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Part 1 of The Year in Review pages 5-13

ThePublished U by thekrainian Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal W non-profit associationeekly Vol. LXXXI No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 $1/$2 in Ukraine ANALYSIS: Yanukovych’s new Cabinet: it’s all in the “family” Will Ukraine and friends learn lessons from disappointing 2012?

by Oleg Varfolomeyev Eurasia Daily Monitor The year 2012 was a disappointing one for Ukraine. In the field of foreign policy, Kyiv failed to either convince the European Union to sign an associ- ation and free trade agreement or persuade Russia to cut the gas prices that the ailing Ukrainian economy can barely afford to pay. Domestically, in the mean- time, a parliamentary election was botched; conse- quently, more power was concentrated in the inner circle of President Viktor Yanukovych who moved closer to authoritarianism, while the opposition became more toothless and more xenophobic. There are chances to reverse some of these worry- ing trends in 2013. The West, whose opinions Kyiv, Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine unlike Minsk or Moscow, has not yet learned to disre- Ukraine’s new Cabinet of Ministers meets on January 9. gard, could help with advice, more understanding and more resolution where needed. by Zenon Zawada “The family’s influence was enhanced at the expense of independent business structures,” said Oleksander Paliy, Ukraine and the EU initiated the text of the Special to The Ukrainian Weekly Association Agreement in March 2012 and of its free an independent political observer and author on Ukrainian trade clauses in July, but the EU delayed the docu- KYIV – Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych wasn’t politics and history. ments’ signing. European Commission President Jose required to appoint a new Cabinet of Ministers after the Among the big businessmen who found out they Manuel Barroso said in September that he saw no October 28, 2012, parliamentary elections. Nevertheless, weren’t big enough were Petro Poroshenko ($1.3 billion), political conditions for the signing until Ukraine dem- he used the opportunity of a new parliamentary majority Sergey Tigipko ($785 million) and Borys Kolesnikov (esti- mated wealth $470 million), all of whom lost their Cabinet onstrated its commitment to democracy by conducting to do some reshuffling. a free and fair election in October and addressed the seats. The result is a Cabinet that includes representatives of issue of justice in the trials of the prominent opposi- Though Mr. Firtash managed to keep several business tion leaders former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko the biggest billionaire sponsors of the Party of Regions – associates near the levers of power, he also lost out. Mr. and former Internal Affairs Minister Yury Lutsenko Rinat Akhmetov (estimated wealth $25.6 billion) and Yanukovych replaced Firtash associate Yurii Boiko with a (Interfax-Ukraine, September 15, 2012). The West Dmytro Firtash ($3.2 billion) – but above all further family insider, Eduard Stavytsktyi, as energy and coal enhances the influence of the Yanukovych business clan, (Continued on page 14) experts said. (Continued on page 2) Ukrainian stars shine at Washington gala by John Kun are in Ukraine. The event was emceed by the unique and gracious team of former WASHINGTON – The U.S.-Ukraine Ambassador Roman Popadiuk and Cynné Foundation, in cooperation with the Simpson, an Emmy and Edward R. Murrow Embassy of Ukraine in the U.S., hosted award-winning anchor for ABC 7 News in “Ukraine in Washington 2012,” its second Washington. annual conference and gala awards dinner. The Rev. Volodymyr Steliac, pastor of St. Through the conference, the U.S.-Ukraine Andrew Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral in Foundation seeks to provide a clear and Silver Spring, Md., led the prayer of thanks- open discussion regarding Ukraine on giving in English and Ukrainian. A local many topics. The date of the event, area choir, Spiv-Zhyttia (Living in Song), November 30-December 1, was chosen to provided a stirring rendition of the nation- commemorate the overwhelming vote for al anthems of Ukraine and the United Ukrainian independence in 1991. States. The conference, “Leadership in a Global Welcoming remarks were made by U.S.- World,” attracted approximately 250 peo- Ukraine Foundation President Nadia ple to the Omni Shoreham Hotel and The McConnell and Ukraine’s ambassador to the Capital Hilton. The gala awards dinner, United States, Olexander Motsyk. Greetings “Celebrating People of Ukraine and Their were also extended on behalf of the visiting Achievements,” attracted over 300 people. Ukrainian delegation by Sergiy Arbuzov, The evening program included an Igor Y. Rykov governor of the National Bank of Ukraine, awards dinner with “Star of Ukraine” pre- “Star of Ukraine” awardees (from left): Maksim Chmerkovskiy of “Dancing with the who was unable to attend in person. sentations in several categories made to Stars,” Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, American Naval officer and former NASA astro- individuals from Ukraine or whose roots naut, and Dr. Lubomyr Romankiw, inductee of the National Inventors Hall of Fame. (Continued on page 3) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

Banners calling for Tymoshenko’s release appear in Paris, Prague and Amsterdam Batkivshchyna denies offshore funding ernment said on December 17, 2012. He Interfax-Ukraine Ms. Tymoshenko was unfurled on the Eiffel said that the countries of the EU and the Tower in Paris and on the Dam Square in KYIV – The Batkivshchyna party on Customs Union account for about a third of KYIV – Representatives of the Kyiv Amsterdam. December 20, 2012, denied allegations Ukraine’s trade turnover, so Kyiv is interest- branch of the Batkivschyna Party have “The Kyiv branch of the party called on about its offshore financing, claiming that ed in cooperation with both associations. this information is not supported by facts. hung banners calling for the release of all residents of Kyiv who leave Ukraine to “We are currently in talks with the Russian The party made this statement in response Ukrainian opposition leader and former support the initiative and promised to give Federation, Belarus and Kazakhstan. We to media reports regarding an investigation Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in Paris, banners with Yulia Tymoshenko to every- must find ways to communicate with the into the sources of Batkivshchyna’s funding. Prague and Amsterdam, according to a one who turns to the branch,” read the Customs Union in order to avoid problems “The statement on the alleged financing of report posted on the party’s website on Batkivshchyna party statement. such as those arising at the moment,” Mr. the Batkivshchyna party at the expense of Azarov underscored. (Ukrinform) January 8. As previously reported, at the end of conversion centers is complete nonsense, In the midst of New Year holidays, a ban- November 2012, the Rome mayor’s office not backed by any fact or document. This is Female deputies better educated ner with the inscription “No political put up a portrait of the jailed former prime another batch of lies to discredit the main repression – freedom for Yulia” appeared minister of Ukraine on the facade of its opponents of the government,” the state- KYIV – The level of education among on the central square in Prague. headquarters as a sign of support for the ment noted. Batkivshchyna has called on women in the Ukrainian Parliament of the In addition, a banner with a depiction of opposition leader. the Procurator General’s Office (PGO) to seventh convocation is higher than that of stay away from political life, as a law their male colleagues, it was reported on enforcement agency should do. According December 18, 2012. Svitlana Herashchen­ko, Akhmetov, Ukraine’s most influential busi- to the Kommersant Ukraine newspaper, the an expert with the project Gender Yanukovych’s... nessman, who has been a member of the PGO launched an investigation into the Monitoring of the Parliamentary Election Party of Regions and is widely believed to sources of the party’s funding via accounts 2012, disclosed this during a roundtable in (Continued from page 1) be among its chief sponsors. of offshore companies. If this information is Kyiv. “It is known that every fifth member of confirmed, the party could be liquidated by Parliament does not have a higher education. production minister, a key position that Several of Mr. Akhmetov’s most trusted a court order. (Ukrinform) At the same time, only one of the 43 women manages Ukraine’s energy sector. executives represented in the Cabinet, most notably Oleksander Vilkul, who was tapped elected to Parliament has secondary educa- Mr. Boiko instead became a vice prime Ukraine-EU summit in February as vice prime minister for infrastructure, tion, and all the rest have higher [education],” minister with unclear responsibilities, utilities and maintenance. Ms. Herashchenko said. (Ukrinform) though he retained access to the highest KYIV – The Ukraine-European Union Since 1997, Mr. Vilkul has been a high- officials. summit will be held in Brussels on Ukrainians earn more, work less ranking executive at Metinvest Holding, February 25, it was reported on December All in the family Ukraine’s largest steel production and min- 17, 2012. This date was agreed upon in a KYIV – According to a report by the ing company, which is solely owned by Mr. International Labor Organization on wages It was widely speculated that Prime telephone conversation between President Akhmetov. and employment after the 2008 economic Minister Mykola Azarov, 65, would be Viktor Yanukovych of Ukraine and the pres- Ihor Prasolov, the newly appointed min- ident of the European Commission, Jose crisis, the population of Ukraine began to replaced by a Yanukovych family insider, ister of economic development and trade, Manuel Barroso. According to the Ukrainian work less, but salaries increased. According the 36-year-old Serhiy Arbuzov who was served between 2000 and 2005 as the gen- president’s press service, the parties also to December 12, 2012, press reports, after appointed by President Yanukovych in eral director of System Capital discussed a wide range of questions about the crisis of 2008, labor productivity December 2010 to chair the National Bank Management, the giant holding company bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and growth was minus 1 percent and real wage of Ukraine. for Mr. Akhmetov’s extensive industrial and the EU. (Ukrinform) growth was 2 percent. That is, after the cri- Yet Mr. Yanukovych decided to keep Mr. mining assets. sis (2008 to 2011) Ukrainians began to Azarov in place, instead appointing Mr. Mr. Prasolov replaced Mr. Poroshenko, Kyiv interested in EU and Customs Union work less efficiently than before the crisis. Arbuzov, a Donetsk native, as his first vice Before the crisis (1999 to 2007), salary in who had no relations to Donbas business. KYIV – Ukraine is interested in coopera- prime minister. However, Ukrainian politi- Ukraine grew at about the same rate as in Mr. Kolesnikov, who has close relations to tion with both the countries of the Customs cal observers said that won’t be for long, as the neighboring states. The real growth Mr. Akhmetov, was replaced by Volodymyr Union and the European Union, Prime Mr. Arbuzov just needs a little practice rate was 16 percent, while labor productiv- Kozak as infrastructure minister. Minister Mykola Azarov said in an interview before taking the reins. ity increased by 7 percent. At the same Mr. Kozak previously served as an execu- on the First National TV channel. “Our “Arbuzov’s appointment as first vice time, in most countries the gap between tive in Lemtrans, Ukraine’s largest privately country is located between the two entities, prime minister means that definitely we’ll wages and productivity increased not in owned rail transport company, also the which by their nature and their status are have a new prime minister next year,” said favor of employees. In the period 1999-2011, property of Mr. Akhmetov. customs unions. Both here and there we Volodymyr Fesenko, a veteran political average labor productivity in developed need to find interaction and opportunities observer and board chairman of the Penta Don’t forget Russia countries more than doubled, but the growth for the development of our economy, for of wages did not keep up. (Ukrinform) Center for Applied Political Research in In 2010, Mr. Yanukovych appointed an mutual trade and implementation of vari- Kyiv. “He’s undergoing an internship now, unprecedented number of Russian natives ous cooperation projects,” the head of gov- (Continued on page 14) and it’s only a question of time and when it to high-ranking and sensitive government will happen – in the spring or fall of 2013.” positions, and this time around proved no At that point, the Cabinet’s entire core different. will consist of representatives of the Pavlo Lebediev, a Russian native, Yanukovych family. replaced Dmytro Salamatin, another The Ukrainian Weekly FOUNDED 1933 “We’ll have a large official Cabinet and a Russian native, as defense minister. small, unofficial Cabinet, which will consist “In the Soviet Union, you had to have at An English-language newspaper published by the Ukrainian National Association Inc., of representatives of the ‘family’, which will least several generations of family in the a non-profit association, at 2200 Route 10, P.O. Box 280, Parsippany, NJ 07054. determine the foundation of the country’s Russian empire just to become an officer,” Yearly subscription rate: $65; for UNA members — $55. socio-economic policies, above all finan- Mr. Paliy said. “All relatives were received Periodicals postage paid at Caldwell, NJ 07006 and additional mailing offices. cial.” as to whether they were born on land that (ISSN — 0273-9348) This core in the Cabinet directly repre- was occupied by foreigners at any point. To The Weekly: UNA: senting the Yanukovych family interests give your staffing policy over to a foreign Tel: (973) 292-9800; Fax: (973) 644-9510 Tel: (973) 292-9800; Fax: (973) 292-0900 has been identified by observers as the “Big country is the worst – it’s a complete sur- Six,” consisting of Messrs. Arbuzov and render of independence.” Postmaster, send address changes to: Stavytskyi, Internal Affairs Minister Vitalii But even some of Mr. Yanukovych’s The Ukrainian Weekly Editor-in-chief: Roma Hadzewycz Zakharchenko, Finance Minister Yurii Ukraine-born ministers threaten the 2200 Route 10 Editor: Matthew Dubas Kolobov, and Agrarian Policy Minister nation’s independence, even openly P.O. Box 280 Mykola Prysiazhniuk. expressing their contempt for the Parsippany, NJ 07054 e-mail: [email protected] Mr. Yanukovych even created a new Ukrainian people and their language. Revenue and Duties Ministry to be led by Most notable is returning Education, The Ukrainian Weekly Archive: www.ukrweekly.com another trusted associate, Oleksander Science, Youth and Sports Minister Dmytro Klymenko, who rounds out the Big Six. Tabachnyk, whose reappointment observ- The Ukrainian Weekly, January 13, 2013, No. 2, Vol. LXXXI “Their integration into the government tes- ers identified as either the latest lame Copyright © 2013 The Ukrainian Weekly tifies to the complete loss of trust by attempt to indulge the Kremlin, or a buck- Yanukovych to outsiders,” wrote Serhii ling before its will. Leshchenko, one of Ukraine’s most recog- “The concept of ‘public opinion’ means ADMINISTRATION OF THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY AND SVOBODA nized political reporters. “He agrees to little to Yanukovych,” said Sergiy Taran, trust with his future only those with whom board chairman of the Sotsiovymir Center Walter Honcharyk, administrator (973) 292-9800, ext. 3041 he earned money during these last years in for Sociological and Political Research. “The e-mail: [email protected] government.” evidence of that is Tabachnyk’s appoint- Walter Honcharyk, advertising manager (973) 292-9800, ext. 3040 fax: (973) 644-9510 ment despite all the negativity that sur- Keeping Rinat satisfied e-mail: [email protected] rounds him. Moreover, it’s a sign of Mariyka Pendzola, subscriptions (973) 292-9800, ext. 3042 Mr. Yanukovych didn’t consider stepping Yanukovych’s hope that he’ll be able to e-mail: [email protected] on the toes of Donetsk native Mr. reach some agreement with Russia.” No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 3

