Abn Correspondence Bulletin of the Anti-Bolshevik Bloc of Nations
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FREEDOM FOR NATIONS ! CORRESPONDENCE FREEDOM FOR INDIVIDUALS! JANUARY-FEBRUARY 1989 CONTENTS: Carolling Ukrainian-Style ....................... 2 The Autobiography of Levko Lukyanenko ..................... 3 European Freedom Council Meeting ..............................16 Statement of the European Freedom Council .............. 16 Hon. John Wilkinson, M.P. Eastern European Policy for Western Europe .............. 19 Genevieve Aubry, M.P. Is Switzerland Ready for a New Challenge with the European Nations .......................... 26 Sir Frederic Bennett Can the Soviet Russian Empire Survive? ....................... 31 Bertil Haggman Aiding the Forces of Freedom in the Soviet Empire ................................... 34 Ukrainian Christian Democratic Front Holds Inaugural Meeting ........... 40 David Remnick Ukraine Could be Soviets’ Next Trouble Spot ..............41 Bohdan Nahaylo Specter of the Empire Haunts the Soviet Union ..........45 Appeal to the Russian Intelligentsia ......... ......................47 Freedom for Nations! Freedom for Individuals! ABN CORRESPONDENCE BULLETIN OF THE ANTI-BOLSHEVIK BLOC OF NATIONS Publisher and Owner (Verleger und Inha It is not our practice to pay for contribut ber): American Friends of the Anti-Bolshevik ed materials. Reproduction permitted only Bloc of Nations (AF ABN), 136 Second Avenue, with indication of source (ABN Corr.). New York, N.Y. 10003, USA. Annual subscription: 27 Dollars in the Zweigstelle Deutschland: A. Dankiw, USA, and the equivalent of 27 US Dollars in Zeppelinstr. 67, 8000 München 80. all other countries. Remittances to Deutsche Editorial Staff: Board of Editors Bank, Munich, Neuhauser Str. 6, Account Editor-in-Chief: Mrs. Slava Stetsko, M.A. No. 3021003, Anna Dankiw. Zeppelinstr. 67 Schriftleitung: Redaktionskollegium. 8000 München 80 Verantw. Redakteur Frau Slava Stetzko. West Germany Zeppelinstraße 67 Articles signed with name or pseudonym 8000 München 80 do not necessarily reflect the Editor’s opinion, Telefon: 48 25 32 but that of the author. Manuscripts sent in un Druck: Druckgenossenschaft “Cicero” requested cannot be returned in case of non e.G., Zeppelinstraße 67, 8000 München 80. publication unless postage is enclosed. TO GOVERNMENTS AND NATIONS OF THE FREE WORLD Freedom Charter of the Subjugated Nations in the USSR Having met in the city of Vilnius on January 28-29,1989, we, the representatives of the national liberation movements of Armenia, Byelorussia, Georgia, Lithuania, Lat via, Estonia and Ukraine, announce the formation of a joint committee, uniting our efforts for the establishment of national independent and free states. History has shown that the existence of a multinational empire is an anachronism, creating insufferable conditions for all the nations living in the empire. We feel that pluralism is as fundamental a principle in international relations as it is in the sphere of human rights. While consolidating the right of every nation to individual development, we repre sent national movements which have been fighting for decades for independence. While we do not impose our conceptions as to state organization and sovereignty, we feel that neither common existence within the framework of the empire, nor a federative or confederative state organization are acceptable to the nations which we represent. We need political and moral support for our movement from all governments and social organizations. We hope that our understanding of the contemporary world will prevail, in accordance with which only the free and independent existence of nations which are striving towards this will ensure the stable and peaceful development of the world community. We call upon our fellow countrymen who are living beyond the borders of the em pire to establish a similar committee and to closely cooperate with us towards the reali zation of our common goal. We ask Paruir Airikyan to be our representative abroad and to assist in the formation of this committee. We are convinced that our nations will achieve freedom and we hope that we will attain this in the near future and without violent means. Vilnius, January 28, 1989. SIGNATORIES: 1. Union for the National Self Determination of Armenia — Mekhak Gabrilian; 2. Struggle for the Survival of Armenia — Vaan Ishchanian; 3. Society of St. Illia the Righteous — Merab Kostava; 4. Society of Illia Chavchavadze — Tariel Hviniashvili; 5. National Union of Lithuanian Youth — Sakris Bushkavicius, Paulus Vaitekunas; 6. National Independence Party of Estonia — Lahle Parek, Ants Zyndas; 7. Lithuanian Freedom League — Algemantas Valtrusis, Antanas Terleckas; 8. Pre-Founding Fraction of the Ukrainian Helsinki Union — Bohdan Hrycaj, Ivan Makar; 9. Latvian National Independence Movement — Anta Rudzite; 10. Informal Latvian National Front — Ints Zalitis; 11. Byelorussian club “ Pahonya” and the newspaper Byelorussian Tribune — Serzhuk Makhay; 12. National Democratic Party of Georgia — Georgiy Achelya; 13. Lithuanian Committee for the Defense of Political Prisoners — Petras Tidzikas. 