Twenty-nine years ago, on February 10, 1990, the Popular Movement of Ukraine for Perebudova, commonly referred to as Rukh, was registered as an official organization by the Ukrainian SSR’s Council of Ministers. On that day, the government sent signed legal papers acknowledging the official status to the Kyiv offices of Rukh.
Rukh would serve as a platform to promote democratic reforms and greater autonomy for Ukraine in the final days of the Soviet Union. The general public was informed of the historic event during pre-election mass meetings throughout Ukraine on February 10-11 (parliamentary or Supreme Soviet elections were held on March 4).
“This is truly a sign that times are changing, Rukh has been registered as the first political organization in Ukraine,” noted Bohdan Ternopilsky, acting executive secretary of Rukh in the absence of Mykhailo Horyn, Rukh’s elected executive secretary. Rukh had attempted registration with the Ukrainian government since its founding congress in September 1989 in Kyiv, but it wasn’t until five months later that it gained official status in Ukraine.
A pre-election meeting run by Volodymyr Yavorivsky, vice-chairman of Rukh, attracted 70,000 people in Kyiv on February 11 at October Revolution Square. The meeting, organized by Rukh and the Ukrainian branch of the Inter-Regional Group of Deputies, sought to determine the changes and reforms the groups wanted to see in Ukraine.
Reports from the London-based Ukrainian Press Agency said participants condemned the theory and practice of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and called for the immediate formation of a “coalition government” to include representatives of all national-democratic groups, the immediate introduction of a multi-party parliamentary system and separation from all-union structures, and a mixed economy with emphasis on privatization of industry and agriculture.
The meeting also demanded that military conscripts undertake their service in Ukraine and that the KGB and Ministry of Internal Affairs be subordinated with the republic to local control.
During the weekend, crowds of hundreds and thousands gathered in oblast centers, large cities and raion centers, small towns and villages across Ukraine to rejoice in the news.
Protest actions were planned to begin on February 12 if Rukh did not gain official registration by that date. Other Rukh demands included permission to publish an official newspaper and permission for people to gather for daily assemblies near the main post office in Kyiv.
Mr. Ternopilsky, in speaking with The Weekly, said that ethnic and religious unrest in the republics of the Soviet Union, frequent demonstrations and meetings, and the approaching elections, were more than likely that catalyst for the recognition of Rukh. At the time, it was unclear if Rukh would evolve into a political party.
Rukh stands for full religious freedom of conscience, said reformist politician Serhiy Koniev. Speakers called for the removal of Valentyna Shevchenko, the head of the presidium of the Ukrainian Supreme Soviet, Vitaliy Masol, the head of government, and Anatoly Kornienko, the first secretary of the Kyiv regional branch of the Communist Party of Ukraine (CPU). Others urged for criminal charges to be brought against Volodymyr Scherbytsky, former first secretary of the CPU, Ms. Shevchenko and the former health minister, Anatoliy Romanenko, for their part in the cover-up following the Chornobyl nuclear disaster of 1986.
Source: “Rukh is legalized. Mass demonstrations held across Ukraine,” The Ukrainian Weekly, February 18, 1990.