Igor Y. Rykov U.S.-Ukraine Foundation staff with Maksim Chmerkovskiy from “Dancing with the Stars.” From left are Ambassador Roman Popadiuk, chairman of “Ukraine in Washington 2012”; Markian Bilynskyj, USUF vice- Ambassador Roman Popadiuk and Cynne Simpson, masters of president for field operations; Yuliya Solovey, USUF program director; Mr. Chmerkovskiy; Peta Murgatroyd, ceremonies for “Ukraine in Washington 2012.” “Dancing with the Stars,” John Kun, USUF vice-president; and Nadia McConnell, USUF president. at the time of his induction was misidenti- Ukrainian stars... fied as being from “Kiev, Russia.” - in establishing the National Space Agency and effort to charity work, which includes Space and Science (Continued from page 1) of Ukraine (NSAU) and is generally recog St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children, nized as the founder of the Ukrainian Space cancer charities and children’s hospitals in Program. The NSAU celebrates its 20th Los Angeles. - In her remarks, Ms. McConnell stressed • Leonid Kadenyuk is the first astronaut anniversary this year. Mr. Horbulin later boardMr. memberChmerkovskiy for the non-profitstarted the organiza- Rising that the purpose of the evening was to cele of independent Ukraine to fly in space. He went on to become President Leonid Stars Dance Academy and is currently a- flew on NASA’s Columbia space shuttle in Kuchma’s national security advisor and a- brate the people of Ukraine and their- 1997 as part of the international mission consistent advocate of Ukraine’s Euro- tion DanceTeamUSA, which aims to encour achievements “because since Ukraine - STS-87. He holds the rank of Ukrainian Air Atlantic integration. He is currently work age youth to take up dancing. His company, became independent there is much to cele- Force major general. After the STS-87 flight, ing at the National Academy of Sciences of Maksim Chmerkovskiy Productions, orga- brate about the people of Ukraine” and trast to the stream of negative news and Mr. Kadenyuk continued his Ukrainian Ukraine.Arts and entertainment nizes performances all over the world. Mr. those whose roots are in Ukraine – in con space program career in the National Space Chmerkovskiy, a world-renowned choreog Agency of Ukraine. In 2002 Mr. Kadenyuk rapher, has worked with famed director images that have come to define official was elected to the Verkhovna Rada, where • Taras Lewyckyj is the artistic director- Franco Dragone revamping and updating Ukraine. She noted the “dark decades of the he served until 2007 and was a member of of Philadelphia’s Voloshky Ukrainian Dance the immensely popular performance show, Soviet Union when the Kremlin airbrushed the parliamentary Committee on Defense- Ensemble. Mr. Lewyckyj oversees perfor “Le Rêve,” at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Ukraine and her citizens out of existence – tudeand National for receiving Security. an award in Washington mances that combine Ukrainian and After the award presentations, there was to the outside world they were Russians Mr. Kadenyuk expressed his warm grati- American dance aesthetics, culled from a spectacular performance by the Voloshky and Soviets.” folkloric traditions and contemporary Dance Ensemble followed by dessert and “Star of Ukraine” awards were presented Business and technology not least because he views the U.S. as a sec styles. His creative endeavors have included dancing to the music of the Hrim band. The in several categories: ond homeland that allowed him to fulfill his international fashion design, product dancing went on until the early hours of dreams of going into space. Mr. Kadenyuk’s design, advertising, brand development, Sunday, December 2. award recognized his contribution to U.S.- and film and video production. Mr. The U.S.-Ukraine Foundation extended • The QuadSquad, winner of the Ukraine space cooperation. Lewyckyj’s designs have been exhibited special gratitude to Ambassador Motsyk Microsoft Imagine Cup 2012, Sydney, • Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper, NASA worldwide and his artwork is displayed in and staff from the Embassy of Ukraine in Australia, is a group of students – Maksim astronaut, was born in St. Paul, Minn. Capt. numerous museum and private collections. the United States for their work on- Osika, Valeriy Yasakov, Anton Pesternikov, officer.Stefanyshyn-Piper is a U.S. Navy officer and He worked directly with Giorgio Armani as “Ukraine in Washington 2012.” from the Donetsk Computer Academy Krok. is also a qualified and experienced salvage a designer in Rome, Italy. The sponsors and partners for the pro They were selected as grand prize winners numerous honors and awards, such as the achievementSince Mr. and Lewyckyj recognition became has increased artistic gram included Bingham, Clinton School of from among 75 teams in Microsoft’s annual Capt. Stefanyshyn-Piper has received director of Voloshky, the troupe’s level of Public Service – University of Arkansas, international IT competition. QuadSquad Coca-Cola, National Projects Agency – demonstrated briefly its winning design: a- Meritorious Service Medal, two Navy to such an extent that it is now cooperating Invest Ukraine, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher glove that translates sign language into Commendation Medals, and two Navy- with such masters of folk dance as Mark LLP, IRASET Group LLC, McConnell & audible speech using motion detection, fin Achievement Medals. She flew on two Space Morris. Mr. Lewyckyj’s travels to Ukraine Associates, Monsanto, Natalie Shear & ger flexes and many other variables. Shuttle missions during which she complet dance.involve working with the Zoriany dance Associates, Open World Leadership Center, Bluetooth connects the glove to a Windows ed five spacewalks. She ranks as 25th in the- company to recreate historic works of Orbital Sciences Corp., Raytheon, Self- Mobile device and produces a synthesized all-time list of space walkers by duration. Reliance New York Federal Credit Union, voice. Thanks to this Ukrainian ingenuity, Her award recognizes her ongoing con • Maksim Chmerkovskiy of “Dancing System Capital Management, Bush School those with no voice will now literally be tributions to the positive image of Ukraine with the Stars” a native of Odesa, Ukraine,- of Government and Public Service, Heritage recenable to speak. and active involvement in the Ukrainian worked through a serious injury handicap Foundation of 1st Security Savings Bank, • Dr. Lubomyr Romankiw, who was American community. in his youth to reach success and achieve The Livingston Group, Ukrainian American tly inducted into the National • Volodymyr Horbulin was instrumental ment. Mr. Chmerkovskiy devotes much time Coordinating Council and UkrAutoProm. Inventors Hall of Fame, has been with IBM for 50 years. An IBM Fellow and researcher at IBM’s Thomas J. Watson Research Center,- ieshe andhas organizations,been honored mos with many awards and is active in various professional societ t notably serving- as the chief scout for Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization, which this year cele brated its 100th anniversary in Lviv. Dr. Romankiw’s roots are in Zhovkva, Lviv Oblast, Ukraine, and he immigrated to Canada in 1948. After being accepted to MIT he moved to the U.S. in 1957 and in 1962 began his work at IBM. He is listed as co-inventor on over 65 U.S. patents, is the author of 150 papers and has- edited 10 volumes of various technical- Leonid Kadenyuk, the first astronaut of symposia. Much of his work involves mag independent Ukraine, who flew on netic materials, reflective displays and cop NASA’s Columbia space shuttle in 1997 per plating. His accomplishments are too as part of the international mission STS- 87, accepts his “Star of Ukraine” award numerous to list. In March of this year, he on the occasion of the 20th anniversary Team QuadSquad, the winner of Microsoft Imagine Cup 2012, (from left): Valeriy was inducted into the National Inventorsho of the National Space Agency of Ukraine. Yasakov, Anton Pesternikov and Maxim Osika. Hall of Fame. Dr. Romankiw joins another inductee from Ukraine, Igor Sikorsky, w 4 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

NEWS AND VIEWS The things we do ... by Orysia Paszczak Tracz Ihor Bardyn a great choice to lead Ukrainian National Federation of Canada A century-old “vinshuvannia” Serendipity is wonderful. You never Druhi dochekaty know when something will just arrive out Vinchuyeme vam. of the blue. The following e-mail was one Loose translation: We are wishing you, of those: sir, to celebrate these holidays [well], and “Vinshuyu Vas! Hello. I found an article for many years [from now], and to be you wrote for The Ukrainian Weekly that around for the next ones. This we wish was published a few years back. My name you. is Don Billey. My grandfather emigrated to Anna Billey Rife, the now 93-year-old the U.S. from Uzhgorod [sic] in the early proud matriarch of the family and the old- 1900s, and my father (deceased) was one est of the remaining five of a total of 10 of 10 children. We have an annual reunion children, wrote that she does know the where we sing the words and melody to a meaning of the words of the vinshuvannia song that must be the Vinshuyu Vas. There and doesn’t think it is the same one. “I have are four of the ten members of the first sung that song since I was able to talk… I generation still living, but none of them am in good health and have a good memo- remember the translation to the song, and ry. … I was married to Le Roy Rife. For 62+ none of them (much to our disappoint- years together we raised five children, all ment) have passed the language of ‘the old married and have families and are scat- country’ on to our generation. I have a tered across the country. I am self-taught The 2012 interns of the 2012 Canada Ukraine Parliamentary Program. video posted of my dad and three of his and had no formal education. So please by Ustyna Mykytyuk, Olya Shudrak Siberia) and, of course, Ukraine. We experi- sisters singing the Vinshuyu greeting post- forgive any errors in my writing to you.” enced Canadian democracy and personally and Oleksandr Zheka ed on YouTube, and was curious to know if No errors, dear Aunt Anna. This is one witnessed the transparency of government, this is the same song... or in the genre of amazing woman, emailing at 93. I hope to Speaking on behalf of the 33 interns of the strong bond between each member of songs... you referred to in your article on meet her one day – she feels like family the 2012 Canada Ukraine Parliamentary Parliament and the electorate. We did not the caroling. Transliterated, the words (as already. Program we greet with enthusiasm and find any oligarchs or men of wealth domi- we sing them today) would look some- Don continues about his family: great pride the news that our director, Ihor nating the Canadian Parliament. We wit- thing like this in English: “Grandpa originally settled in southwest- Bardyn, was elected president of the nessed a beautiful country with a normal “Ween chu yameh ern Pennsylvania. He worked in the coal Ukrainian National Federation of Canada on society and smiling citizens. We very much Pa nekas deh mines. Grandma contracted TB and had to November 10, 2012, in Edmonton, Alberta. would like to duplicate this for Ukraine. See sesat keh be taken care of, so they moved to South The Ukrainian National Federation of We are truly indebted to Ukrainian Saht ko eteh Bend, to be near her aunt, so she could Canada could not have found a better can- Canadians for this opportunity of a lifetime “Enomno hodakoo help take care of her. That was in the mid didate to lead the organization for the next to work side-by-side with members of Dru hedo e cheketeh 1930s. There were 10 children in all in three years. Mr. Bardyn is enthusiastic Parliament in the center of government of Ween chu yameh!” dad’s generation – five boys and five girls. about the youth and university students of this great country. “It was a song taught to us by my great After WW II my uncle George, the oldest – Ukraine, and he will bring this enthusiasm We return to our homeland, re-energized Aunt Margaret, who was a sister to my named after grandpa – wanted to be sure to his work in the UNF. He believes in and re-focused on what we must do to bring grandfather and also emigrated with him. the family stayed connected and wanted to Ukraine’s youth and Ukraine’s democratic our homeland into the ranks of free and Thank you for any help you can offer.” have opportunity to share Christmas with future, and his 22-year commitment to the independent and prosperous nations. What a treasure! A greeting from a cen- all of his siblings and their kids, so he start- CUPP program demonstrates his vision, his We thank Canadians, our MPs and our tury ago, still sung reverently every year by ed the reunion. We’ve been meeting on strength and steadfastness to pursue a goal fellow workers in the House of Commons the family, even though they do not really January 1 at the same place since about and achieve it. and wish our director, Mr. Bardyn, health know what it means. This reminded me of 1947 or 1948 – no one could remember This strength is needed by the UNF and strength to continue the work he is the “The Omega Glory” Star Trek episode for certain when we started, only that it organization in its mission as the oldest doing and his new undertaking on behalf of (Season 2, Episode 23) where the “Pledge was a couple of years after WW II. Two of Ukrainian organization in Canada. The the Ukrainian National Federation of of Allegiance” is recited – barely recogniz- the brothers and one sister moved away illustrious leaders of the UNF of the past, Canada. ably – by the inhabitants of planet Omega through the years – one brother to we are sure, would approve of the choice of IV. It was very important, but no one knew Chicago, one to Arizona, with the sister and Mr. Bardyn as president. what it had originally meant. her husband joining him and his wife We came to Canada in mid-November Ustyna Mykytyuk (University of Lviv), “I was just amazed when I found your there… 2012 to complete two-month internships in Olya Shudrak (Humboldt University of reference to the Vinshuyu Vas song – I As I understand, my grandmother and the Canadian Parliament. We came from 20 Berlin) and Oleksandr Zheka (National remember my great aunt Margaret shout- grandfather did not meet until they were different universities situated in nine differ- University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy) are ing it out and singing the song at New in the United States, although their villages ent countries. We are university students 2012 Canada Ukraine Parliamentary Year’s, and learning the song as a child,” were close to one another, both in the foot- from Belarus, Georgia, Russia (distant Program coordinators. Don wrote. “We still sing it, although, as hills of the Carpathian mountains, but on you noted, the pronunciation has suffered opposite sides of the river that was some- through the years of memory! … Can you times used as the border for Slovakia and LETTER TO THE EDITOR translate what they are singing? Or has the Ukraine. We have a few old photos, but not transliteration/pronunciation lost too a lot. Again, we’re piecing together this his- much?” tory as well.” Camp Conti. Subsequently that camp was Yes, I replied to Don, this is a vinshuvan- One member of the Billey [Bilyi] family About DP camps also closed and the refugees were trans- nia from the Carpathian region, obvious has kept up with family ties in Ukraine, and ferred to other Ukrainian camps. The third camp was located in Ettlingen, from the words “pane gazdo.” “Gazda” is has traveled to the ancestral village long forgotten Baden-Baden in the Reinland Kaserne. the “hospodar,” – the proprietor or man of Patskanovo, near Uzhhorod. Dear Editor: All three camps had active Ukrainian the house and homestead. Then I tried to As so many times before, this vinshu- political, social and religious life, includ- figure out what was being sung – and con- vannia story shows how powerful tradi- For completeness I would like to add ing schools, Plast and SUM organizations. the names of three smaller and long for- sulted with linguist Dr. Andrij tion is, and how it continues over time and Seamingly because of their small size gotten Ukrainian displaced persons Hornjatkevyc. This is as close as we came place. The Billeys are so fortunate to have they have been omitted from the stan- camps. to figuring out this particular greeting (the this treasure as part of their family story. dard lists. With this note I would like to The first, formed immediately after third line was problematic): correct this omission. Vinshuyeme, pane gazdo the war, was located in Landau, Kreis Si sviatky sviatkuvaty Orysia Tracz may be contacted at orysia. Waldeck. It was disbanded in 1947 and Vsevolod Kohutiak, M.D. I na mnoho roku [email protected]. its population transferred to Korbach to Haverford, Pa.

To subscribe to The Ukrainian Weekly, Visit our archive online: call 973-292-9800, ext. 3042 www.ukrweekly.com No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 5

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW

In Ukraine: elections, decline of democracy arliamentary elections were the biggest news from PUkraine in 2012. But there was news also regarding the prosecution of opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Ukraine’s further slide in terms of democratization, which could not but have a neg- ative effect on the country’s relations with the West. (Indeed, many observers said that Kyiv’s relations with the West are now worse than they have ever been during the 21 years of Ukraine’s renewed independence.) And then there were the numerous steps taken by President Viktor Yanukovych and his Cabinet to de-Ukrainianize Ukraine. In short, there was not much in the way of good news from Ukraine. Parliamentary elections Preparation for the October 28 elections of a new Verkhovna Rada got off to a good start on January 22, when Ukraine’s pro-Western opposition leaders signed an agreement to unite their candidates into a single list to compete for single-winner, single-mandate districts in the elections in order to take the reins of government away UDAR from the Donetsk clan before it consolidated power even The opposition in Ukraine’s new Parliament, elected on October 28, is led by (from left) Ukrainian Democratic further. Half of Ukraine’s 450 members of Parliament are Alliance for Reform Chair Vitali Klitschko, Batkivshchyna Party Chair Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Svoboda Party elected in single-winner, single-mandate districts (the so- Chair Oleh Tiahnybok. called majoritarian system), while the other half are cho- sen via closed-list voting for political parties, which will Front for Change and UDAR representatives to local elec- “Ruin is overcome, stability achieved!” was among the need to surpass a 5 percent barrier (the so-called propor- tion commissions, denial of registration for a candidate main themes of the Party of Regions during this year’s tional system). Opposition leaders didn’t unite for the from the Svoboda party, as well as allegations of vote-buy- parliamentary campaign. Billboards bearing this slogan closed list race, which involves parties pre-selecting and ing, fake exit polls, “carousel” voting and ballot-stuffing. sprung up throughout Ukraine, bearing photographs of ranking their candidates to qualify for Verkhovna Rada Undeterred by the dirty election in Obukhiv, Mr. high-rise apartment construction, cheering soccer fans seats proportionally distributed based on the vote per- Lutsenko said in a statement released on March 30 to the and new tram cars. Stability was the theme when centage earned. delegates of the 11th Congress of the Batkivschyna Party President Yanukovych addressed the congress, specifically The opposition leaders declared their intentions for a that his party, People’s Self-Defense (PSD), supported Ms. referring to the need to prevent the opposition from using united front at the annual Unity Day commemoration held Tymoshenko’s call for uniting the opposition and had the October 28 election “for the latest destabilization” of on January 22 on St. Sophia Square in the heart of Kyiv, the merged with the Batkivschyna Party. “I believe that the the country’s social and political situation. “We won’t same place where 93 years earlier, on January 22, 1919, the path of unification is the path to victory. …The victory of allow any more political wars and confrontation,” he said. leaders of the Ukrainian National Republic declared a short- truth, the victory of Ukraine and its people,” Mr. Lutsenko “Ukraine needs political stability and socio-economic lived unification with the Western Ukrainian National said in his statement, which was read by his brother development. In this, I see the mission of the Party of Republic. It was also the 94th anniversary of the January Serhiy. He also stressed the need for “uniting into a single Regions and all progressive, democratic forces.” 22, 1918, proclamation of an independent Ukrainian state. team of democrats of Batkivschyna, Front for Change, If stability was the incumbents’ theme, then persecution Arseniy Yatsenyuk, the leader of the Front for Change, UDAR and other opposition parties of the Dictatorship and rights violations were the themes for Batkivshchyna. called for the opposition to limit itself voluntarily to only Resistance Committee and purification of the party ranks.” The first candidate on its closed list ballot was former the three leading forces that stood a chance of achieving 5 The People’s Self-Defense leader also called for the nomi- Prime Minister Tymoshenko, who was sentenced in percent – his own party, the Batkivschyna party led by nation by the opposition forces of single candidates for the October 2011 to a seven-year prison sentence. As a result, imprisoned former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and post of Kyiv mayor, Verkhovna Rada chair, the head of a the law didn’t allow her to run for office. Former Internal the nationalist Svoboda Party led by Oleh Tiahnybok. Vitali democratic government and, in the future, the president. Affairs Minister Yurii Lutsenko, who was serving a four- Klitschko, leader of the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for At the United Opposition Forum held on St. Michael’s year prison sentence, was fifth on Batkivshchyna’s list. The Reform (UDAR), declared that he would sign the Common Square in Kyiv on May 12, Batkivshchyna proclaimed its Central Election Commission announced on August 8 that Action Agreement of the United Opposition of Ukraine. campaign platform, and Svoboda’s leader was there to it wouldn’t accept Ms. Tymoshenko and Mr. Lutsenko as Speaking exclusively in Ukrainian, Mr. Klitschko assured express his support. UDAR meanwhile, released a state- closed list candidates. Depicted alongside Ms. Tymoshenko the crowd that the opposition had to unite “to defend ment calling for unity. It was the Batkivshchyna party – on the billboards was Arseniy Yatsenyuk, the former chair Ukrainian independence, to defend the rights and free- Ukraine’s most popular opposition party – that took the of the Verkhovna Rada who agreed to merge his party, the doms of its citizens, and to return the country onto its initiative of calling for unification after its founder, Ms. Front for Change, with Batkivshchyna. Mr. Yatsenyuk was democratic and European path to development.” Tymoshenko, had issued a statement on Unity Day second on the closed party list. There was much interest among European states in (January 22) urging a merger as the best means of chal- As October 28 drew near, our Kyiv correspondent report- Ukraine’s upcoming elections. The Parliamentary lenging the current authoritarian government. “History ed that violent incidents and allegations of systemic fraud Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) at its meeting on gives us a chance again to build a worthy country, and we marked the last week of campaigning. There were numer- January 27 in Strasbourg, France, approved a resolution on should understand finally that we’re competing for a ous reports of Ukrainian election observers being denied “the functioning of democratic institutions in Ukraine” and country at these elections, not for our own parties,” the their certificates or of delays in their issuance, of civic orga- called for charges against former members of government, statement said. “The issue isn’t about the make-up of the nizations’ observers not being allowed to review voter reg- including Ms. Tymoshenko, to be dropped. It asked the next parliamentary session, but the country’s future for isters, of observers and journalists being subjected to president of Ukraine to consider releasing them and to the next several decades. The main thing is not to bring assaults and wrongful arrests, of campaign workers being allow them to compete in the upcoming parliamentary several dozens of our allies to the Verkhovna Rada, but to arrested without cause, etc. This did not bode well for elec- elections. Sixty-nine delegates voted in favor of the resolu- bring the country out of darkness.” tion day. At the same time the Ministry of Foreign Affairs tion, eight voted against and 14 abstained. “The Assembly The May 12 rally confirmed that five pro-Western par- reported that the parliamentary elections would be moni- expresses its concern with regard to the criminal proceed- ties took Ms. Tymoshenko up on her merger proposal – tored by 3,797 international observers, representing 35 ings initiated under Articles 364 (abuse of office) and 365 the Front for Change led by Mr. Yatsenyuk, the People’s international organizations and hailing from 28 countries. (exceeding official powers) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine Movement (Rukh) of Ukraine led by former Foreign Affairs The first reports about the elections were, well, not against a number of former members of government, Minister Borys Tarasyuk, the Reforms and Order Party led encouraging. What wasn’t clear was whether the elections including the former internal affairs minister, Mr. Yurii by National Deputy Serhii Sobolyev, the For Ukraine party would meet international standards, as determined by Lutsenko; the former acting minister of defense, Mr. Valerii led by National Deputy Viacheslav Kyrylenko and People’s Western-sponsored election observing organizations. Ivashchenko; and the former first deputy minister of jus- Self-Defense party led by Mr. Lutsenko. The merger creat- Indeed the leading authorities, such as the Organization tice, Mr. Yevhen Korniichuk; as well as the former prime ed a single leading opposition party –Batkivshchyna – for for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), declined minister, Ms. Yulia Tymoshenko,” read the document. closed list (proportional) voting. to offer a pass-fail judgment. Instead, most assessments A harbinger of what was to come in the nationwide A poll released at about the same time as the rally indi- conformed to the OSCE’s reproachful statement on elections for the Verkhovna Rada was the March 18 vote cated voter preferences for the October elections: October 29, which stated that election day itself was con- in the Kyiv Oblast town of Obukhiv. It was a nasty battle Batkivshchyna, 27 percent; Party of Regions, 23 percent; ducted more or less in line with democratic standards, yet replete with fraud accusations, intimidation and viola- the campaign beforehand and tabulation afterwards fell tions, both before and on the day of the local vote to elect a 6 percent; and Ukraine Forward, 5 percent. (Other parties short. “Considering abuse of power and the excessive role City Council chair to succeed a Party of Regions member hadUDAR, less 10 than percent; 5 percent Сommunist support.) Party, 7 percent; Svoboda, of money in this election, democratic progress appears to who had died in a car accident the previous October. The The election campaign officially got under way on July have reversed in Ukraine. This we deeply regret,” Walburga day’s antics included an assault committed by a Party of 30, when the two leading political forces in Ukraine the Habsburg Douglas, the head of the OSCE Parliamentary Regions national deputy, disputes about the vote count Party of Regions of Ukraine and the Batkivshchyna party, Assembly delegation, said at a press conference in Kyiv. and contradictory election law, denial of registration for held their congresses to present their candidates. “Certain aspects of the pre-election period constituted a 6 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW

