FOR THE RECORD: Open letter to Viktor Yanukovych from the UCCA (12/10/06)

FOR THE RECORD: Open letter to Viktor Yanukovych from the UCCA

Following is the text of an open letter sent on December 4 by the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America to Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych of Ukraine. The translation from the original Ukrainian was provided by the UCCA.

Dear Mr. Prime Minister:

The Ukrainian American community is deeply disturbed by recent events in Ukraine. We believe that the continued confrontation between the branches of power and illegal decisions by the Parliament prove that Ukraine is returning to anarchy, based not on democratic principles, but on personal interests of its politicians. From the time of your appointment as prime minister, our community, which also includes numerous citizens of Ukraine who now reside in the United States, has been disturbed by several issues, which in our opinion require careful consideration by your Cabinet.

As in any young state, which is resurrecting its heritage after a lengthy occupation and persecution of its national culture, the development of the Ukrainian language and culture is critical to the reconstitution of its national identity. We strongly believe that all Ukrainian government officials, as well as members of Parliament, while performing their official duties, should use only the state language of Ukraine. The Constitution of Ukraine states: "The state language in Ukraine is the Ukrainian language. The state guarantees the comprehensive development and use of the Ukrainian language in all spheres of society across the entire territory of Ukraine" (Article 10). As Ivan Dzyuba stated, "without the [Ukrainian] language, without its Ukrainian culture, Ukraine simply will not be - no matter how great the state of the economy is."

Mr. Prime Minister, you yourself stated, "the state language is the Ukrainian language" (October 30, 2006, Ukrayinska Pravda). It is shameful that in your official capacity as the head of the Ukrainian government, you spoke Russian when reacting to the firing of Minister Tarasyuk during your interview in Mariupol. Furthermore, in a recent interview with Oles Buzyna, Dmytro Tabachnyk, the vice prime minister for humanitarian affairs, stated that the cultural policy of Ukraine aimed at resurrecting national awareness and self-respect is "in the interests of a narrow stratum of the Ukrainian-speaking intelligentsia, who is simply afraid of competition in all areas." This statement is deplorable from a representative of the Ukrainian government, and in our opinion such Ukrainophobes have no place in the government of Ukraine. We believe that the government should continue the process of Ukrainianization in Ukraine, and we urge you to begin this forthright.

The issue of the 1932-1933 Genocide in Ukraine is extremely important to the Ukrainian nation. We were pleased to hear that legislation was passed on November 28 in the Ukrainian Parliament, which recognized the forced Famine as a genocide, although we were disappointed that the language of the bill was softened. We were also disheartened by the fact that only two members of your faction voted for this bill. We hope that your government will continue to work for recognition of this crime as genocide on the international level and we will assist in this endeavor by working with the government of other countries and international organizations. We also believe it necessary to conduct a nationwide educational campaign regarding the history, causes and repercussions of the Famine-Genocide in Ukraine's educational facilities, as well as among the general public.

Another sensitive issue for Ukraine is that of recognizing and affording the appropriate privileges to the veterans of OUN/UPA [Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists/Ukrainian Insurgent Army], who fought for freedom and the restoration of Ukraine's statehood. It is time to change their negative image created by the Soviet state and recognize those who fought against the two cruelest regimes of the 20th century. In the interests of restoring the truthful history of Ukraine, which is an important element in establishing a civic society in a democratic, sovereign state, the government of Ukraine should recognize the OUN/UPA fighters and afford them the same privileges as other World War II veterans.

Mr. Prime Minister, you defined the main prerogative of the Ukrainian government's activities during an interview on October 27, 2006, by saying that "The main principle of our policies is to act based on the national interests of Ukraine." The time has come to earnestly implement those principles into action. Unfortunately, prior to now, the work of your government has been contrary to your declared principles, and not in the interest of the Ukrainian people/nation. Moreover, the actions [of firing the Minister of Foreign Affairs Borys Tarasyuk] by representatives of your party in Parliament on the anniversary of the nationwide referendum of December 1, 1991, for the independence of Ukraine, are tragically symbolic. On the anniversary of the day when the Ukrainian people expressed their desire to be independent, the Parliament made some illegal decisions that endanger this independence.

Prior to your appointment as prime minister, you signed the Universal of National Unity. However, you continue to violate the universal's principles by interfering in the political spheres that are not within your jurisdiction. We hope that in the future you will fulfill all the achieved agreements and will act solely in the interests of the Ukrainian people.

We request you to seriously consider our thoughts and aim your initiatives to benefit the people of Ukraine. The Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) and the Ukrainian American community have always actively cooperated with the government of Ukraine and we hope to continue this cooperation to ensure a better future for Ukraine and its people.

New York/Washington
December 4, 2006

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