-chairman of the Kharkiv Oblast Administration. (Ukrinform)

Ukraine eligible for Millennium program

WASHINGTON - On November 8 the board of directors of the Millennium Challenge Corp. (MCC) selected 13 countries to participate in the Threshold Program for fiscal year 2006. The Threshold Program is designed to assist countries that do not qualify but are close and are committed to undertaking the reforms necessary to improve policy performance that may eventually help them qualify for Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) Compact assistance. Ukraine is among the 13 countries, which include: Guyana, Indonesia, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyz Republic, Malawi, Moldova, Paraguay, Philippines, São Tomé and Principe, Uganda and Zambia. Since its establishment last year, MCC has signed compacts with five nations, Madagascar, Honduras, Cape Verde, Nicaragua and Georgia, totaling over $900 million. MCC is also actively engaging with other MCA-eligible countries in compact negotiations and currently expects to sign three more within the next few months. The Millennium Challenge Corp., a U.S. government corporation designed to work with some of the poorest countries in the world, is based on the principle that aid is most effective when it reinforces good governance, economic freedom and investments in people that promote economic growth and elimination of extreme poverty. (Millennium Challenge Corp. Action Ukraine Report)

Yushchenko submits blood samples

KYIV - President Viktor Yushchenko has submitted samples of his blood for tests by domestic and foreign specialists to pursue the criminal case into the poisoning that left his face pockmarked during last year's presidential election campaign, Ukrainian and international news agencies reported on November 10, quoting presidential spokeswoman Iryna Heraschenko. An international team of doctors determined during the election campaign that Mr. Yushchenko was poisoned with a dose of dioxin. "I believe that one day I'll wake up as a totally healthy man and the terrible traces of dioxin will disappear from my face," Mr. Yushchenko said in a radio address to the nation on November 12. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Editor beaten, hospitalized

DONETSK - Heorhii Popov, editor in chief of the Kommunist Donbassa newspaper, was badly beaten in the stairwell of his apartment building in Donetsk on November 10, Interfax-Ukraine reported. "The entire stairwell was covered with blood; he has been hospitalized with a brain injury," said Serhii Ilyin, head of the Donetsk Oblast branch of the Communist Party. According to Mr. Ilyin, the attack on Mr. Popov could be politically motivated. "He made a very impressive speech at the November 7 rally [to mark the Bolshevik Revolution anniversary] and criticized the authorities," Mr. Ilyin added. According to the dpa news service, Mr. Popov's newspaper in recent months accused the Donetsk regional authorities of corruption and incompetence. (RFE/RL Newsline)

PRU ready to enter ruling coalition

KYIV - Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych said in an interview published on November 10 that his Party of the Regions is ready to participate in forming a coalition government following the 2006 parliamentary elections, Interfax-Ukraine reported. "Today no political force is able to form either a parliamentary majority or a government," Mr. Yanukovych said. "Therefore, we will have a coalition. We treat all parties as equal partners." Simultaneously, Mr. Yanukovych cast doubt on the possibility of forming a coalition with the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc, saying the bloc is gravitating toward still greater "populism and irresponsibility." Mr. Yanukovych noted that Ukraine's potential federalization and NATO membership should be subject to a referendum, along with granting official status to the Russian language if that issue is not resolved in Parliament. (RFE/RL Newsline)

GDP expectations downgraded

KYIV - Minister of the Economy Arsenii Yatseniuk said at a Cabinet meeting on November 9 that the new estimate of Ukraine's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2005 is 3.8 percent, the Associated Press reported. He added that currently GDP growth is 2.8 percent year-on-year. Last year Ukraine recorded 12 percent economic growth. Initially the government of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko predicted GDP growth this year of 8.2 percent, but in September decreased its forecast to 6-6.5 percent. Several days later, the new government of Prime Minister Yurii Yekhanurov lowered the forecast to 4.5-5 percent. (RFE/RL Newsline)

President vetoes poultry import ban

KYIV - President Viktor Yushchenko has vetoed a bill narrowly passed by the Verkhovna Rada last month that would impose a six-month ban on all poultry imports in an attempt to protect the country from bird flu, Agence France-Presse reported on November 8. Mr. Yushchenko reportedly said the measure would harm the country's bid to join the World Trade Organization. (RFE/RL Newsline)