side the Lukianivska prison in Kyiv to demonstrate their support and to draw media attention to her plight. RFE/RL reported on January 3 on the conditions in which the for- mer prime minister was being held in Kharkiv: “Prison offi- cials say Ukraine’s jailed opposition leader, Yulia Tymoshenko, is being held in a prison cell under 24-hour camera surveillance with the lights permanently on.” Later that month, the United States and Germany expressed concern about Ms. Tymoshenko’s health and sought a medical exam by independent experts to assess her condition. The U.S. and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) voiced their opinions about the judicial system that convicted Ms. Tymoshenko in vio- lations of Western standards of democracy and rule of law. Germans doctors who examined the prisoner on February 14 said she had a serious illness, although they did not immediately disclose a diagnosis. A day later, Canadian experts, part of the international medical commission that included nine Ukrainian doctors and two Germans, also conducted a check-up. The Canadian team included Drs. George Rewa, Peter Kujtan and Christine Derzko. Vadym Kolesnichenko, a national deputy from the Party of Regions, wasted no time in casting doubt on the profes- sionalism and objectivity of the Canadian doctors because, as he wrote on a blog post, at least two of them are “Ukrainian-speaking diasporans.” Presumably, these UNIAN/Vladimir Andreev “Ukrainian-speaking Canadians” would produce findings Supporters of Yulia Tymoshenko gathered on April 19 in Kharkiv, where a district court began hearings into a new that would benefit Ms. Tymoshenko politically. case against the opposition leader – this one related to the United Energy Systems of Ukraine that she once headed. Though the German and Canadian doctors were careful in their public statements after the medical examinations, step backwards compared with recent national elections. UDAR, 37 from Svoboda, 32 from the Communist Party, 43 official Ukrainian reaction was swift. Ukrainian members Voters had a choice between distinct parties; election day independent deputies, and seven representatives of other of the international medical commission, which was head- was calm and peaceful overall. Voting and counting were parties. ed by First Vice-Minister of Health Raisa Moiseenko, said assessed mostly positively. Tabulation was assessed nega- The election marked the rise of new political forces: Mr. the opposition leader did not need surgery and called tively, as it lacked transparency,” she noted. Klitschko’s new party, UDAR, won 13.96 percent of the reports of her suffering from a herniated disc unfounded. All the major Western institutions, including the U.S. vote, according to results in the party list voting; the Incredibly, just two days after the exams, officials from the government, echoed the OSCE’s judgment that the elec- nationalist party Svoboda, which had been on the scene Ukrainian Health Ministry declared that Ms. tions as a whole were a “step backwards” for Ukraine in its for a number of years, got 10.44 percent support – well Tymoshenko’s health was satisfactory and that she could development as a democratic state. Canada’s election past the 5 percent threshold needed to be in Parliament – soon be ready for a prison work assignment. observation mission, headed by Sen. Raynell Andreychuk for the first time giving it seats in the Verkhovna Rada. However, Ms. Tymoshenko’s lawyer, Serhiy Vlasenko, noted: “Based on observations to date, we can report that Other parties that made it into the new Rada were the rul- said the foreign physicians had characterized her condi- the execution of the October 28 election did see some ing Party of Regions (30 percent), Batkivshchyna (25.54 tion as grave and suggested she needed surgery to repair a irregularities in a number of areas which undermine a percent) and the Communist Party (13.18 percent). herniated disc in her lower spine. RFE/RL later reported fully fair election. These irregularities, in and of them- Our man in Kyiv, Zenon Zawada, observed that that German doctors said she required complex treatment selves, do not necessarily impede a free and fair democrat- Ukraine’s voters had proved that the majority opposes the in a specialized facility in observance of international stan- ic expression of the will of the Ukrainian people. However, nation’s drift into the orbit of the Russian Federation, dards. Commenting on the controversy, Ms. Tymoshenko’s the environment in which these elections were held which is aiming to launch a Eurasian Union supranational daughter, Eugenia, told the BBC’s “Hardtalk” on February underscores the fact that election day is but one important political structure with Ukraine. The elections confirmed 21: “The foreign doctors issued their preliminary diagno- piece of a larger process that includes legal and structural also that the majority of Ukrainians oppose the corrupt, sis and, while they are preparing their full recommenda- factors equally important to electoral fairness.” authoritarian rule of the Party of Regions of Ukraine tions and diagnosis, the Ministry of Health in Ukraine con- The Ukrainian World Congress issued a statement on (PRU). The three leading opposition parties earned 49.9 tinues manipulating and falsifying the diagnosis like they October 30 in which it cited its concern “about incoming percent of the votes in closed party list (proportional) vot- have for all these three months.” reports from its short-term observers of election law vio- ing, compared to the 43.2 percent earned by the Russian- Three famous women of Ukraine – author Lina lations during the vote tabulation process at District oriented PRU and the Communist Party of Ukraine (CPU), Kostenko, singer Nina Matvienko and politician Election Commissions (DECs).” The UWC mission issued a as reported by the Central Election Commission. Oleksandra Kuzhel – on February 16 sent an open letter call to all international observers to continue the monitor- The new Rada convened on December 12 in what was a addressed to the 20 most influential women of the world, ing of the Ukrainian parliamentary elections, and return to raucous inaugural session punctuated by a brawl between calling for help in securing the release of political prison- DECs where vote tabulations continued. “The systemically the opposition forces and the Party of Regions. Its first ers in Ukraine, including former Prime Minister slow tabulation of Precinct Election Commission protocols acts confirmed the nominations of Mr. Azarov to return as Tymoshenko, and suggesting that imposing sanctions on at the DECs may result in falsifications and affect the will prime minister and Volodymyr Rybak as the new chair of the leadership of Ukraine can make it more responsive to of the Ukrainian electorate,” the UWC underscored. On Parliament. Mr. Azarov was re-elected with 252 votes by a international appeals to release Ms. Tymoshenko and November 1 the UWC cited extensive delays in the vote majority that consisted of the Party of Regions, the other political prisoners. “We, the women of Ukraine, ask count in a number of closely contested single-mandate Communist Party and oligarchs from single-mandate dis- you and all prominent women of the world to help us in districts, pointed to the exclusion of observers from DEC tricts. Mr. Rybak was elected with 250 votes. Both are stal- our common mission to defend our shared values of proceedings and violent incidents at some DECs, and warts of the PRU. Ihor Kaleniuk of the CPU was elected humanism and human rights. Help us to defend our liber- called on the Central Election Commission to investigate first vice-chair of the Rada. The Communists were allowed ty.” The letter was sent to German Chancellor Angela these suspicious delays. to form a parliamentary faction in exchange for their Merkel, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Ukraine’s officials, however, praised the elections. cooperation with the PRU in what was a violation of rules Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite, Vice-President of Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said, “These elections were that state a faction cannot be formed by a party that does the European Commission and European Union High the best in the history of our independent country. In not have a national deputy elected in a single-mandate Representative for Common Foreign and Security Policy these elections a minimum number of violations were district. It was that decision which precipitated the worst Catherine Ashton, President Cristina Fernandez of fixed. The elections of 2012 – this is very serious progress conflicts on the Rada’s opening day. The maneuver pre- Argentina, President Dilma Rousseff of Brazil, President on transparency, democracy and fairness.” Foreign Affairs vented the PRU from being outnumbered by three opposi- Tarja Halonen of Finland, U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, Minister Kostyantyn Gryshchenko reacted to the U.S. State tion factions. Significantly, factions determine representa- President of Liberia and 2011 Nobel Peace Prize winner Department’s assessments of the vote as “a step back- tion on parliamentary committee and working groups, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, General Secretary of the National wards from progress made during previous parliamentary one of which determine the daily agenda. League for Democracy (Burma) and 1991 Nobel Peace elections and the 2010 presidential election” by saying its Tymoshenko et al Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and others. points “simply don’t reflect reality.” Soon thereafter, Mr. Lutsenko, the former internal On November 11 the Canadian government became the The first news related to the Tymoshenko case was affairs minister who led Ukraine’s 200,000-plus national first major Western institution to condemn the parliamen- actually about her husband, Oleksander Tymoshenko, police force for most of the Orange era, was sentenced to tary election result, declaring that the vote didn’t meet inter- who was granted asylum in early January by the Czech four years’ imprisonment on February 27 for usurping national, democratic standards. “Canada is distressed by the Republic. He had applied for asylum at the end of 2011 state property and exceeding his authority. He was also lack of openness, transparency and timeliness that has char- due to “increasing pressure on the opposition leader banned from holding public office for three years. The ver- acterized vote tabulation,” said the statement issued on through her family.” dict was harshly condemned by Western governments and behalf of Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and Ms. Tymoshenko, meanwhile, was imprisoned in a penal leaders as being politically motivated. “We are disappoint- International Cooperation Minister Julian Fantino. colony in Kharkiv, where she had been transferred from a ed with the verdict against Mr. Lutsenko, which signals the Indeed, the election results could not be established in pre-trial detention center in Kyiv on December 30, 2011. continuation of trials in Ukraine that do not respect inter- five constituencies. Thus, 220 national deputies, instead of Why Kharkiv? Opposition activists said the move was national standards as regards to a fair, transparent and 225, were elected in single-mandate districts: 185 from made in order to cut off her contacts with the public and independent legal process,” said a statement issued jointly the Party of Regions, 101 from Batkivshchyna, 40 from the news media. Her backers had repeatedly gathered out- by Ms. Ashton, the European Union’s high representative No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 7

