Vol.19 No.17 ISSN: 0049-1713 29 August 1990 SOVIET

. , 'ANALYST A 'FORTNIGHTL Y COMMENTARY ... , . \' CONTENTS < I RETURN OF THE EXILES? .. SOVIET MIDDLE EAST ROLE AFTER THE BLOCKADE: THE BALTIC STATES VERSUS ... INDEPENDENT () PRESS IN UNDER GORBACHEV (1) SURVEY r r Return of the Exiles?

The publication of President Gorbachev's decree expression of regret, as there had been in the lengthy of 15 Auqust, which annulled earlier Supreme Soviet introduction to the decree on rehabilitating Stalin's Praesidiurn decrees depriving certain Soviet citizens victims two days earlier. An appendix gives the of their citizenship, was a strange affair, and not the names of the 23, and the date of the relevant earlier best advertisement for in action. Izvestiya decree. Against 14 of the names there is a reference carried a very brief Tass announcement of the to publication of that decree in the Supreme Soviet decree on the same day, and the following day Gazette. Sovetskaya Rossiya commented after the revealed six of the 23 names involved, at the head of list that it represented only part of those deprived of an interview with a member of the Supreme Soviet citizenship, and that the cases of others "could be secretariat concerned with citizenship and pardons, resolved in accordance with the Law regulating Gennadiy Cheremnykh. Those named were the restoration of U.SSR citizenship". writers , Vassiliy Aksenov and , the human rights activist Famous exiles Valeriy Chalidze, the chess player Viktor Korchnoy The list of 23 contains several other names by now and the painter Oskar Rabin. well known in the West - the writers Georgiy On 17 August, Izvestiya published a commentary Vladimov, and his wife , by one of its senior political observers, Albert Plutnik, the Christian poet and her entitled "Slow farewell to the past", in which he said it husband Igor Geraschenko, and the first (1966) to had been very difficult "even in the present age of suffer deprivation of citizenship - Valeriy Tarsis, broad glasnosf' to extract (he didn't say from whom) whose semi-autobiographical "Ward NO.7" de- even those names already published. On 18 August, scribed the fate of dissidents locked up in mental Izvestiya added the remaining 17 names in the institutions. For Orlova and Tarsis the restoration is briefest announcement. posthumous. Also on the list are the psychiatrist Anatoliy Koryagin, whose exposures on this subject It was not until 19 August that the full text of the did so much to bring it to the attention of the West, decree was published in, of all papers, Sovetskaya and another leading human rights campaigner, YiJriy Rossiya. It appears to be the only place it was Orlov, both of whom served prison sentences; the published. The paper said that since news of the political scientist Mikhail Voslenskiy, author of an decree had been made public, "newspaper, radio essential book on the workings of the nomenklatura. and television offices have been approached by citizens of our country and readers and listeners Pastor Georgiy Vins was one of five convicted abroad asking for the names of those affected". The Soviet citizens exchanged in April 1979 for two decree itself, which consists of three short para- Soviet spies held in the West, and his place on the list graphs, merely announces the fact of the annulment is another curiosity. Among the other four exchanged of 'previous sanctions and instructs the Foreign were human rights activist Aleksandr Ginzburg, at Ministry to contact those affected about the return of one time the administrator of Solzhenitsyn's fund for their Soviet passports if they so wish, the decree to dissidents and their families, and Valentin Moroz, a take effect immediately. There is no apology or Ukrainian nationalist writer and head of the Ukrainian views on Baltic independence. But the pro-Union munique that not all residents of the Baltic states treaty elements may have unexpected help. Accord- support last Spring's declarations of independence. ing to a recent Tass report, non-Baltic residents in the If this current spreads further within the Baltic, those three breakaway republics have organised resist- pushing a Union treaty line in the Kremlin may ance. At the end of August, local officials from seven outflank those conducting negotiations, and Autumn Baltic towns with Russian-speaking majorities may present a very different picture from the one gathered in Daugavpils, Latvia to discuss their most people in the Baltics had imagined. "difficult political situation". The officials called on Gorbachev to recognise their need for representation (Riina Kionka is a research analyst at Radio Free Europe in independence talks, and stressed in their com- Research.) Independent (Samizdat) Press in Ukraine under Gorbachev (1) By TARAS KUZIO