1 Ukrainian Helsinki Union Press Release No. 51 CAROLLING UKRAINIAN-STYLE Renewing the national tradition of Christmas carolling, a group of young people from Kyiv’s “Hromada” society joined up with religious faithful who were worship ping Christ in the Volodymyr Cathedral on Christmas Eve (January 6). As usual, the dress of the carollers and the sweet-sounding singing attracted increasingly more people to the group. An improvised national choir of some 500 people was soon formed. In the middle of the crowd the carol singers raised an eight- pointed blue and yellow (colours of the Ukrainian national flag) star with a steel tryzub (Ukrainian national symbol). People from all around asked them to carry on singing and gave the collector pyrohy (pies), sweets and money. This festive occasion of spiritual unity, which lasted for a long time, did not appeal to the guardians of the order of stagnation. So-called “people in civilian dress” began to move in closer to the group of carollers and demanded in a rough manner that they take down the tryzub. At this point the people showed extraordinary solidarity: they surrounded the singers in a tight circle and did not let the aggressive agents through. “Leave them alone”, the people shouted, “this is our culture! And the tryzub is the symbol of St. Volodymyr”. But the agents and uniformed militia did not stop. Then the group of carollers, together with the 500-strong spontaneous choir, walked from the Volodymyr Cathedral to the Khreshchatyk. The singing sounded wonderful, symbolic: “Grant freedom, return good fortune to our glorious Ukraine...”. On the corner of Leontovych street the procession of people was halted by a cordon of militia. The chief of Kyiv’s Lenin district militia, Kondratiuk, began to threaten a young participant of this festive occasion, Yaroslava Danylenko, that if the people did not stop singing in the street he would punish her for the organisation of this unsanctioned demonstration. The people answered the militia chief Kondratiuk with resolute and justified shouts of “Hooligans! Clear the road!”. Several militiamen set themselves upon the carollers and a certain major, who would not give his name, broke the tryzub. To avoid a clash with the hooligans in epaulettes, the carollers, together with the faithful, returned to the Volodymyr Cathedral. Yaroslava Danylenko and Vadym Dyvnych thanked the people for the protection they had given them from the attackers and for their wholehearted support for national traditions. Everywhere shouts of “Down with Shcherbytskyi! Enough stagnation! Their time is over!” could be heard and the festive singing continued in even greater harmony. Then the carollers with their blue and yellow star, which had survived the attack, went off to extend Christmas greetings to notable Ukrainian cultural activists. Elderly women and children, young girls and grey-haired men — the whole street — escorted them to the bus. The carol singers promised to return on January 13 (Ukrainian New Year’s Eve). And the officials who are without a conscience and without kith and kin, learned a lesson from history: the people did not follow them, but those who worship God, who practice the customs of their fathers. 2 THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF LEVKO LUKYANENKO An autobiography of the long-term political prisoner of Soviet Russian prisons and concentration camps, Ukrainian lawyer Levko Lukyanenko, recently reached the West. The autobiography, written by Lukyanenko in May of last year, according to his own words is not complete, since it is not about past history, but about the present. In addition, circumstances force him to keep quiet about several early facts, names, and moments from the lives of political prisoners. Levko Lukyanenko was born on August 24, 1928, and has spent over 25 years in Soviet Russian prisons and concentration camps. He was first arrested and sentenced to death in May 1961 for membership in the Ukrainian Workers’ and Peasants’ Union, which aimed for Ukraine’s secession from the USSR by peaceful struggle. His death sentenced was commuted to 15 years of imprisonment. In January 1976 he was releas ed after serving 15 years in Vladimir prison and in strict regime concentration camps, but was denied the right to practice his profession as a lawyer. He was re-arrested on December 12,1977 and sentenced to 10 years’ strict regime camps and 5 years’ exile for participation in the work of the Ukrainian Helsinki Group, writing samvydav articles and human rights activities