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW for foreign affairs and security policy, and Stefan Fule, the On August 29, the Ukrainian Specialized Supreme Court Freedom House also paid a visit to Ukraine in early EU commissioner for enlargement and European rejected Ms. Tymoshenko’s appeal of her October 2011 April to assess the country’s state of democracy and Neighborhood Policy. conviction for abuse of office and subsequent sentencing human rights. The delegation met with President PACE President Jean-Claude Mignon in a February 28 to seven years’ imprisonment. Her lawyers argued that Yanukovych and his administration, as well as with two statement called on Ukraine’s authorities to free Mr. negotiating the gas deal with Russia was a political act imprisoned opposition leaders, Ms. Tymoshenko and Mr. Lutsenko. He said the former internal affairs minister that in no way represented criminal action. Ms. Lutsenko. “We recognize that there has been progress in “was not given a fair trial, and the charges of which he was Tymoshenko herself did not attended the appeal trial, as some areas, including legislation on NGOs, the criminal found guilty are absolutely no justification for a prison she had been receiving treatment for back trouble in a procedure code, open government and access to informa- sentence.” He underscored: “The fact that former Prime state-run hospital since May. Defense lawyer Serhiy tion,” said David J. Kramer, president of Freedom House. Minister Yulia Tymoshenko is still in detention and that Vlasenko accused the court of acting under pressure: “At the same time, we are very concerned by the selective Yurii Lutsenko has been convicted both strengthen the “This ruling was Viktor Yanukovych’s decision: to hold prosecution of key opposition figures, the ‘family-ization’ feeling that the charges against both these opponents of Yulia Tymoshenko, his main political opponent, in prison of corruption, and stress the importance of free and fair the government are of a political nature. It is unacceptable for as long as possible, without any evidence, without any elections in October 2012 for Ukraine’s democratic devel- for former members of the government of a Council of explanation, without any sense.” Mykola Tomenko, vice- opment.” In July, Freedom House released the special Europe member-state to be prosecuted for political rea- chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament and a Tymoshenko report “Sounding the Alarm Round 2: Protecting sons. This practice is contrary to the rule of law and takes ally, told RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service after the decision: “… Democracy in Ukraine” in which it noted “a persistent Ukraine further away from the principles of our organiza- it is obvious to politicians and experts that this political decline in democratic principles and human rights in tion, as well as the European integration to which this case, which was launched with the goal of removing Ms. Ukraine, a development which is especially worrying in country aspires.” Mr. Mignon minced no words when he Tymoshenko from the political process, ended in the court light of the country’s upcoming parliamentary elections in called on the Yanukovych administration to release both of appeals also as a political case.” October 2012.” It was a follow-up to the original opposition leaders posthaste. On November 13 a Kharkiv court postponed the tax- “Sounding the Alarm” report released in 2011. Later in the year, on August 31, the press office of the evasion trial of Ms. Tymoshenko, which was related to her More bad news for Ukraine came in Freedom House’s State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine reported that Mr. leadership in the 1990s of the private company United annual index “Freedom of the Press.” Freedom House Lutsenko had been transferred to Mena Penal Colony No. Energy Systems of Ukraine (UESU). It was the 10th time downgraded Ukraine from a rating of 56 to 59 (with 0 91 in the Chernihiv region to serve out his prison term. He the trial had been postponed since April due to the defen- being most free and 100 not free) due to media control. had been held in Kyiv’s pre-trial detention since December dant’s health woes. According to the report, “Many national media council 26, 2010. members are loyal to government official and media Former Ukrainian Environment Minister Heorhii Exactly one month later, a U.S. law firm released its analysis of the Tymoshenko trial, finding that her defense tycoon Valery Khoroshkovsky, and media owners increas- Filipchuk, another member of the Tymoshenko Cabinet, ingly face political pressure regarding content.” At a rating was sentenced on April 5 to three years in prison for abuse was “compromised to a degree that is troubling under Western standards of due process.” But it said her convic- of 59, Ukraine remained at partly free; anything above 60 of office and authority. The issue at the heart of the case is considered not free. Both Ukraine and the new country against him was the signing of an agreement with a law tion was supported by the evidence presented during her trial. Ukraine’s government paid for the report by the firm of South Sudan had ratings of 59, ranking them 130th firm on consultations to the Environment Ministry during globally. the consideration of a dispute regarding the cancellation of of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. Its lead author is Gregory Craig, U.S. President Barack Obama’s former The situation for Ukraine’s press deteriorated further an agreement on the energy development of the Black Sea during the year when the Yanukovych administration shelf signed between the Ukrainian government and Vanco White House counsel. U.S. Department of State spokesman Victoria Nuland on December 14 expressed concern about launched a wave of repressions directed against the inde- International Ltd. The former minister’s wife, Natalia pendent media. Editors in Ukraine said the government Filipchuk, told reporters that her husband had been sen- the report: “By confining themselves to simply looking at the paper trial records and ignoring the larger political wanted to silence criticism of its authoritarian rule, partic- tenced to three years in jail for causing financial losses for ularly in the run-up to the October 28 parliamentary elec- context in which the trial took place, our concern is that the state: “Losses were inflicted on the state due to the fact tions. “The persecution of the Levyi Bereg website and the Skadden Arps lawyers were obviously not going to find that he transferred funds to AstapovLawyers for the ren- TVi television channel, which was cut from the country’s political motivation if they weren’t looking for it. The dered services, although there were all the permits – from 11 largest cities, is only the beginning of a total slashing of report also fails to consider the selective nature of the tri- the Finance Ministry, the state treasury, etc.” the entire information sphere, for the sake of known indi- als, those who were chosen for trials against Tymoshenko A third Tymoshenko ally, former acting Defense viduals being in power for eternity,” said Ihor Losiev, an and her – and former members of her government.” Minister Valerii Ivashchenko was sentenced on April 12 to assistant professor of cultural studies at the National The year ended just as it began, with news about the five years in prison for abuse of office. Mr. Ivashchenko University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy. was found guilty of signing a financial readjustment plan Tymoshenko case. The hearing on the activities of UESU On September 3, when President Yanukovych regarding the sale of the integrated property complex of was moved to January 18, 2013. addressed the World Newspaper Congress convening in the state-owned Feodosiya Shipbuilding and Mechanical Kyiv, he was interrupted by about a dozen journalists pro- Plant in Crimea in November 2009. The land-privatization Freedoms, or lack thereof testing media censorship in Ukraine. Mr. Yanukovych did deal allegedly cost the state budget nearly $10 million. At the beginning of the year, Freedom House released not react as the journalists rose from their seats and held The former Cabinet official had been held in Kyiv’s pre-tri- its report on “Freedom Around the World 2012.” The glob- up signs reading “Stop censorship” and “Media oligarchs al detention center since his arrest on August 25, 2010. al survey of political rights and civil liberties during the serve the authorities,” but security guards violently ripped On April 24, Ms. Tymoshenko announced she had begun year 2011 noted a “troubling backslide” in Ukraine and the signs out of the hands of some protesters. World a hunger strike to protest her treatment by the authorities. listed the country among 26 that registered net declines in Newspaper Congress spokesman Larry Kilman told the “I stopped taking food on April 20 with one aim: to draw freedom. Freedom House said Ukraine was one of three Associated Press, “By choosing Ukraine as our venue, we the attention of the democratic world to things happening “more promising young democracies” exhibiting declines in the center of Europe, in the country named Ukraine. The stand in solidarity with the local independent press and in freedoms. draw international attention to the situation here.” He question is not the destiny of modern political prisoners – Arch Puddington, vice-president for research at we are ready to go our way, whatever it may be, decisively added, “The protesters were a very powerful reminder Freedom House, explained: “The steepest decline in the that there is still much to be done.” On the eve of the con- and with dignity. The problem is different, the problem is institutions of freedom has taken place in Ukraine, where to understand immediately that the president of Ukraine is gress, an open appeal – signed by prominent journalists, a series of negative developments was punctuated by the human rights and civic activists, writers and others – to steadily and pedantically building a concentration camp of conviction of opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko on violence and lack of rights in the great European Ukraine, President Yanukovych and the international community dubious charges. In the past two years, Ukraine has was released on the website www.telekritika.ua. The supplemented by an unprecedented enrichment of the rul- moved from a status of free to partly free and suffered ing family and its entourage by misappropriating state September 2 statement demanded that Ukrainian authori- deterioration on most indicators measured by Freedom resources. We must realize without delay the tragic state of ties stop the systematic destruction of the independent House.” The report, which examined political and civil affairs and stop this immediately, using all Ukrainian and channel TVi. rights in 195 countries and 14 territories around the international means and influence.” Things could have gotten even worse for the news world, also noted: “Ukraine’s political rights rating On April 28, the German doctors who had examined media. The ruling Party of Regions backed a bill to re- declined from 3 to 4 [on a scale of 1-7, with 7 being the her at the Kachanivska penal colony, held a press confer- criminalize libel (Soviet laws had sanctioned prison terms ence in Berlin and announced that Ms. Tymoshenko was worst rating] due to the authorities’ efforts to crush the for libel), and the Verkhovna Rada passed in its first read- suffering from a chronic herniated disc that required opposition, including the politicized use of the courts, a ing on September 18. The proposed bill would have treatment beyond the borders of Ukraine. As a result of crackdown on media and the use of force to break up amended the criminal and criminal procedure codes; its concerns about the opposition leader’s health and demonstrations.” Its rating on civil liberties remained at 3, provisions stipulated that journalists, policemen and judg- Ukraine’s treatment of the prisoner, German President the same as in the previous year. Those numbers put es could face from two to five years’ imprisonment for Joachim Gauch cancelled a visit to Ukraine for a summit of Ukraine in the same league as Bosnia and Herzegovina, libel. On October 2, after days of protests by journalists Central European presidents that was to be held in Yalta Georgia, Kenya, Mozambique, Papua New Guinea and the and media activists, the bill was withdrawn. Soon after- on May 11-12. Ultimately, the summit was postponed Solomon Islands. wards, however, word came that the PRU might still suc- because leaders of Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, It must be recalled that Freedom House had already ceed in re-criminalizing libel if it continued to dominate Italy, Slovenia, Estonia, Croatia and Latvia refused to par- downgraded Ukraine from ”free” to “partly free” in the the Parliament after the October elections. previous year’s report. In 2011 that decline continued. ticipate in the event. Association agreement with EU And, already there was talk of European political lead- “Now, Ukraine is back to where it started when its inde- ers boycotting the Euro 2012 soccer championships in pendence was re-established in 1991,” The Ukrainian On March 30 it was reported that Ukraine and the Ukraine. In May it was reported that the European Union Weekly wrote in its editorial of February 5. “Yes, in two European Union had initialed the Association Agreement had decided against calling for a bloc-wide boycott of short years, Mr. Yanukovych and his cronies have man- that is supposed to provide a new framework for their European soccer championship games scheduled to be aged to undo years of democratic development. But relations. Ukrainian Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo held the next month in Ukraine. However, the bloc’s 27 what’s even more alarming is that Mr. Yanukovych contin- Klimkin and EU negotiator Miroslav Lajcak initialed only a foreign ministers meeting in Brussels agreed to put on ice ues on his path, ignoring the advice and warnings of portion of the agreement: the political section plus the talks over Ukraine’s deepening political association and Ukraine’s allies in the West, not to mention the well-being first and last pages of the free trade part. The rest was to economic integration with the EU. of Ukraine’s citizens.” be signed later, and the actual signing of the agreement 8 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW was expected to take place no earlier than 2013. The EU chairman of the Penta Center for Applied Political Ukrainian Constitution. Outside the Rada building that was taking a pause in order to see whether the parliamen- Research in Kyiv. “We’re seeing the president forming his day, over 3,000 protesters were met by a like number of tary election scheduled for October 28 would be free and enforcement chain of command.” supporters of the PRU, who were bused in from southern fair and for Kyiv to have more time to solve the general Also in February came the astounding revelation that and eastern regions of the country and reportedly were problem of selective justice and the specific problem of the cost of buying a national deputy in Ukraine was about paid to participate in the demonstration. Police used tear former Prime Minister Tymoshenko and her imprisoned $500,000. Roman Zabzaliuk, a national deputy of the Yulia gas against the protesters. allies. Reacting to the development, The Economist Tymoshenko Bloc, conducted a sting operation via which On July 3 the PRU attempted to pass the controversial opined: “…the ‘initialing’ is little more than a tuft of grass he discovered that one could make that amount by selling language law on its second reading. The ruling coalition on the barren steppe of EU-Ukrainian relations. Plans to out to the ruling Party of Regions. His weapon was a hid- claimed it had passed the law, but the opposition protest- sign the agreement at an EU-Ukraine summit last den recorder that recorded his negotiations with Ihor ed that it wasn’t on the daily agenda – an egregious viola- December dissipated after Yulia Tymoshenko, the opposi- Rybakov, a deputy who abandoned the Tymoshenko Bloc tion of the parliamentary voting rules. Furthermore, there tion politician, was imprisoned for abuse of office during to form the parliamentary faction called Reforms for the were three votes regarding the bill: the first vote for the her time as prime minister.” The Economist added, “it Future’s Sake, which collected opposition refugees – paid bill drew only 219 votes in support and thus failed; a sec- could take years for the EU-Ukraine agreement to pass – refugees, as it turned out. Furthermore, Mr. Rybakov’s ond vote to return to voting on the bill’s inclusion on the especially now that Ms. Tymoshenko is facing further bribes allegedly got the stamp of approval from President agenda succeeded with 241 votes in favor; and a third criminal charges.” Viktor Yanukovych. Mr. Zabzaliuk claimed he got $450,000 vote, which opposition leaders said could have been only No one believed the words of Ukraine’s leaders when in cash leading up to his January 10 announcement that on whether to include the bill on the agenda, garnered they repeated ad nauseum that Kyiv’s priority is Euro- he was joining Reforms for the Future’s Sake and that he 248 votes, which the PRU claimed was a vote for the bill integration – not when Kyiv’s actions clearly rejected the got another $50,000 afterwards. He said he would deposit itself. “We fooled them like kittens,” PRU National Deputy “European choice.” On March 4 the foreign ministers of the funds for the Batkivshchyna party’s parliamentary Mikhail Chechetov of the PRU bragged. The disputed vote five European states published a joint commentary titled election campaign. Mr. Rybakov responded to the revela- undermined the stability of the coalition government as “Ukraine’s Slide” in the opinion section of The New York tions by claiming that the recordings were forgeries. Rada Chair Lytvyn asked Parliament to accept his resigna- Times, marking five years since the EU and Ukraine had According to media reports filed in late February, ram- tion and refused to sign the bill – something the parlia- begun negotiations on the Association Agreement. “By pant corruption in Ukraine under the Yanukovych admin- mentary chair must do before it can be forwarded to the now, we should have been able to celebrate a signed and istration could threaten the country’s ability to pay its for- president for his action. ratified agreement, and a successful Ukraine making prog- eign debt, and Bloomberg News warned that Ukraine In an open letter to President Yanukovych, 10 heads of ress toward even closer cooperation with the EU. Instead, could be next in line for a sovereign default. “The level and Ukrainian Churches and religious organizations called the we pass a new milestone on what is becoming a much too scale of corruption are so extraordinary that they deter- adoption of the law on state language policy a path to the long and painful road,” wrote Sweden’s Carl Bildt, Britain’s mine the state’s economic policy rather than merely influ- precipice, to civil conflict and disintegration of the state. William Hague, the Czech Republic’s Karel ence it,” said Andriy Novak, head of the Committee of They called on the president to veto the bill. “We have to Schwarzenberg, Poland’s Radoslaw Sikorski and Economists of Ukraine and vice-rector of the European note with regret that our voice was not heard. On July 3 Germany’s Guido Westerwelle. “We are at an impasse in University in Kyiv. Indeed, Ukraine was ranked 152nd out the contradictory language bill was declared passed by the the association process,” they noted; “the way forward… of 183 states on the Corruption Perceptions Index Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine,” reads the letter. “The people has in effect been blocked by Ukraine’s actions.” released at the end of December 2011 by Transparency who consider this event a victory are seriously mistaken. The reaction from Ukraine? Once again, Kyiv opted to International; it scored the worst among European coun- It is a Pyrrhic victory. It is a ‘victory’ over civil understand- deliver words that Europe long ago ceased to believe. In a tries and lower than the Russian Federation, Tajikistan ing and basic principles of parliamentarianism which are letter to the editor published on March 20, Foreign Affairs and Uganda. by definition to reflect social compromise.” The letter’s sig- Minister Gryshchenko wrote: “Ukraine is committed to natories underscored that “the deepening of the language Furor over language policy European values. We are not sliding but striding toward division combined with the political confrontation is fur- full integration into the European Union.” He claimed that Over 1,000 activists of nationalist and opposition ther deepening the social divide and shaking the founda- ambitious reforms were under way in Ukraine and that groups picketed the Verkhovna Rada on May 24 to protest tions of the Ukrainian statehood.” The religious leaders the trials of former Ukrainian officials “are very similar to the draft law on language policy proposed by the Party of called on Ukraine’s president “not to sign the explosive indictments of former officials across Europe (trials in Regions of Ukraine (PRU) that would make Russian the language bill No. 9073, veto it and return it to the Croatia or Iceland are examples).” Mr. Gryshchenko also second official language in 13 of Ukraine’s 27 regions. Verkhovna Rada for a real, full-value consideration and noted President Viktor Yanukovych’s commitment to hold According to the bill, the native language of at least 10 per- development of a balanced decision.” free and fair elections, “in accordance with our new elec- cent of the population in every Ukrainian region would be Meanwhile, the Parliament rejected Mr. Lytvyn’s tion law, based on European standards and endorsed by given the status of a regional language. The PRU argued request and four separate proposals from the opposition both coalition and opposition parties.” that this was in line with the European Charter for to amend the language bill on July 30. Ukraine had started the talks on the association and Regional or Minority Languages. The opposition feared On July 31 Mr. Lytvyn signed the bill. However, the next free trade agreement with the European Union in March that the measure would introduce de-facto Russian- day it was reported that he had registered his own version 2007. Kyiv hoped the agreement would be signed in Ukrainian bilingualism. Inside the Parliament building, a of the language bill in Parliament – a version that pro- December 2011, ratified by the EU in 2012 and take effect fistfight broke out between deputies of the opposition and posed cancelling the law on language policy that he had in 2013. the PRU. signed the previous day. The main difference between Mr. The bill “On the Foundations of State Language Policy,” Lytvyn’s bill and the language law approved by the Rada De-Ukrainianization sponsored by Vadym Kolesnichenko and Sergei Kivalov of was that the chair’s bill said recognizing a regional lan- The administration of President Yanukovych continued the Party of Regions, is similar to legislation registered in guage would be determined on the basis of a population to dismantle the legacy of the Orange Revolution and the Parliament in September 2010 by coalition deputies but census and that the initiation of such a step would be car- work of his predecessor, Viktor Yushchenko. Early in the never voted upon. The biggest distinction was that any ried out by collecting citizens’ signatures. At the same year it was reported that in the waning days of 2011, on references to the Russian language were replaced in the time, Mr. Lytvyn’s bill, in contrast to the one sent for sign- December 30 to be exact, Mr. Yanukovych had issued a new legislation with the term, “regional or minority lan- ing to the president, noted that the official language, presidential decree eliminating Freedom Day, marked guages.” The new bill also included a clause that defined Ukrainian, shall be used on the entire territory of Ukraine November 22 as a national holiday introduced by Mr. one’s native language as “the first language that an indi- for the exercise of powers by public and local authorities. Yushchenko to commemorate the start of the Orange vidual mastered in earlier childhood.” The Kivalov- On August 8 President Yanukovych signed the law on Revolution in 2004. The new decree combined Freedom Kolesnichenko bill would give Ukrainian citizens the right language policy. He also instructed the Cabinet of Day with Unity Day, celebrated on January 22, which to use the Russian language in place of Ukrainian – instead Ministers to form a working group involving the public, became Unity and Freedom Day. The decree also created of alongside the official language as stipulated by the prominent educators, scientists and art workers, as well Ukrainian Black Sea Fleet Day on the last Sunday of July to Constitution of Ukraine. as leading experts on language issues, in order to draw up coincide with the Russian Federation’s Black Sea Fleet As reported by our Kyiv correspondent, the Russian and present systemic proposals to improve legislation Day. Observers commented that this was the latest step in language is used extensively throughout state organs, regarding the use of languages in Ukraine. According to an ongoing campaign by the Yanukovych administration including courts, medical institutions, law enforcement the directive, the working group should ensure the com- to eliminate the memory of the Orange Revolution and to and banks. The Ukrainian language was most protected in prehensive development and functioning of the Ukrainian stave off such revolts in the future, and that it served also such state institutions as schools, universities and the language in all spheres of social life throughout the coun- to erase distinctions between the Russian and Ukrainian army, as well as in advertising in the mass media. The pro- try; guarantee the free development, use and protection of armed forces. posed bill would dismantle these remaining safeguards, all native languages of Ukrainian citizens; fulfill the com- Then, in February, it was reported that a former KGB allowing Russian to dominate education and the mass mitments undertaken by Ukraine as part of its interna- agent from the Moscow Oblast of Russia had been media in most cities and oblasts. It would enable the tional treaties on these issues; and ensure the further appointed to head the Security Service of Ukraine. His nation’s Russian speakers to avoid the Ukrainian language introduction of European standards in this area. The appointment swelled the list of native Russians serving in from cradle to grave, commented Oleksander Paliy, a vet- working group also was tasked to draft amendments to the high ranks of the Yanukovych administration, includ- eran political expert from Kyiv. the law on language policy, which were to be submitted ing Prime Minister Azarov, presidential media advisor Igor On June 5 the ruling coalition in the Verkhovna Rada for consideration by the Verkhovna Rada. Shuvalov and Viacheslav Zanevsky, the head of the presi- gave initial approval to the bill. Opposition deputies said The Weekly’s editorial of August 12 commented: “Only dent’s personal security. (The latter two remain Russian they planned to block the vote but claimed that Rada in Viktor Yanukovych’s and the Regionnaires’ Ukraine citizens.) What was of equal concern was that Mr. Kalinin Chair Volodymyr Lytvyn tricked them by switching the bill would Parliament pass a law that clearly violates the was the latest appointee to have personal ties to the to being the first item on the agenda from the third. country’s Constitution; would a law be passed with the Yanukovych family and its business clan. His work at the Coalition deputies snuck through 234 votes in favor of the votes of MPs not present; would the chairman of SBU will be devoted to protecting their business and secu- bill. Only 172 coalition deputies were registered in Parliament, who threatened to resign over the law’s pas- rity, political experts said. “All the key enforcement struc- Parliament that morning, however, which means they cast sage, sign a law that he himself said was deficient and tures today are under the direct control of the president the remaining 54 votes – 226 votes are necessary for a passed with numerous procedural violations; would the and led by people close to either the president, or his simple majority – on behalf of their absent colleagues by president sign that deficient law and yet state that it elder son [Oleksander],” said Volodymyr Fesenko, board using their voting cards. Such a practice violates the should be amended by the Parliament.” No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 9