The word samizdat (in Ukrainian samvydav) was The independent press in Ukraine is divided into first coined in the 1960's to describe the new four types: phenomenon of uncensored writings which made a] the majority of them are 4-8-12 page their appearance at that time. Samizdat (which newsletters/bulletins with print-runs of between means literally "self publishing") was described by 5,000-20,000 and are mainly printed in the Baltic thus: "I write it myself, censor it republics (primarily in Riga and Vilnius) because of a myself, print and disseminate it myself, and then I do lack of access to printing equipment in Ukraine. time in prison for it myself". Increasingly, though, with the election of democratic The mechanism of samizdat was very simple: local cou cils, printing is being undertaken within "The author types his work on a typewriter (the only Ukraine. means at the disposal of the average Soviet citizen), b] the weightier journals (for example, literary usually with four or five carbons, or photocopies it, almanacks), which number at least ten and average and passes copies out to people he knows. If others between 200-300 pages, are still typed on carbon are interested in the work, they make copies from paper for circulations of only between 10-100. At the their copy and distribute them among their friends" . present time, the editors of these journals deliber- (L. Alexeyeva, Soviet Dissent, p. 12) Samizdat ately use typewriters because computer printers do produced in this manner was extremely inefficient in not punch letters hard enough to make copies time and effort expended upon it. through carbon paper. c] newspapers published by officially registered The term samizdat is no longer applicable and the organisations such as Rukh (Ukrainian Popular term "independent" is far more appropriate. The Movement), Green World and the Ukrainian Lan- independent press is, on the whole, no longer copied guage Society, which have a monthly or bi-monthly by typing carbon copies, but is either actually printed circulation of 10,000 copies each. or photocopied. Today, editors of the independent d] official newspapers co-opted by newly elected press often have at their disposal photocopiers, democratic councils, those which have defected to computers and tete-tax machines, which are no the Democratic Bloc and newspapers published by longer illegal and which have revolutionised the independent enterprises that support Rukh. preparation and publication of independent journals in Ukraine and allow for a large increase in their titles A statistical breakdown of the independent press and circulation. In larger cities such as Lvov, Kiev and Kharkov there are dozens of such newspapers and For the purpose of this study will deal mainly journals, some of a fine quality, while others still look with the independent press in Ukraine, of which we like the primitive samvydavof the 1960's and 70's. have 183 titles on record as appearing, although this figure is undoubtedly higher, given that not all the The Ukrainian Press Agency has on record 204 titles published reach the West. independent Ukrainian tities which have appeared (or stopped publication) in Ukraine, , the Baltic Outside Ukraine, three appear in Moscow, two of Republics, Poland and Czechoslovakia: which are in Russian and are published by the 183 - Ukraine Ukrainian Helsinki Union, now the Republican Party 3 - Russia (UHU/URP); a third is in Ukrainian and published by 4 - Baltic Republics the Ukrainian Youth Club (a pro-Rukh group). In the 12 - Poland Baltic republics, four publications appear in Ukrai- 1 - Czechoslovakia nian catering for the needs of individual Ukrainian 7 communities, which are all supportive of the local Rukh, specialises in translations from the western popular fronts. press. Others include Ohliadach, reporting on par- liamentary proceedings. Express Novynyand Ohliad In Ukraine, the figure of 183 has been broken down Podiy, presenting a chronology of events around into the following nine categories with numbers of Ukraine, Visnyk Aukhu, giving a stenographic record publications: of Rukh meetings, and Za Narodnyj Par/ament, one Rukh - 46 of many which specialised in co-ordinating the UHU/URP - 23 election campaign. The Rukh flagship is, of course, Youth - 25 Narodna Hazeta. Political Groups - 26 Educational/literary - 21 Ukrainian Helsinki Union/Ukrainian General- 19 Republican Party National Minorities - 16 Religious - 4 The Ukrainian Republican Party. the oldest and Greens - 3 best organised dissident group in Ukraine, has leading members who are highly popular and have Rukh been elected as parliamentarians or local council members. Many are also respected because they By far the largest number of independent publica- were imprisoned under Brezhnev. The figure of 23 tions produced by anyone group in Ukraine are those UHU/URP publications outstrips any other individual published by Rukh - 26.6 per cent of the total political party, the majority of which came on the number. This includes the monthly Narodna Hazeta, scene far later. Re-established in March 1988, the with a circulation of 10,000 copies. The majority of UHU immediately re-launched publications, such as these publications began publication after the inau- the Ukrainsky Visnyk, which had appeared earlier gural congress of Rukh in September, 1989. The and had editorial boards which could be quickly number also reflects Rukh's achievement in estab- re-assembled. These publications benefited from the lishing itself throughout the republic, its role as an fact that their titles were already well known. umbrella group and the charisma and high profile of leading literati who form much of its top officials. The The high fi,gures for Rukh and UHU/URP publica- fact that many top Rukh leaders were elected as tions is another reflection of the creative talent and parliamentarians, live television and radio coverage intelligentsia which exists within both those organisa- of the proceedings and the attainment of the tions. It is far easier to club together and form a Declaration of Sovereignty will all have reinforced the political group/party than it is regularly to produce a image in many people's minds of Rukh as the main journal, which requires intellectual stamina. The protagonist taking on the Communist Party (a UHU/URP flagship was the 200-300 page quarterly position similar to Solidarity's in Poland and Civic Ukrainsky Visnyk, edited by Vyacheslav Chornovil Forum's in Czechoslovakia). and produced in the old samizdat manner. With the transformation of the UHU press service into UNVIS Of these 46 Rukh publications, 30 (65%) are (Ukrainian Independent Publishing and Information published in central-eastern Ukraine and 16 (33%) in Service) in the spring of 1990, UNVIS was supposed western Ukraine. Of the 30 which appear in central- to publish Ukrainsky Visnyk, although Chornovil's eastern Ukraine, nine are published in Kiev, where dual functions of parliamentarian and head of Lvov Rukh has its head office. The high figure for western oblast council may mean it will no longer appear; it Ukraine. in relation to her proportionately small size. has not been produced in 1990. reflects the higher national consciousness and greater development of civil society in that region. The current flagship of the UHU/URP is Hotos Nevertheless, in many highly russified regions of Vidrodzhenia, edited by Serhei Naboka (also head of south-eastern Ukraine, Rukh is the only organisation the UHU/URP information centre in Kiev). The high that actually exists and is seen to be publishing a degree of popularity of the UHU/URP in western regular local newspaper. Rukh. as a mobilising force, Ukraine can be seen from the fact that of the 23 is also probably more needed in central-eastern publications, 11 (46%) appear there. Of the remain- Ukraine, where it has helped gradually to raise ing 13, just under half (5) appear in Kiev city. national consciousness and channel popular de- (To be continued) mands. than in the western region of the republic. Events organised by Rukh, such as the human chain SURVEY of three-quarters of a million people on the anniversary of the 1918-1919 Ukrainian declaration 9 JuJy. Radio Moscow reported (hat large numbers of the non-indigenous population of Tadjikistan were leaving (he of independence, have also undoubtedly implanted republic, where ethnic violence broke out in February. the image of Rukh as an important institution bringing unity at an important juncture in Ukrainian history. 11 July. Strikes and rallies were staged throughout Soviet coalfields. despite President Gorbachev's appeals. The miners In Kiev. Rukh publishes a number of specialist demanded the government's resignation and the removal of publications. Svit, although not formally published by Communist Party bodies from workplaces.