Ukraine will not appeal court ruling

KYIV - Ukraine's Justice Ministry will not appeal a decision by the European Court of Human Rights in the case Myroslava Gongadze v. Ukraine, Justice Minister Serhii Holovatyi said during a new briefing on November 10. "A person has won fair satisfaction, the state and the Justice Ministry is on the person's side," the minister said. As reported earlier, the court ruled that Ukraine violated Articles 2, 3, 13 and 41 of the European Convention on Human Rights, having caused moral damages to the applicant. The court awarded the applicant 100,000 euros in pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages. (Ukrinform)

UOC seeks ecumenical patriarch's help

WASHINGTON - The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A. called upon Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople "to defend" Ukraine from "the machinations" of the Moscow Patriarchate, according to cerkva.org.ua, which posted the news on October 24. "We call upon the high pastor to take strict measures to guarantee sovereign Ukraine the opportunity to enjoy the blessings of a national Church, free from external Church control and interference, despite possible threats and machinations of the Moscow Patriarchate," reads the text of the resolution by the Metropolitan Council of the UOC-U.S.A., which is under the jurisdiction of Constantinople. The text of another resolution adopted by the same council says that "the united Church in Ukraine," the creation of which our hierarchs should work on, is to be built "under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate." They also call upon the hierarchs to influence "the Ukrainian government and Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko." The council also gave a positive assessment to the statement of Archbishop Vsevolod (Majdanski) of the UOC-U.S.A. after his meeting with President Yushchenko in early 2005. He underlined that the patriarch of Constantinople "recognizes the borders of the Moscow Patriarchate the way they were when this Patriarchate was recognized by world Orthodoxy in 1593." At that time the Kyiv Metropolitanate was part of the Patriarchate of Constantinople, as the authors of the document report. The UOC- U.S.A. consists of 100 parishes and missions, as its site reports. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Russian poachers arrested

KYIV - Patrol boats of the Donetsk Border Guard Detachment on November 9 arrested a Russian vessel for poaching in Ukraine's territorial waters near the Belosarayaskaya Spit, the State Border Guard Service public relations told Ukrinform. The boat, PTS-231 from Taganrog, was found in possession of two 36-meter trawls. Over 2.3 tons of fish were found aboard the vessel. Experts evaluated the haul's value at 130,000 hrv. (Ukrinform)

Search for Bodelan halted

KYIV - The Ukrainian Internal Affairs Ministry approached the Russian Ministry of the Internal Affairs with an inquiry on the circumstances surrounding Russia's move to stop the international search for former Odesa former Mayor Ruslan Bodelan, it was reported on November 9. Mr. Bodelan, who is charged with misuse of authority, was wanted in Moscow and St. Petersburg by Ukrainian and Russian police officers, as adjusted with the CIS Bureau for Combating Organized Crime. But the search on Russian territory was practically ceased by the Russian side, which introduced false data on the case. (Ukrinform)

Mobile hospital winds up mission

KYIV - The Ukrainian Emergency Management Ministry's mobile hospital is winding up its humanitarian mission to Pakistan, the ministry's press service told Ukrinform on November 9. A member of the Ukrainian mission, a coordinator from the Health Ministry, Prof. Serhii Huriev, met with the Pakistani prime minister and the speaker of one of the Parliament's chambers. The Ukrainian mobile hospital aided some 11,000 persons who were victims of the recent earthquake in Pakistan. (Ukrinform)

UOC-KP has two new archbishops

KYIV - Celebrating the 10th anniversary of his patriarchate, Patriarch Filaret (Denysenko) of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - Kyiv Patriarchate (UOC-KP) elevated Bishop Herontii of Vinnytsia and Bratslav and Bishop Yurii of Donetsk and Mariupol to the rank of archbishops on October 22. (Religious Information Service of Ukraine)

Defense minister to visit Iraq

KYIV - Ukrainian Defense Minister Anatolii Hrytsenko intends to visit Iraq in several weeks, with a view toward familiarizing himself with the Ukrainian military contingent's readiness for withdrawal, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's press service told Ukrinform on October 27. Minister Hrytsenko is supposed to meet with commanders of the multinational forces and Iraqi officials. (Ukrinform)

Correction

In a newsbrief headlined "Two Lviv priests declared saints" (October 30), the Ukrinform news service incorrectly referred to Cardinal Marian Jaworski as Lviv metropolitan.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, November 20, 2005, No. 47, Vol. LXXIII

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