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The editorial also pointed out that the high commis- sioner on national minorities of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Knut Vollebaek, in July had described the situation surrounding the new language law in Ukraine as “deeply divisive.” Moreover, earlier in 2012 the high commissioner had pro- vided Ukraine’s authorities with an assessment of the law and advised against adopting the bill in its current form. Similarly, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe had said the legislation does not provide a proper balance between development and use of a state language as a unifying factor in society and the development and protec- tion of minority languages. The Weekly’s editorial of August 19 noted: “Ukrainian Independence Day 2012 will be marked in the dark shad- ow of the new law on language policy. ‘Yanukovych has managed to do everything that the Russian emperors and the Soviet general secretaries could not do,’ Oleh Medvedev, a political strategist for the Batkivshchyna party, said in commenting on President Yanukovych’s signing of the law. ‘He has passed a death sentence on the Ukrainian language.’ The law, as Mr. Medvedev explained to ukrainianjournal.com, discourages millions of people from learning the official state language by ‘completely displacing it from all spheres of civil society.’ ” The editorial also commented: “…In yet another sign of Zenon Zawada how much things have changed for the worse, Communist Opponents of the language bill march up Hrushevsky Street toward the Verkhovna Rada on June 5. The banner Party Chairman Petro Symonenko was proposing to hold a reads: “Language, Homeland, Ukraine.” national referendum on the main state symbols of Ukraine, its state emblem and its national anthem.” gus. In late November it was reported that the first section Ukraine is unhappy with the high price Russia’s Gazprom of the containment shelter had been raised. The first stage charges. Europe Ukraine has been attempting to convince Major developments of the operation lifted around 5,000 tons of steel to a pre- Russia to renegotiate the Tymoshenko-Putin gas agree- Other major news from Ukraine during 2012: liminary height of up to 22 meters. The cost of the project, ment. Mr. Boiko said Ukraine was purchasing some 26 bil- which is expected to be completed by 2015, is estimated lion cubic meters (bcm) of Russian gas in 2012, which was at some $1.2 billion. Most of the funding is coming from 1.5 bcm less than the contract for the year. And, Ukraine Andriyivskyi Uzviz on April 7 sparked protest and outrage 40 donor nations to the Chornobyl Shelter Fund run by planned to cut imports further in 2013. Russian govern- among• The Ukraine’s demolition cultural of three vanguard, historic who structures demanded on crimi-Kyiv’s the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. ment and Gazprom officials insisted that Ukraine pay for nal prosecution and fines imposed, as well as the resigna- all the gas it agreed to purchase, whether it accepts the full tion of state officials for giving approvals. Direct responsi- NATO adopted a statement on Ukraine that left the door volume or not. Meanwhile, Ukraine began purchasing gas bility for the knockdown rests on a building firm owned from Germany’s RWE at a price that is $40 to $70 per by Donbas billionaire oligarch Rinat Akhmetov, who open• At to itsfurther summit cooperation meeting with in ChicagoUkraine whileon May noting 20-21, the 1,000 cubic meters cheaper than Russia’s. Naftohaz planned a 10-story office center at the site on the historic alliance’s concern about selective prosecution of the Ukrainy said it paid $430 per 1,000 cubic meters for street. After the outrage, company officials claimed they Ukrainian opposition and underscoring the importance of Russian gas. would build a vaguely defined “art space” instead of the the upcoming parliamentary elections. The NATO state- Andriyivska Plaza office complex. Critics called for a halt ment underscored: “An independent, sovereign and stable to all construction on Andrew’s Descent until a general Ukraine, firmly committed to democracy and the rule of for Victims of the Holodomor with solemn ceremonies plan was drafted to preserve the historical essence of an law, is key to Euro-Atlantic security. Marking the 15th throughout• On November Ukraine. 24 In Ukraine Lviv, for marked example, the Dayresidents of Memory came ancient street that is a romantic hideaway for Kyiv resi- anniversary of the NATO-Ukraine Charter on a Distinctive together at dusk to light candles in memory of the millions dents and must-see destination for tourists. Partnership, we welcome Ukraine’s commitment to killed in the Famine-Genocide of 1932-1933. The day is enhancing political dialogue and interoperability with marked annually on the fourth Saturday in November. The day was also observed in Ukraine’s diplomatic representa- Criminal Procedural Code for the country, its first whole- NATO, as well as its contributions to NATO-led operations tions abroad, including the Embassy in Washington. sale• Ukraine’srevision sinceParliament 1960, onwhen April Stalinist 13 approved holdovers a new in and new offers made. We note the recent elimination of Moscow had last drafted the rules and procedures for Ukraine’s highly enriched uranium in March 2012, which establishing crimes and applying punishment. Rights demonstrates a proven commitment to non-proliferation. law the bill “On an All-Ukrainian Referendum,” which advocates and opposition leaders criticized the parlia- … Noting the principles and commitments enshrined in makes• On it November possible to 27 hold President a national Yanukovych referendum signed to amend into mentary coalition for approving the new code via fraudu- the NATO-Ukraine Charter and the ANP, we are concerned the Ukrainian Constitution, repeal it, pass a new lent voting, in which a handful of deputies cast votes on by the selective application of justice and what appear to Constitution, approve new laws or repeal existing laws. behalf of others who were absent, in violation of the be politically motivated prosecutions, including of leading Previously, only the Parliament could amend the Ukrainian Constitution. No more than 30 coalition depu- members of the opposition, and the conditions of their Constitution, with 300 votes (out of 450). Parliament ties were present throughout the all-night voting session, detention. We encourage Ukraine to address the existing approved the bill on November 6, slightly more than a which concluded after 4 a.m. “The haste with which the shortcomings of its judicial system to ensure full compli- week after the recent elections demonstrated the opposi- Criminal Code was passed demonstrates that the govern- ance with the rule of law and the international agree- tion had more support, thereby ruining the Party of ment doesn’t want cardinal changes in this sphere,” ments to which it is a party. We also encourage Ukraine to Regions hopes of a 300-vote constitutional majority. The Yevhen Zakharov, the co-chair of the Kharkiv Human ensure free, fair and inclusive parliamentary elections this bill’s passage drew fierce criticism from opposition lead- Rights Group, told the Gazeta.ua news site. autumn.” ers, who accused the president of setting the stage to shift Rights advocates said the new code was a step in the the 2015 presidential election from a popular vote to the right direction, but were dissatisfied with its reported the Charter on a Distinctive Partnership between NATO Verkhovna Rada. Holding referenda on provocative issues shortcomings, such as maintaining bench trials and failing and• Ukraine.July 9 marked The document the 15th anniversaryidentified areas of the for signingconsulta- of – such as the state language or federalization – could to reform Soviet practices like transferring all evidence tion and cooperation, and established the NATO-Ukraine threaten Ukrainian statehood altogether, critics said. collected by the defense to the state investigator’s discre- Commission to take work forward. Giving an interview on tion. Coalition deputies ignored more than 4,000 amend- occasion of the anniversary, NATO Secretary General cancelled a scheduled trip to Moscow, where it was feared ments to the proposed code submitted after its first read- Anders noted significant progress in cooperation over he •would At midnight sign an on agreementDecember 18to Presidentjoin the Russian-ledYanukovych ing was approved on February 9. Among the new code’s those years, but added: “There is no reason to hide that Customs Union. The newspaper Kommersant-Ukrayina, a strengths are the elimination of a judge’s ability to refer a the Tymoshenko and Lutsenko cases and others are a Kyiv-based business daily published in the Russian lan- case for further investigation, a tool often used when pros- matter of concern. And a mutual commitment to the rule guage, reported that Ukraine came as close as ever that ecutors failed to present adequate evidence, said Dmytro of law and respect for human rights are also a part of our week to losing its independence as Mr. Yanukovych was Groisman, the coordinator of the Vinnytsia Legal Rights distinctive partnership. And for that reason I see these hours away from discarding Ukraine’s Euro-integration Group. It also prohibits confessions from being submitted cases as a major stumbling block in our relationship, and I future in Moscow. At the Kremlin, Russian President as evidence, which makes it pointless for police to contin- urged the political leadership of Ukraine to get this issue Vladimir Putin was waiting for him with a stack of docu- ue obtaining forced confessions through beatings, he said. resolved as soon as possible.” Speaking about Ukraine’s ments that would have sealed Ukraine’s membership in The new code introduces bails, raises the requirements relationship with the alliance, Mr. Rasmussen noted that the Customs Union, a precursor to the Eurasian Union that for taking suspects into custody, reduces terms spent in at the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest, it was decided is aimed at reviving the Russian empire. The Kyiv-based pretrial prisons and fixes those terms based on the severi- that Ukraine would become a member of NATO. “And that news site Ekonomichna Pravda described a Kremlin ty of the crimes committed. is, of course, an invitation. It is a statement that our door arrangement that resembled a scam. The Russians remains open... But at the same time we fully respect arranged just 15 minutes of discussion between the two the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant on April 26. Known as Ukraine’s decision to pursue what is called non-bloc sta- presidents before the scheduled signing, preventing any the• New The Safeconstruction Confinement, of a containmentit will be supported shelter bystarted an arch at tus. That is for Ukraine to decide.” attempt by Mr. Yanukovych to negotiate only partial con- 105 meters tall, 150 meters long and 260 meters wide. formity to the Customs Union, which was his administra- After it is built, it will be moved over the fourth reactor of appeared on television to speak about plans to reduce tion’s stated goal. No advisors were invited to the 15-min- the facility, which was covered with a concrete sarcopha- Ukraine’s• On November dependence 16 on Minister Russian naturalof Energy gas. YuriiHe also Boiko said ute meeting. 10 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW U.S. and Ukraine: 20 years of relations he year 2012 marked the 20th anniversary of the Testablishment of official bilateral relations between the United States and newly independent Ukraine in 1992. Developing that relationship has been an uphill climb, which turned into a rocky road in 2011 because of what the United States and other Western democracies viewed as the unjust prosecution and imprisonment of Ukraine’s former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and other opposition leaders. And the actions taken by the government of President Viktor Yanukovych in 2012 – reversing what was perceived in the West as a continuing democracy-building process in Ukraine – did not alleviate their concerns. The year did not go by without some positive develop- ments, however. The celebration of the 20th anniversary of relations coincided with the completion of the construction and U.S. Embassy Kyiv moving of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv from the small Kyiv U.S. Ambassador John F. Tefft (right) and dignitaries from the United States and Ukraine cut the ceremonial rib- bon officially opening the new U.S. Embassy compound in Kyiv on February 29. Oblast Communist Party district headquarters building it had occupied to a new, large, specially constructed many opportunities “to define the tenor of its chairman- gation and subsequent imprisonment at the Kachanivska embassy compound. The anniversary was marked on ship.” Among these he mentioned President Yanukovych’s prison near Kharkiv. While it is not necessarily “a dun- January 20 with a gala anniversary concert featuring the statement that Ukraine’s 2012 election “would showcase geon,” Ms. Carr said, “the Yanukovych regime does not Odesa Symphony Orchestra, at which Ambassador John Ukraine’s democratic bona fides.” He also expressed need to use medieval surroundings to get medieval Tefft spoke about the 20-year span of that relationship, America’s “grave concern regarding irregularities in the results.” with all of its “ups and downs,” as he phrased it. judicial process” in the Tymoshenko case, the conditions She also spoke about some of the other former govern- The new Embassy, opened two days later, is better of her confinement and access to medical treatment. ment officials who have found themselves in a similar suited to serve the needs of the governments and citizens The subject of Ukraine’s future entry into the European kind of predicament, among them: former Internal Affairs of the two countries. The compound now accommodates community and not falling back into the Russian sphere of Minister Yuri Lutsenko, former acting Defense Minister all of the major Embassy departments. Before, the eco- Valery Ivashchenko and the son-in-law of the chairman of nomic, consular, information, and the U.S. Agency for influence was another concern often repeated during the year, both by U.S. government representatives and by the Supreme Court. International Development sections were located in sepa- “What we are witnessing in Ukraine is the continuous rate buildings throughout the Ukrainian capital. And the Washington’s influential think tanks. In its annual Index of Economic Freedom report, the prominent conservative abuse of the criminal justice system. Politically motivated new location on Sikorsky Street is noteworthy. It is prosecutions of former government officials, civil society named for Ihor Sikorsky, the world-famous Ukrainian air- think tank The Heritage Foundation gave its in-depth analysis of Ukraine’s foreign policy, noting that while the activists and prosecutions of human rights defenders craft designer who emigrated to the United States in ignore the rule of law,” she said and called on America to 1939. Yanukovych adminstration did not want Ukraine “to fall into the Russian sphere of influence,” its acceptance of the do all that it can “to preserve democracy in my country” The Tymoshenko case $8 billion discount gas deal in exchange for joining and “to speak out, loudly and clearly, so that the people of Russia’s Customs Union, while attractive in the short- my country do not feel abandoned and lose hope.” From the very beginning and throughout the year, Ms. Carr returned to Washington May 17 to testify at however, the name Yulia Tymoshenko dominated the term, would be “a long-term disaster for Ukraine – and for the West.” another congressional hearing about democratic regres- press headlines covering U.S.-Ukraine relations. On sion in Ukraine. This time – before the Commission on January 11 the former prime minister’s Internet website A daughter’s intercession Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki carried the text of a letter received from U.S. Secretary of In her continuing effort to gain her mother’s freedom, Commission) – it was not in person, however, but via the State Hillary Clinton, in which she expressed her disap- Internet televideo program Skype. pointment with the Kyiv Appeals Court decision to uphold Eugenia Tymoshenko Carr came to Washington February 1 to intercede on her behalf in White House meetings Former Ukrainian Internal Affairs Minister Lutsenko’s Ms. Tymoshenko’s conviction and stressed her resolve to sentence to four years of prison also received some criti- with special advisers to the president and vice-president continue advocating her release and that of other impris- cal reaction in Washington: the Helsinki Commission’s and on Capitol Hill with influential members of Congress oned former senior government officials. chairman, Rep. Christopher H. Smith, in a statement for and their staffs. She also testified at a Senate Foreign During a meeting in Vienna of the Permanent Council the Congressional Record, called it “yet another politically Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs hearing on of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in motivated trial,” and on July 13 he introduced a resolution “Ukraine at a Crossroads: What’s at Stake for the U.S. and Europe (OSCE) on January 19, U.S. representative Ian in Congress demanding that Ukraine cease these selective Europe.” Kelly in his remarks focused on Ukraine, a member of the prosecutions. The U.S. Mission to the OSCE also criticized OSCE Troika, along with Ireland and Lithuania. Ukraine is Ms. Carr described to the senators and the packed these politically motivated actions by the Ukrainian gov- scheduled to take over the Troika chairmanship in 2013, hearing room the numerous illegal methods used by the ernment, which raise “serious concerns about the govern- and in the meantime, Ambassador Kelly said, it will have Yanukovych government in her mother’s arrest, interro- ment of Ukraine’s commitment to democracy and the rule of law.” Obama-Yanukovych meeting While there were no official presidential visits in Washington or Kyiv, Presidents Barack Obama and Viktor Yanukovych did have a chance to meet and discuss a few issues at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, on March 27. In a “readout” following that meeting, President Obama’s press secretary said the U.S. president thanked President Yanukovych and the Ukrainian people for the complete removal of highly enriched uranium for their country, calling it “an important milestone for global security.” The press secretary also noted that President Obama “underscored the importance of demonstrating the vitali- ty of Ukrainian democracy by ensuring free, fair and transparent parliamentary elections in October” and that he also raised “U.S. concerns about selective prosecutions of the political opposition.” Clinton-Yanukovych meeting While there were no other U.S.-Ukrainian meetings on the presidential level in 2012, Secretary Clinton met with President Yanukovych during a European security confer- U.S. Embassy Kyiv ence in February in Munich. And Ms. Tymoshenko’s The Odesa Philharmonic Orchestra, with its conductor, Hobart Earle, headline the concert celebrating 20 years of imprisonment was one of the subjects of discussion. U.S.-Ukraine relations that was held in Kyiv on January 2 Commenting on that meeting later during his stopover in No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 11