SUBSCRIPTIONS Overseas $220. UK £110 per annum. including poslage. to Soviet Analyst. P.O. Box 39. Richmond. Surrey. England. Special Rates: For ,ndividual students of the : $110 (£55 UK) per annum. Publishers: C. N. Janson. J. A. LemKin. Lord Vernon. Editorial Board: Martin Dewh,rst. lain Elliot. Barry HOIland (Ed~or). Martin McCauley. George Schbpflin. © Copyright reserved. Pnnled by The Hove Printing Co .. Hove. Sussex Vol. 19 No.18 155N: 0049-1713 12 September 1990 SOVIET ANALYST A FORTNIGHTL Y COMMENTARY CONTENTS 500 DAYS - A LONG TIME IN POLITICS TURNING POINT IN GEORGIA THE PRICE OF A FREE PRESS INDEPENDENT (SAMIZDAT) PRESS IN UKRAINE UNDER GORBACHEV (2) SURVEY

500 Days - A Long Time in Politics

It is quite obvious that if one were embarking on a received th~ir copies of the first two volumes of "500 massive reform of the Soviet economy, the present Days" which run to several hundred pages - "The state of affairs would not be most people's first choice Transition to the Market: Part 1 - The Outline and of a starting line. The point has been made often Programme, and Part 2 - The Draft Legislative enough by some Soviet commentators how much Acts". There were 21 draft laws, of which 16 were better it would have been if the crucial decisions had republican laws. A third part comprising a union been taken six months, a year, three years ago. They treaty on economic relations was expected to be weren't, and the result is that the starting line is finalised and available very shortly. It is this pro- crowded with people rioting in their search for gramme which the RSFSR will now try to put into cigarettes or queuing for bread. Bread queues action, following the vote on 11 September. remind many people of 1917. The programme in fact had its origins within the The choice for President Gorbachev between the government in the Council of Ministers' State radical Shatalin, or "500 Days", programme for Commission on Economic Reform, where a "400 transition to a market economy and the revised - but days of trust" programme was worked out by basically unaltered - government version of Prime G. Yavlinskiy, M. Zadornov and A. Mikhailov in Minister Ryzhkov, twice rejected by the USSR February 1990. When rejected by the government, in Supreme Soviet, was unenviable. If,fie backed particular by Leonid Abalkin in fairly harsh terms (see Ryzhkov, he faced a struggle to the death with Boris Trud, 29 August), this programme became known to Eltsin in a situation where the latter holds all the Eltsin and other RSFSR deputies and was adopted cards. But in supporting Shatalin, as he has now by them before the formation ot the Russian done, he faces the departure not only of Ryzhkov but government; a further 100-day "stabilisation period" of the whole government, with all the inevitable was added to what now became a "500 days" further chaos that will bring. It has been said that the Russian programme. This formed the basis of the only thing that now prevents the country from falling programme worked out from 2-31 August by the apart even more than it is at present doing is the Shatalin-Petrakov commission established by Gor- government. True to form, the President has sought bachev and Eltsin. Yavlinskiy (by now deputy desperately to combine the two versions, to which RSFSR prime minister for economic reform), Zador- Eltsin replied, also true to form, thatthat it is like trying nov and Mikhailov were among the Signatories of a to mate a snake with a hedgehog. synopsis of the programme which Izvestiya pub- lished on 4 September. Komsomolskaya Pravda is Russian moves the only other paper which thought it worth re-printing Gorbachev had no choice. When the RSFSR (5 September). parliament resumed on 3 September, Prime Minister The document is unlike any other economic Ivan Silaev addressed deputies who had just that day document that has appeared in the Soviet official - what seems to be causing most resentment - press which came out in a joint open letter from the delivery charges by the postal service, all of which editorial staffs of Trud and Komsomolskaya Pravda have been allowed by the Council of Ministers and to the Council of Ministers, the CPSU Central which will mean for most publications a doubling or Committee, the All-Union Trade Union Council and trebling of their prices. To Western eyes, a rise from 3 the Komsomol CC, published on 31 August. The to 8 kopecks still makes a newspaper ridiculously Ministry of Communications has decided that all cheap, and it is even cheaper if you take out an postal workers shall have a common day-off on annual subscription for 13 roubles 80 kopecks, which Sunday. Consequently Pravda and Izvestiya, the is what Komsomolskaya Pravda will charge next only two papers which presently come out seven year, the lowest of all the central daily press rate as it days a week, will in future not appear on Sunday ifthe now boasts. But Soviet citizens like to take out Ministry goes ahead with its plan. All other dailies several subscriptions, and the fear obviously is that which up to now have not appeared on Mondays, will with hard times coming, subscribers are likely to be in future have Sunday off as well. As the two papers more discriminating and sales will fall. with the biggest circulation - 21 million each - Trud and Komsomolskaya Pravda (and presumably other For a periodical at the top end of the range like papers as well, though they weren't mentioned) Ogonek, which will raise the price of a single copy vigorously rejected this, and said that under duress from 40 to 80 kopecks, and the subscription rate from they were prepared to publish on Mondays, like 20 r. 76 to 46 r. 80, the situation is particularly Pravda and Izvestiya. But already they had been told worrying when allied to the concern about future that this would be impossible because of the publication. But all publications are nervous - hence difficulties it would cause at printing works. The the more than usually desperate pleas to subscribers papers promised they would continue the fight for to stick with their beloved TrudlRabochaya Tribunal six-day publishing. Pravda on 1 September at the start of the subscrip- tion period, which this year will last only two months. The threat of a paper-shortage continues to hang over all Soviet papers - one finds fairly frequent The Ministry of Communications claimed in an apologies to readers in areas throughout the country interview in Argumenty i Fakty (No. 33) that their for the non-appearance of this or that paper through charges for handling subscriptions through postal lack of supplies. No-one expects the situation to deliveries had not increased since 1939 (!), but like improve next year. And now Izvestiya (5 September) everyone else they had had to pay higher petrol costs has given warning of another impending deficit - and so on, to say nothing of the increased load on printing-ink. The Soviet Union has always relied on postmen and women due to the government's imports of some essential elements for its manufac- abolition last year of any limit on subscriptions. How ture, but now supplies have dried up due to earlier else could they give their overworked staff a pay rise? non-payment of bills. It is a common complaint in the Soviet press now that they are first victims of the Sunday rest-day market. They are certainly a good example of Soviet But the ministry had another bombshell for the unpreparedness for this looming spectre. Independent (Samizdat) Press in Ukraine under Gorbachev (2) By TARAS KUZIO