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW

Kyiv, her assistant secretary of state, Philip Gordon, said larger consular offices in the new Embassy compound, the primary purpose of that meeting was to strengthen where the consular service windows have increased the bilateral partnership in such areas as the economy, from four to 25. The visa application costs will remain at energy, security and democracy, among others. He added, $140. however: “We stressed the importance of free and fair On February 14 the U.S. Embassy reported that and transparent elections next October. And we expressed American families adopted 641 Ukrainian orphans in concerns about the perception of selective prosecutions, 2011 – 190 more than in 2010. The report noted that, most notably in the case of former Prime Minister because of the increasing number of Ukrainian families Tymoshenko.” now adopting orphans in their country over the past few “What Secretary Clinton said to the president is that years, the overwhelming majority of Ukrainian orphans this perception interferes with the full development of the adopted by American families now are older children, relationship we would like to have with Ukraine” and teenagers or those with special needs – those who are with the full development of Ukraine’s relationship with HIV positive or with other serious health and devel- the European Union, he added. opmental problems. While in Kyiv, Assistant Secretary Gordon met with Since 1997, according to the report, senior Ukrainian officials, as well as civil society and polit- more than 9,000 Ukrainian orphans have ical opposition leaders. found new homes and families in the United States. Congress and Ukraine Religious leaders visit U.S. The U.S. Senate majority whip, Sen. Dick Durbin, visited Ukraine on May 27-28. He met with President And on yet another level – a delegation of leaders of Yanukovych, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and Foreign Ukraine’s prominent religious groupings visited Affairs Minister Kostyantyn Gryshchenko to encourage Washington on April 26 promoting greater inter-reli- U.S. Department of State them to work towards more freedom and democracy, and gious cooperation in Ukraine, its Canadian and American U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (seen in a a stronger economy. He also met with political opposition diaspora and the world in general – in the hope of build- photo from July) warned about Russia’s “re-Soviet- ing a future world free of the tragedies that plagued the ization” of the Eurasian region in a December 6 leaders and with Ms. Tymoshenko’s daughter. speech in Dublin. And, on September 19, the U.S. Senate unanimously 20th century. passed the resolution Sen. Durbin co-sponsored with Sen. Organized by Ukrainian Jewish Encounter (UJE), the Like a number of his colleagues who have served in Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), calling for Ms. Tymoshenko’s uncon- visit was part of a weeklong trip to Canada and the Kyiv, Ambassador Miller has been actively involved in U.S.- ditional release and for the State Department to institute United States in honor of Metropolitan Andrey Ukraine relations since he returned after five years of ser- a visa ban for those Ukrainian officials responsible for her Sheptytsky and his legacy of saving Jews during the vice in Kyiv from 1993 to 1998. Ukraine has achieved a Holocaust. The delegation included Patriarch Filaret, pri- imprisonment and mistreatment and that of the other great deal of economic and political progress since inde- mate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Ukrainian opposition political leaders. The passage of the pendence, he said, but added that if Plato and Aristotle Patriarchate; Patriarch and Major Archbishop Sviatoslav resolution was welcomed by Ms. Tymoshenko’s opposi- were alive today, they would immediately recognize it as Shevchuk, head of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church; tion Batkivshchyna party, but was dismissed by the gov- an oligarchy and plutocracy – the government of the few Rabbi of Kyiv and all Ukraine Yaakov Dov Bleich; ernment of Ukraine. for the benefit of the wealthy few. And he expressed doubt Metropolitan Mefodiy, primate of the Ukrainian that the method of government reform from the grass- Visas, adoptions Autocephalous Orthodox Church; and leaders of a dozen other Christian, Jewish and Muslim groupings and orga- roots level that started to develop during the Orange U.S. Ambassador Tefft pointed out in his speech about nizations in Ukraine. Revolution can now be repeated, when mass anti-govern- the development of U.S.-Ukraine relations at the 20th The one-day visit to Washington included a visit to the ment demonstrations are suppressed by the security forc- anniversary gala in Kyiv on January 20: “At the core of our U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, where the group par- es, and political foes – like Ms. Tymoshenko and Mr. relationship throughout these past 20 years have been the ticipated in a panel discussion about that historic tragedy, Lutsenko – are prosecuted and imprisoned. people-to-people contacts within government programs a meeting at the State Department and a visit to the Taras Parliamentary elections and outside, in private contacts. “Thousands of Americans Shevchenko monument. The day concluded with a dis- and Ukrainians have developed close personal ties that cussion and receptions at the Embassy of Ukraine. The October elections to the Ukrainian Parliament are the cement that holds us together, even when our offi- were subsequently analyzed and commented on in cial relationship had its problems. As we worked together, Think tanks on Ukraine Washington. Americans and Ukrainians have gotten to know each A number of Washington’s leading think tanks contin- A press statement released October 29 by the acting other and to share their experiences.” ue to monitor developments in Ukraine. Among them is spokesman at the State Department, Mark Toner, Last year also saw the improvement of the U.S.-Ukraine the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars in expressed Washington’s concern about its conduct, call- relationship on these, more personal levels: the number of Washington, where the second American ambassador to ing it “a step backwards from progress made during pre- Ukrainians receiving visas to travel to the United States Ukraine – William Green Miller – presented his analysis vious parliamentary elections and the 2010 presidential has been increasing, as has the number of Ukrainian of the situation in Ukraine and how it developed over the election – elections that had marked important steps for- orphans being adopted by American families. past 20 years during a discussion on March 12. ward for Ukraine’s democracy.” His statement noted the The U.S. Embassy’s consul general issued a report on Since gaining its independence 20 years ago, Ukraine concerns expressed by the OSCE, the Council of Europe, January 14 that in the previous year (2010) Ukrainians has made much progress and suffered many setbacks in the European Parliament and the NATO Parliamentary filed approximately 74,000 applications for non-immigra- the process of building a new future for itself as an eco- Assembly, which cited the use of government resources to tion visas and that 81 percent of them (about 60,000) nomically and politically viable democratic nation, he favor the ruling party candidates, interference with media were approved. He suggested that the waiting period for said. But it may well take another 20 years or more access and the harassment of opposition candidates. visas will be shortened in the future with the opening of before it reaches that “promised land,” he added. On the following day, October 30, during her visit to Sarajevo, Secretary of State Clinton said that the Ukrainian people deserve better. According to the State Department transcript of her answers to reporters’ ques- tions, she said: “Like the rest of Europe, the people of Ukraine deserve so much better. They deserve to live in a country with strong democratic institutions that respects the rule of law, and these elections did not advance those goals.” She added that the United States remains committed to the people of Ukraine. “We want to work with them to strengthen their democracy, sovereignty and indepen- dence of their state, as we have for more than 20 years.” Re-Sovietization? As the less-than-satisfactory year 2012 was ending, Washington saw no obvious indications of a happier new year for Ukraine. Speaking to a gathering of lawyers and civil society advocates in Dublin on December 6, Secretary of State Clinton described Moscow’s efforts in promoting the economic reintegration of Eurasia as a “move to re- Sovietize the region.” She also said the efforts of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Turkmenistan to limit or eliminate U.S. assistance for human rights organizations by crimi- nalizing U.S. civil-society efforts have become more Yaro Bihun aggressive and were stifling dissent in their countries. Eugenia Tymoshenko Carr testifies before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs Secretary Clinton called Ukraine “one of our biggest in Washington on February 1 about her imprisoned mother, former Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Tymoshenko. disappointments.” 12 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW

Canada and Ukraine: a focus on elections kraine received a lot of attention from the Ukrainian Ucommunity in Canada in 2012 as organizations and institutions leveraged Canadian government concern about the situation and fate of today’s Ukraine. The conference “Ukraine at the Crossroads” on March 5-8 in Ottawa was a gathering of international experts who discussed the current situation in Ukraine where, under the administration of President Viktor Yanukovych, human rights and democracy were showing troubling signs of regression. The conference was held under the auspices of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) and organized by the Canada Ukraine Foundation (CUF), the Chair of Ukrainian Studies at the University of Ottawa and the Center for U.S.-Ukrainian Relations. Alexander Balaban On March 7, a well-attended banquet was followed by a At the conference “Ukraine at the Crossroads,” held in Ottawa on March 3-5 (from left) are: Valentyn panel discussion moderated by journalist Chrystia Nalyvaichenko (former head of the Security Service of Ukraine), Amanda Paul (European Policy Center, Brussels), Ariel Cohen (Heritage Foundation, Washington), Ihor Kozak (retired Canadian NATO officer) and James Sherr Freeland. It featured presentations by, among others, for- (Royal Institute of International Affairs), all speakers during a panel chaired by former Canadian Ambassador to mer Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Borys Tarasyuk; Ukraine Derek Fraser. Thomas Melia, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of state and head of the U.S. Bureau of Democracy; and Peter van Loan, move called into question Ukraine’s judicial indepen- Office, the Office of the Human Rights Ombudsperson, the leader of the government in the Canadian House of dence. State Penitentiary Service and the Ministry of Justice. Commons. International Development Minister Bev Oda Ms. Oda met with Prime Minister Mykola Azarov and The Canadian delegation also met with the chairman of and Treasury Board President Tony Clement were among several of his Cabinet colleagues. Canada received an invi- the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Verkhovna Rada, the more than 20 politicians in the audience, which also tation to send election monitors and observers for Oleh Bilorus. Later sessions dealt with the economy, busi- included the current and former Canadian ambassadors to Ukraine’s October 28 parliamentary elections. The minis- ness and investment climate in which the Ukrainian Ukraine and representatives of other diplomatic missions. ter announced a new CIDA initiative – a Ukrainian Grain Canadian Chamber of Commerce (CUCC), representatives On March 8, a series of sessions were held at which four Storage and Marketing Cooperative – to support grain from the European Business Association, American major thematic areas were addressed: democratic gover- farmers in Dnipropetrovsk and Crimea. She visited the Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine, European Bank for nance, rule of law, human rights and media freedom; the Kyiv memorial to Holodomor victims. Reconstruction and Development and Viterra Ukraine new election act and the 2012 parliamentary elections; Ms. Oda traveled to Ukraine with a Ukrainian Canadian took part. The committee also heard from the Committee economic issues, including energy, economic freedom and delegation that included UCC Executive Director Taras in Support of Democracy in Ukraine, represented by Dr. corruption; and geopolitics and national security. Among Zalusky; Taras Pidzamecky, president of the Ukrainian Yuri Shcherbak and Dmytro Pavlychko, who accused the the speakers were: Judge Bohdan Futey, Drs. Anders Credit Union and national president of the Ukrainian Ukrainian government of violating the Constitution of Åslund and Ariel Cohen from Washington, Amanda Paul National Federation; and Borys Potapenko, executive Ukraine and stated that support from Canada was critical from the European Policy Center in Brussels, Nico Lange director of the League of Ukrainian Canadians. to Ukraine’s maintaining a democratic course. from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Kyiv, and A month after Minister Oda’s visit, the parliamentary Meetings on May 15 included representatives of oppo- Valentyn Nalyvaichenko, past head of the Security Service Foreign Affairs Committee traveled to Ukraine and held sition parties: Hromadianska Pozytsia, Svoboda, the Yulia of Ukraine (SBU). A Canadian perspective on the issues was hearings in three cities: Kyiv, Kharkiv and Lviv. The delega- Tymoshenko Bloc, Front for Change and UDAR. The oppo- provided by Zenon Potoczny, Markian Shwec, Ihor Kozak tion was headed by MP Bob Dechert, Parliamentary sition representatives indicated that many felt that and Danylo Bilak. Jars Balan, chair of the UCC’s Canada Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs; and included Ukraine was being sold out to the “Donetsk oligarch clan” Ukraine Committee, acted as host of the conference. MPs Lois Brown (Ontario, Conservative), Dave Van and expressed concern over the danger of the “Russkii The conference was a prelude to the visit to Ukraine in Kesteren (Ontario, Conservative), Nina Grewal (British Mir” concept. They indicated that international election mid-April by Canadian International Cooperation Minister Columbia, Conservative), Linda Duncan (Alberta, New observers were crucial to discourage falsifications in the Bev Oda. From Kyiv, on a call-back to the media in Canada, Democratic Party), Alexandrine Latendresse (Quebec, October vote. At the session on media freedom, the com- mittee was informed that not all Ukrainian citizens had she said that Canada remained concerned about Ukraine’s NDP) and Ralph Goodale (Saskatchewan, Liberal). access to free media, as the independent media in Ukraine state of democracy and its judicial system. On April 12 The visit began on May 14, when the delegation met were limited in their reach to readers and viewers. Valerii Ivashchenko, former acting defense minister, was with family members and attorneys of the incarcerated The next session included representatives of the sentenced to five years in prison for abuse of office. He former government ministers – Ms. Tymoshenko, Mr. Central Election Commission (CEC), the International joined former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, former Lutsenko and Mr. Ivashchenko. Three key requirements Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), the Committee of Internal Affairs Minister Yurii Lutsenko, and former were raised: immediate medical attention, unconditional Voters of Ukraine (CVU) and Opora. Both IFES and Canada Environment Minister Heorhii Filipchuk, in prison. Mr. release from prison and reversal of all charges. This meet- were providing support to the CEC. The U.S.-based IFES Ivashchenko’s conviction elicited a warning from ing was followed with presentations by representatives of pointed out that there were shortcomings in the new elec- Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird that the the Ukrainian government: the Procurator General’s toral law, which former CEC Chairman Yaroslav Davydovych termed “pro-government and anti-democrat- ic.” Anticipated problems in the elections included vote buying and the use of administrative resources to benefit the regime. In Kharkiv, the committee heard from media, human rights and civil society representatives. Yevhen Zakharov, from the Kharkiv Human Rights Group, spoke about the intimidation of judges and the erosion of human rights. The committee met with the mayor of Kharkiv and repre- sentatives of the oblast administration; the meetings focused on the democratic concerns of the Canadian dele- gation. Economic prospects in the Kharkiv region were also discussed. Although the delegation’s request to meet with the hospitalized Ms. Tymoshenko was denied, Canadian delegation leader MP Dechert made a statement to the assembled media at the gates to the hospital. The committee also visited the penal colony in Kharkiv where Ms. Tymoshenko is incarcerated. On May 17 the committee continued its hearings in Lviv, meeting with local government representatives and the mayor of Lviv, Andrii Sadovyi. Representatives from the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), the Rev. Dr. Borys Gudziak and Prof. Yaroslav Hrytsak, indicated that UCC although Ukrainian society was deeply divided, there had Members of Canada’s Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs with delegates from the Ukrainian Canadian been issues around which Ukrainians were able to Congress on May 16 in front of the Kharkiv penal colony where Yulia Tymoshenko is jailed: (from left) Borys coalesce. It was pointed out that Ukraine was a post-geno- Potapenko, Bohdan Onyschuk, MPs Nina Grewal, Dave Van Kesteren, Alexandrine Latendresse, Bob Dechert, Lois cidal society and fear remained a major factor in the soci- Brown and Ralph Goodale, Taras Zalusky and MP Linda Duncan ety. The Rev. Gudziak suggested that Canada support a mix No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 13

2012: THE YEAR IN REVIEW of activities in Ukraine, including both economic and civil society development. The director of the Prison on Lontsky Museum, Ruslan Zabilyi, spoke about the efforts of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) to question and intimidate him and employees of the museum. Finally, on May 18, the MPs traveled to Sambir to visit a mass grave with the remains of thousands of Jews killed by the Nazis during World War II. The committee met with Canadians Mark Freiman and Borys Wrzesnewskyj, who were working with a team of Canadian archaeolo- gists to establish with precision the mass graves to allow memorialization of those who had perished at the hands of the Nazis. The archaeologists were also exploring whether Ukrainian insurgents were murdered and buried on the site. The memorialization project was made possi- ble because of the hard work of both the Ukrainian and the Jewish communities in Canada. Canadian doctors visit Tymoshenko In early February, three Canadian doctors examined Ms. Tymoshenko in her Kharkiv prison cell: cardiologist Dr. George Rewa, family physician and coroner Dr. Peter Kujtan, and gynecologist and endocrinologist Dr. Christine Derzko. All of the doctors understood Ukrainian and trav- eled to Ukraine for the weeklong visit at the request of the The Canadian doctors who examined Yulia Tymoshenko at the Kachanivska penal colony in Kharkiv with the opposition Canadian government. Dr. Rewa said they were selected leader’s daughter (from left): Dr. Christine Derzko, Dr. Peter Kujtan, Eugenia Tymoshenko Carr and Dr. George Rewa. by the Foreign Affairs Department to assess Ms. Tymoshenko’s health because she reportedly exhibited monitor the upcoming parliamentary elections in Ukraine. conducted.” The report listed some reasons for this: worrying symptoms of lower-back problems, cardiac The Mission Canada project was undertaken and funded imprisonment of a number of the principal opposition arrest and internal bleeding. In spite of the Canadians’ by the government and organized by CANADEM, Canada’s leaders; an accelerating decline in access to media cover- conclusion that Ms. Tymoshenko was “not well,” a panel of Civilian Reserve, a Canadian and international non-gov- age; harassment and assault of local journalists; doubts Ukrainian doctors countered by stating that her health ernmental organization. about the independence and impartiality of the Central was “fine.” Although the Canadians requested blood sam- During July and August, Mission Canada dispatched Electoral Commission (CEC). However, the UWC report ples to take to Canada for testing, because of the condi- more than 60 trained long-term observers throughout concluded, “Notwithstanding the above, the majority of tions that the Ukrainian authorities imposed, Ms. Ukraine. They were stationed in each of Ukraine’s 24 the voting public appears to have been able to exercise Tymoshenko did not agree to the arrangement. oblasts, in the two administrative areas of Kyiv and their voting rights at the polling stations on the day of the In the end, what was supposed to have been an inde- Sevastopol, and in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. elections. In the view of the mission’s long and short term pendent assessment of Ms. Tymoshenko’s health, Dr. They were deployed for three months to evaluate the con- observation findings, the 2012 parliamentary elections in Kujtan said, “was transformed into a Ukraine-led and text of the election, including: the organization of electoral Ukraine have not met all international standards for the Ukrainian-scrutinized body.” The Canadians were not commissions, electoral law, freedom of the press, and conduct of democratic elections.” The report was signed given access to Ms. Tymoshenko’s medical files and other factors that contribute to an open and transparent by Tamara Olexy and Paul Grod, co-heads of UWC Mission, received a summary of her medical history only on their vote. This group was followed in October by 365 short- and Derek Fraser, chief observer. last day in Ukraine. Although the Canadian doctors man- term observers, whose launch in Ottawa was attended by The Mission Canada report on October 29 also pointed aged to obtain background information from Ms. Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Saskatchewan out that “Ukraine’s parliamentary elections fell short of Tymoshenko’s lawyer and daughter, most of the time they Conservative Sen. Raynell Andreychuk headed Mission meeting international standards in some significant were caught up in bureaucratic wrangling. Canada. In addition, Canada sent 10 long-term and 60 respects. The serious shortcomings identified were: the short-term observers attached to the multilateral mission Canadian election observers imprisonment of leading opposition figures; structural organized by the Organization for Security and advantages for the governing party; uneven and unfair There were two separate election observer missions Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). application of the electoral law and the delineation of elec- The composition of Mission Canada received criticism from Canada to the October 28 parliamentary elections in toral districts; use of administrative resources to assist the in the Canadian press, which reported that many of the Ukraine. One was organized and funded by UCC and CUF, governing party.” Furthermore, the report of Mission Ukrainian Canadians selected had ties to the Ukrainian the other by the Canadian government under the Canada concluded that the post-election process in Canadian Congress, “an organization that has been highly CANADEM program. Ukraine was tainted by serious problems, particularly in critical of Ukraine’s governing party.” Another point of The UCC-CUF Election Observer Mission organized the tabulation and ballot transfer to the CEC. It pointed contention was the inclusion of Conservative Member of qualified individuals to serve as long-term observers out that in five districts the violations were so serious that Parliament Ted Opitz as a member of the delegation of (LTOs) on the ground in Ukraine and as short-term the CEC would hold repeat elections in those districts. The observers (STOs). The LTOs were responsible for monitor- MPs. At the time, his election to the House of Commons was in dispute due to a court case brought forth by his November 13 report documented serious vote tabulation ing the run-up to the election to ensure it was organized flaws and procedural wrangling between Parliament and in a fair and transparent manner. The STOs were to moni- opponent, Borys Wrzesnewskyj. During the pre-election period, the CCU/CFU mission the CEC over mandating and financing of the proposed re- tor the immediate time frame around election day. On July elections in five districts. 12 an Election Observer Mission office was opened in joined forces with the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) Kyiv. Canadian Ambassador Troy Lulashnyk welcomed the mission and this created the largest non-government mission and CUF Chair Bohdan Onyschuk introduced funded international election observer mission, which Next week… Derek Fraser, Canada’s former ambassador to Ukraine, as included over 250 short-term election observers from 20 …our “2012: The Year in Review” continues with a head of the LTO mission. countries. After the election, the UWC mission issued a look at news regarding Ukrainian Churches, the activity On August 9 the government of Canada announced that preliminary report which pointed out that, “There were of Ukrainians in the United States and Canada, develop- Canada would be sending up to 500 election observers to serious flaws in the way that the election campaign was ments in the Ukrainian diaspora, and more.

Serhiy Perepiatenko Mission Canada election observers in Ukraine for the October 28 parliamentary elections. 14 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

ners, it was desacralized and has been used votes of a jury and TV viewers. Ms. Ognevich reported on January 2. “Thanks to the mea- NEWSBRIEFS by the Seville Town Hall as a place for hold- received 20 points from the jury and 20 from sures taken, more than 100,000 coniferous ing cultural and art events. On December 2, TV viewers, which led to her victory over (Continued from page 2) trees worth 2.8 million hrv were seized 2012, with the blessing of Bishop Dionisii, other competition participants. The 58th from the criminals,” reads the statement. UGCC gets church building in Spain the church was consecrated again and given international competition Eurovision will be The ministry said that patrols near forests LVIV – After lengthy negotiations between the name of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki. held in May. Sweden earned the right to host- had been organized in order to preserve fir the Apostolic Visitator for Ukrainian Greek- (Religious Information Service of Ukraine) ing Eurovision 2013 via the victory of its rep- trees. Nearly 14,500 police officers and resentative, Loren, in the 2012 competition. Catholics in Italy and Spain, Bishop Dionisii Ognevich to compete in Eurovision 2,600 volunteers are patrolling the forests Liakhovych, with the Spanish monastic order (Ukrinform) around the clock. Police officers checked Maria Reparadora, an agreement was reached KYIV – The final national contest for Police seize fir trees from poachers more than 9,000 markets, shopping areas on the transfer of a church building owned Eurovision 2013 was held in Kyiv on and places of spontaneous trade, where by the order for the use of the Ukrainian December 24, 2012, and Zlata Ognevich was KYIV – Police officers have seized more Christmas trees are on sale. A total of 2,384 Greek-Catholic community in Seville, Spain. declared the winner. Ms. Ognevich will go to than 100,000 illegally cut fir trees in offenders were detained. (Ukrinform) The shrine was built at the end of the last the competition in Malmo, Sweden, with the Ukraine, the media liaison department of century. However, due to a lack of parishio- song “Gravity.” The contest was judged by the the Ukrainian Internal Affairs Ministry (Continued on page 15)

the European Parliament’s call after the While the United States, busy with its Customs Union to move closer to Moscow Will Ukraine... election on democrats in Ukraine not to own elections, had no visible policy on (UNIAN, December 5, 2012). This prompt- cooperate with Svoboda, while Svoboda said Ukraine last year, the EU’s policy was inco- ed only half-hearted objections from the (Continued from page 1) the call had been initiated by “a communist herent and sometimes potentially damaged opposition, which also after the election who is a homosexual” (ICTV, December 17, bilateral ties and pro-democracy forces remained toothless on issues not related to believes their imprisonment was politically 2012; UNIAN, December 21, 2012). inside Ukraine. Illustrative of this were pro- language. motivated. Svoboda’s victory only added to the list of posals in Brussels to condition visa regime Meanwhile, seemingly without resis- The October 28 election was marred by setbacks to democracy in Ukraine, while Ms. facilitation for ordinary Ukrainians on the tance from either the opposition or allied allegations of an unequal playing field, vote Tymoshenko and Mr. Lutsenko stay in pris- release of prisoners like Ms. Tymoshenko. parties like the Communists, who are losing buying and ballot tampering, which were on and five seats are yet to be filled in The West could help Ukrainians if it agreed all semblance of influence on the govern- confirmed by Western observers. Parliament because ballot-tampering in the on a common policy towards their country ment, Mr. Yanukovych further consolidated A victory for Mr. Yanukovych’s Party of respective single-seat constituencies made and were more logical and realistic in its his power vertical. In December he re- Regions of Ukraine (PRU) had been facili- it impossible to calculate the outcome. demands and expectations. appointed his loyal Prime Minister Mykola tated by the adoption, less than a year The EU’s conditions for signing the Russia, meanwhile, has been very coher- Azarov while reshuffling his Cabinet. Mr. before voting day, of new election rules that Association Agreement clearly remain unful- ent in insisting that Ukraine will have to join Yanukovych replaced the most indepen- eventually led to the irregularities. filled. However, the EU made it clear in the Customs Union if it wants gas price dis- dent- and reform-minded ministers with But the opposition – organizationally, December that the signing could take place counts. Months of talks aimed at convincing second-tier politicians and business man- financially and intellectually weakened after in November 2013 or earlier, and the Russia to cut gas prices and Mr. agers reportedly linked to steel tycoon Ms. Tymoshenko’s imprisonment – did not European Parliament warned in a resolution Yanukovych’s numerous meetings with Rinat Akhmetov and Mr. Yanukovych’s oppose the change. Furthermore, the only against isolating Ukraine. This may be a sign Vladimir Putin brought no result last year. elder son Oleksander (Kommersant- more-or-less populous protests organized by of factions within the EU increasingly fearing Russia is well aware that the gas issue is Ukraine, December 25, 2012). The new the opposition ahead of the election focused that Ukraine may prefer closer cooperation very important for Ukraine’s gas-dependent government is hardly more pro-democratic not on threats to democracy or economic with Russia by joining the Moscow-led industries at a time of crisis and for external or pro-Western than its predecessors. This hardships, but on the issues of language and Customs Union in exchange for cheap financing as Ukraine did not manage to per- does not bode well for 2013. ethnic identity. This helped the least pro- Russian gas, rather than signing the suade the International Monetary Fund to democratic and least pro-Western among Association Agreement with the EU which, issue new loans last year because it keeps The article above is reprinted from the opposition parties, the far-right Svoboda, Ukrainians argue, is detrimental to Ukrainian subsidizing gas prices for households. Eurasia Daily Monitor with permission from to enter Parliament for the first time. economic interests in the short-term as far Eventually, Mr. Yanukovych indicated he its publisher, the Jamestown Foundation, Moreover, the opposition flatly dismissed as its free trade clauses are concerned. wanted to adopt certain provisions of the www.jamestown.org.

The Taras Shevchenko School of Ukrainian Studies of Greater Washington

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January 7, some 19 of the 54 Ukrainian citi- land and will continue providing them with according to the survey, Communist Party NEWSBRIEFS zens flew from Israel to Kyiv International the needed consular assistance,” the minis- leader Petro Symonenko has the lowest level Airport via Ukraine International Airlines; try stated. (Interfax-Ukraine) of confidence. He is followed by Mykola (Continued from page 14) another 35 Ukrainians were to be trans- Azarov, Volodymyr Rybak, Yulia Tymoshenko, Klitschko enjoys the greatest trust AeroSvit strands passengers ported to Ukraine by other carriers on the Oleh Tiahnybok, Viktor Yanukovych and same day,” read a statement by the MFA. In KYIV – Vitali Klitschko is the only political Arseniy Yatsenyuk. At the same time, the soci- KYIV – Hundreds of Ukrainians in other addition, on January 5, due to the delay of leader with a positive balance of trust in ologist pointed out that 87 percent of voters countries cannot return to Ukraine or are an AeroSvit flight, 40 Ukrainians were Ukraine, according to data released during a believe they made the right choice during the going back to Ukraine via other flights with stranded at Stockholm International news conference on December 27, 2012, at recent parliamentary elections. The nation- delays because of the cancellation and Airport. On January 5-6, the people were Ukrinform by the director of the Ilko wide poll was conducted by the Democratic delays of AeroSvit flights, it was reported on flown to Ukraine with the assistance of the Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation. Initiatives Foundation together with the soci- January 7. According to the information pol- Embassy of Ukraine in Sweden. Due to the “Ukraine has only one politician with a posi- ological service of the Razumkov Center on icy department of Ukraine’s Ministry of cancellation of the Kyiv-Tashkent-Kyiv flight tive balance of trust – Klitschko, while other December 21 to 24, 2012. The survey Foreign Affairs (MFA), due to the cancella- of AeroSvit on January 6, about 80 passen- politicians… have a negative balance of trust,” involved 2,009 respondents age 18 and over tion of the airline’s flights 196 Ukrainian cit- gers could not fly to Kyiv. As of January 7, said Iryna Bekeshkina. She noted that, in all regions of the country. (Ukrinform) izens remain at Ho Chi Minh International almost all the passengers had been trans- Airport. The Ukrainian Embassy in Vietnam ported to Ukraine by other airlines. Four is taking measures to provide necessary passengers, whose flight is scheduled for consular assistance to Ukrainian passen- January 11, were settled in a hotel. “The gers for their return to the homeland. On consular service department of the Foreign January 6, a similar situation involving the Affairs Ministry of Ukraine and the relevant airlines happened at Ben-Gurion foreign diplomatic institutions of Ukraine International Airport in Tel Aviv, where 54 are following up the situation related to the Ukrainian citizens got into difficulty. “On return of Ukrainian citizens to their home- With deep sorrow we announce that Chrystyna “Tynia” Baranetsky passed away on Sunday, January 6, 2013 TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL Walter Honcharyk (973) 292-9800 x3040 at the age of 61. or e-mail [email protected] She is survived by: mother Tamara Hordynsky SERVICES PROFESSIONALS husband Dr. Nicholas Baranetsky daughters Mikolaya Nynka and husband Mark Larissa Raphael and husband Michael grandchildren Lukash Nynka Terenya Nynka sisters Olenka Yurchuk and husband Irenaeus & family Ksenia Hapij and husband Ihor & family in-laws Volodymyr and Chrystina Baranetsky brother-in-law Dr. Adrian Baranetsky and wife Alexandra & family cousin Larissa Hordynsky and husband Chris Toliver

СТЕФАН ВЕЛЬГАШ A Parastas was held on January 8, 2013 Ліцензований Продавець at Lytwyn & Lytwyn Funeral Home in Union, NJ. Страхування Життя STEPHAN J. WELHASCH Funeral services were held on January 9, 2013 Licensed Life Insurance Agent at St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church in Newark, NJ. Ukrainian National Assn., Inc. Vichnaya pamiat’! 548 Snyder Ave., Berkeley Heights, NJ 07922 Tel.: 908-508-1728 • Fax: (973) 292-0900 In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to either e-mail: [email protected] St. John’s Ukrainian Catholic Church Charitable Fund 719 Sanford Avenue, Newark, N.J. 07106 FOR SALE OR St. John’s Feed the Hungry Liquidating estate PO Box 200147, Newark, N.J. 07102 Large Edward Kozak Mosaic - Rare Find! Please call 973-941-6659 or email: [email protected]. Ділимося сумною вісткою, що 16 грудня 2012 року, відійшла у вічність на 93-му році життя, FOR LEASE св. п. Florida Condominium Тетяна Васильченко Дідошак St. Andrew’s Ukrainian Condo Assoc., North Port, Fl. Newly renovated, 2Br, Покійна пережила тяжкі події ХХ століття - голод 1933 року, heated pool, 1 mile to Mineral Springs. Другу світову війну, та іміґрацію до Америки. Незважаючи на втрату Available monthly with opportunity to buy. свого лікарського диплому, все одно працювала у шпиталі, а коли Tel. 847-438-7222 or 847-404-9538 переїхала до Ню-Йорку помагала виховувати своїх внуків. HELP WANTED Залишилися у смутку: донька - Зеновія внуки - Данило і Таїса We are seeking a babysitter родина по чоловікові: - Лариса Пащук з чоловіком, дітьми і внуками for our 3 year old son in Bayside, NY. - Дарія Чайковська з чоловіком, дітьми і внуками Must speak Ukrainian fluently. Preferably - Зорянна Домбчевська owns a car. Two days per week - Wednes- Вічно Тобі вдячна дуже мала родина Васильченків у Харкові. day and Thursday. Tel. 646-763-0045. Вічна Їй пам’ять! Замість квітів, просимо складати пожертви на Пам’ятник Sunday, January 20, 2013. Warren, MI Голодомору на руки Комітету при УККА: The annual meeting of UNA Branch 175, St. Nicholas Society, will be Holodomor Memorial Committee, UCCA, held at 1:00 p.m. at the Ukrainian Cultural Center, 26601 Ryan Rd., War- 203 2nd Ave ren, MI. All members are invited to attend. New York, N.Y. 10003 Dr. Alexander Serafyn, president 16 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2 No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 17