(We conclude this review of publications assembled include the journal Rada, appearing in Kiev and close by the Ukrainian Press Agency in London) to SNUM-Nationalists, and specialising in material on the two independence struggles of 1917-1921 Youth and the 1940s. There is even one published by the Lvov Komsomol in an attempt to halt their collapse Of the 25 titles classified in this group, 69.5 per into obscurity entitled Dialoh. cent are published in western and 30.5 per cent in central-eastern Ukraine. Ten come from the largest Political Groups youth organisation, SNUM (Association of Indepen- dent Ukrainian Youth), originally established by the The 27 publications in this group are divided UHU and now incorporating 3,000 members, or the according to their political orientation as follows. smaller, but more radical SUM (Association Ukrai- Social-Democratic: 13 nian Youth), based primarily in eastern Ukraine. National Democratic: 7 SNUM has publications in Lvov, Stryj, Poltava, Volyn Nationalist: 6 (1 of which has yet to appear) and Kiev. Seven political publications in this group Strike Committee: 1

6 A perhaps surprising result is the large number of aims to but with greater emphasis on left-ot-centre independent publications, which are presenting new information about suppressed histor- evenly distributed between western and eastern ical figures and movements in order to raise national Ukraine. Many of these are in Russian or appear in consciousness. separate Russian and Ukrainian editions. The Ukrai- nian Deputies' Club (established originally as a UANTI (Ukrainian Association of the Independent branch of the Moscow Inter-Regional Group) has Creative Intelligentsia) was established in the Winter transferred its two organs - Holos (Ukrainian) and of 1987 and aimed to act as an independent Writers' Golos (Russian) - to the organising committee of the Union, UANTI published five thick literary journals, Democratic Party of Ukraine (led by pmytro Pavlych- averaging 200-300 pages each in Dnepropetrovsk, ko and Yury Badzio), which when launched is likely to Kharkov, Lvov, and Kolorneya, Most ot the members be a mass party by virtue of the fact it will be of the editorial boards were former political prisoners, left-of-centre offshoot of Rukh. Other social- and they were produced in the old samizdat method democratic titles are published by small groups, such of continuous re-typing through carbon copies. as the Ukrainian Social Constructivites, Anarcho- These journals contained banned literary, artistic and Syndacalists and the Ukrainian Social-Democratic publicist works which still during the period 1987- Party (launched in May, 1990). 1989 did not pass the censor into the official press, With the relaxation in censorship in 1990 many of In view of the large workers' movements and free these materials can now appear in the official literary trade unions in areas like the Donbas, it is surprising press, that there are no publications catering for this category. The failure of Rukh to link intellectuals with The Taras Shevchenko Soci- workers in a mass Solidarity-style movement is made ety produces the bi-monthly high circulation Slovo in difficult by the fact that workers in eastern Ukraine 10,000 coples in Kiev. The ULS newspapers are well are russified, together with the failure of the intel- edited and include not only articles dealing with ligentsia to produce samizdat which caters solely for language problems, but also political questions (for the working classes. The only bulletin catering for a example, reprinting opposition programmes) and Strike Committee (also called the Committee in historical subjects previously considered taboo, Defence of Society) is Lvivsky Visnyk, established after the police action against demonstrators on General 1 October, 1989 in Lvov, which unites national and The category defined as "General" includes 19 social demands. This fusion of national and socio- titles, of which 62.5 per cent appear in central- economic demands, possible in Poland and western eastern and 37.5 per cent in western Ukraine. The 19 Ukraine, is more difficult in south-eastern Ukraine, includes the publications of agencies or are the where national consciousness is lower. names ot agencies themselves, which are either independent, pro-Rukh or attached to a political Educational/Literary party. Two publications specialise in translations Of these 21 titles, 65 per cent appear in western from the Western press and reprints from emigre and 35 per cent in central-eastern Ukraine. These literature. There are two satirical newspapers, one of are