Finally the billionaire owners and mil- “I think I bring a special element to the save percentage. His win total and goals Oilers re-sign lionaire players have compromised on a new game that no other player does,” Tootoo said against were both career bests. Hordichuk collective bargaining agreement and there at the press conference. “For me, my founda- The Regina, Saskatchewan, native played will be hockey in 2013! Ukrainian stars tion is being a physical presence out there, five seasons with Kamloops in the WHL, The Edmonton Oilers agreed to terms Ruslan Fedotenko, Alexei Ponikarovsky and but at the same time I know that I can con- appearing in 192 games with an 83-87-14 with free-agent left-winger and enforcer Anton Babchuk will be back in North tribute offensively. ...I believe I’m in the record, including 15 shutouts. He was a Darcy Hordichuk on a one-year, $850,000 America from their temporary gigs in the prime and I’m ready to take on challenges member of the gold-medal winning contract last July 1. Hordichuk, 31, played KHL in time for an abbreviated training that arise.” Canadian team in the 2006 IIHF World in 43 games with Edmonton last year, scor- camp and a shortened regular season sched- Last season Tootoo was Nashville’s nom- Junior Championship. Dubnyk was ing a lone goal, adding two assists with 64 uled to start about the third week of January. inee by the Professional Hockey Writers Edmonton’s first round choice, 14th over- penalty minutes. Here’s a look at major Ukrainian comings Association for the Bill Masterton Memorial all, in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Kamsack, and goings since the Los Angeles Kings won Trophy, given to the player who best exem- His two-year deal was for $3.5 million Saskatchewan, native signed as a free agent Lord Stanley’s Cup last June. plifies the qualities of perseverance, sports- per season. with Edmonton in the summer of 2011 manship and dedication to hockey. after spending a year in Florida. Hordichuk Winner Fedotenko Stempniak re-ups has 41 career NHL points (20G) and 1,138 returns to Flyers Winnipeg Jets for two years penalty minutes in 538 games with Atlanta, sign Ponikarovsky Phoenix, Florida, Nashville and Edmonton. Having lost Jaromir Jagr and come up “We like what Lee Stempniak brings to short in the bidding for Zach Parise, the Free agent frenzy 2012 saw the Winnipeg our line-up and our team missed him a lot Woywitka back Philadelphia Flyers dipped into the free agent Jets agree to terms with Ukrainian forward with an injury last year,” said Flames With St. Louis Blues market for winger Ruslan Fedotenko. He Alexei Ponikarovsky on a one-year contract. General Manager Jay Feaster in announcing Defenseman Jeff Woywitka signed a one- signed a one-year, $1.75 million deal. The “They were pursuing me last year as Calagry had re-signed the forward to a two- year, two-way contract with the St. Louis 33-year-old Ukrainian started his NHL career well, but I ended up signing with a different year, $5 million contract. “We believe he with the Flyers in the 2000-2001 season. team,” explained Ponikarovsky via a confer- Blues in early July. The 28-year-old continues to have strong upside offensively appeared in only 27 games with the New He has won Stanley Cups with the Tampa ence call on July 1, 2012. “I know a few and he has demonstrated that he can be York Rangers in 2011-2012, tallying six Bay Lightning (2004) and the Pittsburgh guys there, especially my former teammate responsible at both ends of the ice. His points (one goal) and eight penalty min- Penguins (2009). In Tampa’s Cup-winning Nik Antropov [from their days in Toronto], skating style and willingness to get in on utes. He was a depth defenseman with the post-season Fedotenko scored 12 playoff so I was thinking it would be a good fit for the forecheck will fit in nicely with [coach] goals including two in Game 7 of the Finals. Rangers, often squeezed off the ice and into me, and it would be a good opportunity to Bob Hartley’s up-tempo style. He provides He has also played for the New York the press box due to a numbers game. show what I can do.” the coaching staff with more options on the Islanders and New York Rangers. He has A former Blue, Woywitka played in 152 Ponikarovsky, 32, split the 2011-2012 power play.” scored 353 points in 816 career games, games with the club from 2005 to 2009, campaign between the Carolina Hurricanes Stempniak, a native of West Seneca, N.Y., including nine goals with the Rangers in posting 35 points (six goals) and 106 penal- and the New Jersey Devils. He played 33 played last season with the Flames, notch- 2011-2012. ty minutes. Overall, the 6-foot-3, 225-pound- with the Devils in the second half of the ing 14 goals and 28 points in 61 games. In “We’ve actually tried to sign Ruslan a cou- er has seen action in 278 career NHL games, year, scoring 7-11-18 points with eight ple times over the past few years and we’ve 517 career NHL games, Stempniak has including stops in Dallas, St. Louis and New penalty minutes. The Kyiv native went on always missed out,” Flyers General Manager recorded 129 goals and 275 points. He was York. He has totaled 55 points (nine goals) to play in 24 playoff games for the Devils as Paul Holmgren said in a July 5, 2012, confer- originally drafted by St. Louis in the fifth and 149 penalty minutes. ence call. “I like him and I think he’s going to they advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals. He round of the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. He has The Vermilion, Alberta, native was origi- bring a lot to our team in terms of leader- scored nine points (1G, 8A) and had 26 also played for Toronto and Phoenix. He nally drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in ship, and I think he’s a winner, I really do.” PIM’s. was acquired in exchange for Daymond the first round, 27th overall, of the 2001 Fedotenko said several teams had inter- For his career Ponikarovsky has dressed Langkow in August, 2011. NHL Entry Draft. est in signing him, but felt like he wanted to in 636 NHL games with Toronto, go to a team where he thought he’d have a Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, Carolina and New chance to win the Cup. He returns to Jersey. He’s amassed 314 points (135G, Philadelphia an experienced veteran who 179A) and 405 penalty minutes. In 62 play- can play a physical, gritty brand of hockey. off games he has 19 points (4G, 15A). Nicknamed “Rusty,” he can play all three for- He described his style of play: “I get in ward positions. on the forecheck, I finish my checks. I’m a big body that can score some goals and cre- Tootoo adds grit ate opportunities for any linemates. I can to Red Wings kill penalties, I can play on the power play. I The Detroit Red Wings’ grind lines can be useful in any situation and every immediately received an energetic jolt the game and every night I am trying to bring team lacked last season with the July 1, my best effort.” 2012, signing of former Nashville agitator Jordin Tootoo to a three-year contract. The Winnik signs 29-year-old Inuit of Ukrainian descent has With Anaheim Ducks played his entire eight-season NHL career Daniel Winnik took his time selecting his in a Predators jersey, where he became one next NHL organization. Waiting until late of the city’s most recognizable pro athletes July to finally ink his next contract, Winnik thanks to his thunderous body checking decided on the Anaheim Ducks, getting still and fighting. another of those two-year deals. Now 27 “Obviously we’ve played against him,” year old, he has appeared in 366 career Red Wings General Manager Ken Holland NHL games with Phoenix, Colorado and San said at a July 1, 2012, press conference. “He’s Jose, posting 37G, 64A, 101 points and 187 hard, he’s physical and we think he can help PIM. In 2011-2012 he appeared in a league- the bottom six [forwards] by providing leading 84 games, starting the season with some energy and physicality along with the Avalanche and ending it with the Sharks. Darren Helm. We’re trying to get some more Winnik was acquired by the San Jose as edge with the bottom six and he’ll do that.” part of a five-player trade on February 27, In playing 486 games with the Preds, 2012. He scored five points in 21 regular Tootoo tallied 46 goals and 79 assists. He’s season games with the Sharks and 18 coming off his best NHL season, setting per- points in 63 games with the Avs. The 6-2, sonal highs for games played (77), assists 210-pound forward made his second career (24), points (30) and average time on ice appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with (13:09). Despite his career year it seemed Tootoo fell out of favor with the Predators, San Jose, earning one assist with six PIM in who added three forwards (Paul Gaustad five games. and Andre Kostitsyn by trade, and Dubnyk gets Alexander Radulov back from the KHL) at two-year deal the trade deadline. Tootoo is convinced he can add a unique, The Edmonton Oilers re-signed young missing component to the Red Wings’ line- goaltender Devan Dubnyk to a two-year up. contract in early July. The 6-foot-5, 210- pound goalie made 47 appearances in net Ihor Stelmach may be reached at iman@ for the Oilers, posting a 20-20-3 record sfgsports.com with a 2.67 goals against average and .914 18 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2 UKELODEON For The Next Generation

Fond memories from Plast jamboree 2012 by Musia O’Connell NEW YORK – In 2012 Plast, the Ukrainian scouting organization, celebrated its 100th anniversary. I had the opportunity to participate in this centennial celebration in Lviv this summer during YuMPZ – the International Plast Jamboree. In this beautiful city, thousands of plastuny (members of Plast) gathered from all over the world. It was very moving to be able to take part in this very significant and historic event. Truth be told, at the beginning I was a little unsure whether or not I would enjoy the jamboree. When I arrived at the airport in Lviv and saw so many of my friends from the U.S., I began to feel more at ease. When I Newfound friends at the Plast Jamboree. traveled to the first part of the jambo- ree outside Lviv to the rock climbing sang songs, we all bonded very well. Ukrainian), one of the camp counsel- Although it was sad to see our first and water sports camp, I felt even During this camp, I learned a great ors from Ukraine. From the first day, camp end, I was able to continue better because I met many plastuny deal of practical and sports-oriented when he greeted us so warmly, to the my magical days with my newfound from many different countries. skills, about which I had little knowl- last day, when we said our good-byes friends during the second phase of Although it rained and was chilly edge. at the jamboree site, he was fantas- the jamboree, which took place on most of the time, I felt very warm The camp program was very tic. Druh Slyvka taught me so much, the campus of the Ukrainian Catholic inside my heart and soul. When we interesting, and the company was was always smiling and had a great University back in Lviv. There, we met up with thousands hiked in the mountains, sailed on even better. The person who made understanding of how to get along of Plast members and participated the catamarans, sought shelter in the the biggest impression on me was with yunatstvo (teenage scouts) from in very interesting activities every rock formations, lit our campfires and Druh Slyvka (which means plum in around the world. day, starting with the official open- ing ceremony at the center of town on Prospect Shevchenka, continuing with daily sports and artistic events, and ending with the closing ceremony Eighty enjoy annual Plast Ski Camp in Ivan Franko Park. While marching seven kilometers from the school campus to the place of the opening ceremony, it was very heartwarming to see so many plas- tuny in one place. I felt extremely proud to be a member of Plast when all the townspeople greeted us so warmly along our route to the center of town. It was hard to see the jamboree end after these two wonderful weeks and to leave behind my new friends. I hope and expect to meet some of them in the future at another camp, competition or jamboree. And I will never again have any hesitation about traveling abroad and spending time with Plastuny from any country in the world.

Musia O’Connell of Greenwich, Conn., is a member of the New York branch of Plast Ukrainian Scout- ing Organization . She is currently working toward her eagle scout (virlystia) rank in Plast.

Andrew Zwarych SOUTH GLENS FALLS, N.Y. – Eighty teenage members of Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization participated in the 32nd NOTE TO READERS: Plast Ski Camp held on the slopes of Gore Mountain in North Creek, N.Y. They, along with their 26 counselors and nine Our regular Mishanyna administration staff, are seen above outside the Landmark Motor Inn in South Glens Falls, N.Y., which was their home base feature will return for the duration of the camp, December 25-31, 2012. At Gore Mountain, the Plast skiers and snowboarders had the opportu- nity to take lessons from the ski area’s professional staff. The annual Ski Camp is one of Plast’s most popular camps. It is run in February. by the Burlaky Fraternity of Plast. No. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 19 Hartford UAYA celebrates “Andriyivskyi Vechir”

Hartford UAYA members with a resident of the nursing home. Fortune-telling during “Andriyivskyi vechir.” by Tetiana Winiarskyj One popular game determines which UAYA members bring carols girl at the event will get married first. HARTFORD, Conn. – Imagine a To reveal who that will be, start and starry December night. You’re walking to local nursing home finish lines are marked, and each girl around with your friends, still wearing takes one shoe off. Next, the girls get in by Alexa Zborowski Come, All Ye Faithful” and “Boh Sia the skin of your youth, but now step- Razhjaye” one of the favorite tradi- a line behind the starting line. The first HARTFORD, Conn. – On Decem- ping out of it too. Anxiety and nerves tional Ukrainian carols. Several of the girl places her shoe directly in front of ber 6, 2012, some members of Hart- are fighting the excitement that brings youths in the group are current mem- the line and the girl after her places ford’s Ukrainian American Youth As- a smile. This is it. This is the night bers of Zolotyj Promin, Hartford’s lo- her shoe directly before the first girl’s. sociation visited Glastonbury Health you’ve longed to be fully fledged as cal Ukrainian dance ensemble. There The line goes on and on, and each girl Care Center, a local nursing home, to a teenager. This night is about play- they also performed some up beat most likely goes more than once. The sing Christmas carols to the residents ing fortune-telling games with your dance skits such as “Kolomyika,” girl whose shoe hits the finish line first there. Cheerful holiday songs in both friends, peering into your future and which delighted all the residents. will be the first to marry. Ukrainian and English gave those embracing your short time as a teen- We were happy to share a little Another event involves drawing a who live there a chance to continue ager. This is Andrivivskyj Vechir. bit of our culture with them for an slip of paper from a bag of names. The the spirit and experience the holiday “Andriyivskyi Vechir” is a Ukrai- evening. nian celebration held on the eve of the name written on the paper one picks season as they did once when living feast day of Apostle (Andrew) Andriy, from the bag is said to be the name of on their own. the first apostle called to follow Jesus that person’s future spouse. Entertainment included music with Alexa Zborowski, 13, is from Christ. An ancient legend says that In an event that determines what is a bandura and carols such as “Oh Southington, Conn. the apostle brought Christianity to the seen in one’s future, a fortune-teller shores of the Black Sea and to Kyiv spills the wax from a burning candle in the 13th century and that he said into a bowl of water. The shape the about Kyiv: “On these hills is the grace cooled wax makes tells of something of God; this is going to be a big city...” that will appear in the girl’s future. On Andriyivksyj Vechir teenage Naturally, this night is very amusing girls participate in fortune-telling and a chance for all UAYA members events. The Ukrainian American (SUMivtsi) to get together and cel- Youth Association (UAYA) branch in ebrate their futures too. It is a night for Hartford, Conn., celebrated Andriy- them to also connect with the youth of ivskyi Vechir on December 11, 2012, Ukraine by participating in the same with teenage boys and girls setting up exciting event at the same time – dis- fortune- telling stations for the young- regarding time zones, of course. er children. They led the activities, which are derived from similar activi- Tetiana Winiarskyj, 14, is from Ukrainian American Youth Association members perform at the Glastonbury ties conducted that day in Ukraine. Old Saybrook, Conan. Health Care Center. Passaic Plast presents St. Nicholas program

by Ruta Odulak all those less fortunate, specifically in Ukraine, we feel is a very special PASSAIC, N.J. – The “yunachky” and important thing to do particularly (girls age 11-17) of Plast Passaic during the holidays. Four huge boxes once again put on a performance full of school and art supplies, throw to celebrate Christmas. This year’s blankets, shoes, boots, coats and lots of theatrical story was about the struggle between angels and devils, the kind mittens were collected. There were gifts vs. the mischievous. In the end, the for no less than 30 children I am sure! good-willed angels prevailed. They To thank all of the children for taught their young audience a good opening up their hearts, Mykolayko lesson, then brought out Mykolayko gave each of the children a special (St. Nicholas) with song. Even the little gift of their own. devils joined in! I like to think that these acts of kind- In recent years, Plast’s Passaic ness, whether performed with a large branch has asked all of its children to group or all on your own, really make donate gifts to the orphans in Ukraine a difference and support our beautiful rather then being called up one by country and all of its beautiful people. one to receive their own. This year, we continued that tradition more than Ruta Odulak, 14, is a freshman at willingly. Supporting the orphans and “Yunachky” with St. Nicholas in Passaic, N.J. Nutley High School in Nutley, N.J. 20 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2013 No. 2

PREVIEW OF EVENTS

Saturday, January 19 erated by Col. Roman G. Golash (ret.). There is no charge for these events. For more PALATINE, Ill.: The Ukrainian American information, call 847-910-3532. Veterans 1st Lt. Ivan Shandor Post 35 invites veterans and the community to an informa- tional/social meeting to discuss new chang- Sunday, February 10 es to the Tricare system. This meeting takes ALEXANDRIA, Va.: The Washington Group place at 1 p.m. at the Palatine Library locat- Cultural Fund will again welcome renowned ed at 700 N. North Court, Palatine, IL 60067. soprano Oksana Krovytska. She will per- At 2-4 p.m. at the Palatine Library, the form a concert featuring Italian arias in trib- Conservative Veterans of America invites ute to Solomiya Krushelnytska, as well as a the community to a viewing of a previously lively repertoire of Ukrainian art and folk recorded lecture of “Why We Study History” songs. The event is at 3 p.m. at The Lyceum, by Prof. J. Rufus Fears of the University of 201 S. Washington St. Suggested donation: Oklahoma. The wisdom of history is defined $20; free for students; unreserved seating. as “the ability to use the lessons of history to For more information e-mail twgcultural- make decisions in the present and to plan [email protected] or call 301-229-2615; for the future.” A discussion will follow mod- venue phone number, 703-838-4994.

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