divided into five branches: which is called Saltseson (Pork Fat), the organ of the Memorial/Spadschyna - 6 Popular Movement of Ukraine for Salami. One title is UANTI- 5 published by the anti-alcohol and smoking society Ukrainian Language Society - 4 Sobriety Brotherhood "Vidsich", established in Au- Youth - 3 gust. 1989 in Lvov. and each issue begins with the General - 3 quote "Those that struggle for freedom and Ukraine do not consume alcohol and nicotine!" In the light ot the huge casualties inflicted upon central-eastern Ukraine during the Great Terror, one National minorities is surprised to find few Memorial or Spadschyna publications in that region. In western Ukraine, Of the 22 per cent of the population in Ukraine who Memorial publications in Ternopil, Lvov and lvano- are non-Ukrainian, few are politically active (no Frankovsk deal extensively with the terror of the first "Internationalist Movement" exists in Ukraine, as in Soviet occupation (1939-1941), the military struggle the Battles, despite attempts. by the party to form during the 1940's and the deportations. Memorial one). A total of 16 publications appear catering forthe called upon Ukrainians to build anew and show Russian and Jewish population. Yet there are few respect for the graves of one's ancestors and those Polish or Russian independent publications dealing murdered by Soviet power. But these publications with the political needs of these national minorities. went further and demanded rehabilitation of Ukrai- perhaps because the former is small in number whilst nian national heroes, punishment for current human the latter is well served by the official press, russified rights violations and the re-writing of historiography. educational and cultural institutions and the indepen- The Spadschyna (Heritage) SOCiety also pub- dent press brought from Moscow. lishes two publications in Kiev and Lvov, with similar The Jewish minority is, by all accounts, one of the

7 most active with five independent publications that all barometer of the level of political activity, we can see support Rukh in Kiev, Chernovtsy and Lvov. The that, despite western Ukraine only accounting for a Ukrainian Committee "Friends of Armenia", linked to fifth of the republic's territory, it nevertheless often Rukh, publishes Asatamart in Russian in Kiev. supplies over half of the publications in one particular group. Political opposition groups are well estab- Religion lished in western Ukraine, young people are more active there and civil society is far more developed. Despite the tremendous importance and high percentage of believers in Ukraine, there are still Rukh is the exception to this rule, .publishing more only four independent religious publications. The in central-eastern than in western Ukraine. Apart Ukrainian Catholic Church no longer publishes from Hukh, in central-eastern Ukraine the only other Khrystiansky Holos (successor to The Chronicle of political movement is often the Republican Party. the Catholic Church in Ukraine), but launched Vira The need for Rukh as a mobilising force for unity is Batkiv (Lvov) in 1990. The Ukrainian Autocephalous more needed in central-eastern Ukraine, which Orthodox Church publishes the newspaper Nasha suffered atomisation under Tsarist and Stalinist rule. Vira in Kiev, edited by the well known' dissident The rise of the independent press is also a philosopher Yevhen Sverstiuk, and the journal testimony to the fact that normal civil society can Tserkva i Zhyttia. develop (albeit slower in eastern than western Ukraine for historical reasons) despite decades of Greens adverse conditions. The small dissident groups of the The Greens, grouped around Green World and pre-Gorbachev era were, it seems, the tip of the now the Ukrainian Green Party, are a registered iceberg. The range of independent publications also organisation and therefore are able to publish the testifies to the degree of pluralism of opinion found monthly mass-circulation Zelenyj Svit newspaper in within the Ukrainian population. Their rejection of 10,000 copies. In addition, their local branches chauvinism, hostility towards ethnic minorities and publish newsletters. authoritarian nationalism in favour of an evolutionary solution to their problems, coupled with the introduc- Conclusion tion of a western-style parliamentary and multi-party democracy, is equally borne out in these statistics. The independent press in Ukraine has established itself as an integral component of the political and (Taras Kuzio is Director of the Ukrainian Press social landscape. If we use the publications as a Agency)

SURVEY 9 July. Radio Moscow reported that large numbers of the ]6 July. The Ukrainian Supreme Soviet declared Ukraine a non-indigenous population of Tadjikistan were leaving the sovereign state by 355 votes to four, with one abstention. The republic, where ethnic violence broke out in February. decree states Ukraine has the right to maintain its own forces, and that Ukraine would seek to become "a neutral state that does not 11 July. Strikes and rallies were staged throughout Soviet participate in military blocs". coalfields, despite President Gorbachev's appeals. The miners demanded the government's resignation and the removal of 16 July. Tass reported continued violence between Kirgiz and Communist Party bodies from workplaces. Uzbeks in the Kirgiz [Ownof Osh. By 19July Tass had put the total number of dead since fighting began as 212, with 12killed in the l3 July. The mayors of Moscow and Leningrad, Gavriil Popov and past week. .Anatoliy Sobchak, announced they were leaving the CPSU. They called on Soviet officials to show their independence by refusing to 16 July. Oleg Shenin relinquished his post as Krasnoyarsk Region be members of any party. first secretary following his election to the Politburo. He was succeeded by second secretary Venyamin Sokolov. 13 July. The Defence Ministry announced the retirement of General Aleksei Lizichev as head of the Main Political Administra- 19July. The town of Kalinin on the Volga, north-west of Moscow. tion of the Armed Forces on health grounds. He was replaced by reverted to its ancient Russian name of 'rver. On 28 July, Tass Colonel General Nikolai Shlyaga, previously first deputy head. reported that the Moscow City Soviet changed the name of Gorky Street back to Tverskaya. 14July. A pLenum of the newly elected CPSU Central Committee elected seven members of the Politburo in addition to the 15 22 July. Moskovskiye Novosti published an article with letters from republican party leaders who are ex officio members: Yuriy members of the Committee of Soldiers' Mothers dealing with Prokofyev, MOSGOWCity First Secretary; Gennadiy Yanaev, Trade brutality in the armed forces. The article states that 15,000 soldiers Union chairman; Egor Stroev, CC secretary; Ivan Frolov, Pravda have died as a result of criminal actions inpeacetime conditions, editor; Aleksandr Dzasokhov, chairman of Supreme Soviet more than during the whole of the Afghan war; 3.900 died in 1989. Foreign Affairs committee: Oleg Sherrin, Krasnoyarsk first secretary: GaLina Semenova. editor of a women's magazine. The 23 July. Leonid Kravchuk, Ukrainian second secretary, was new secretariat contains 11 secretaries, four of them from the elected chairman of the Ukrainian Supreme Soviet at the second previous secretariat, and five members. ballot. Opposition deputies refused to take part in the ballot.

14 July. Reuters reported that Lev Timofeev and Sergey 23 July. Tass reported that the Moscow City Soviet had set up two Skripnikov had been refused visas to attend a human rights independent daily newspapers- Kuranty and Nezavisimaya Gazeta conference in Seattle. - and a local radio station.

SUBSCRIPTIONS Overseas $220. UK £110 per annum. including postage, to Soviet Analyst. P.O. Box 39, Richmond, Surrey, England. Special Rates: For individual students of the Soviet Union: $110 (£55 UK) per annum.

Publishers: C. N. Janson, J. A. Lamkin, Lord Vernon. Editorial Board: Martin DeWhirst. lain Elliot. Barry Holland (Ednor), Martin McCauley. George Schopflin. © Copyright reserved. Printed by The Hove Printing Co.• Hove. Sussex