икттіт Review і і ? Ч б THE UKRAINIAN REVIEW A Quarterly Magazine devoted to the study of Ukraine, EDITORIAL BOARD Mrs. Slava Stetzko, M.A. Volodymyr Bohdaniuk, B.A., B. Litt. Editor Associate Editor Marta Savchuk, M.A. Dr. Anatol Bedriy Associate Editor Associate Editor Professor Lew Shankowsky Oleh S. Romanyshyn, M.A. Associate Editor Associate Editor Irene Osyczko, B.A. Associate Editor Cover designed by R. Lisovskyy Price: 75p or $2.00 a single copy Annual Subscription: £3.00 or $8.00 Editorial correspondence should be sent to: The Editors, “The Ukrainian Review” 200 Liverpool Road, London, N1 ILF. Subscriptions should be sent to: “The Ukrainian Review” (Administration). c/o Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, Ltd. 49 Linden Gardens, London, W2 4HG. Overseas representatives: USA: Organization for Defense of Four Freedoms for Ukraine, Inc. P.O. Box 304, Cooper Station, New York, N.Y. 10003. Canada: Canadian League for Ukraine’s Liberation. 140 Bathurst Street, Toronto, Ont., M5V 2R3 Printed in Great Britain by the Ukrainian Publishers Limited 200 Liverpool Road, N1 ILF Tel.: 01 THE UKRAINIAN REVIEW Vol. X X II No. 1 Spring 1976 A Quarterly Magazine v - = WE APPEAL TO THE CONSCIENCE OF ALL MEN OF GOOD | WILL IN THE WORLD TO HELP SECURE THE RELEASE J FROM SOVIET RUSSIAN PRISONS AND CONCENTRATION I CAMPS OF ALL UKRAINIANS — FORMER RED CROSS sl PERSONNEL, POLITICAL PRISONERS AND ALL THOSE | PUNISHED FOR DEMANDING HUMAN RIGHTS AND I NATIONAL INDEPENDENCE. 3 For information please write to us or to any <1l Ukrainian Organization in the Free World. Published by The Association of Ukrainians in Great Britain, Ltd. in cooperation with Organization for Defense of Four Freedoms for Ukraine, Inc. (U.S.A) and Canadian League for Ukraine’s Liberation. 2 THE UKRAINIAN REVIEW CONTENTS Y. Stetsko: — COMMUNISM BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN IN CRISIS 3 Maria M. Ovcharenko: — LINA KOSTENKO — THE POET OF THE FREEDOM OF SPIRIT AND OF THE TRUTH OF THE W O R D .......... 21 Slava Stetsko: — NATIONAL PERSECUTION IN THE U S S R ................. 31 Abraham Shifrin: — THE RUSSIAN CONCENTRATION CAMPS .......... 56 Prisoners of Conscience about themselves V. Chornovil: — DECLARATION TO THE MILITARY PROSECUTOR OF SUB-CARPATHIAN MILITARY DISTRICT.............................................. 81 News in brief: *** THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF TWO UKRAINIAN PR IE STS.......... 92 *** DEEP CONCERN ABOUT THE FATE OF M. PLAKHOTNIUK.......... 93 *** AN APPEAL BY THE MOTHER OF O. SERHIENKO ........................ 94 *** THE FATE OF SERHIY B A B Y C H ............................................................. 96 3 Yaroslav STETSKO COMMUNISM BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN IN CRISIS While Communist parties within the Free World have recently obtained some substantial gains (in European countries, like Italy and France; or in Africa, like Angola), within the countries behind the Iron Curtain enslaved by the Communist totalitarian system, Com­ munism as far as ideological, socio-political, and economical matters are concerned, is getting bankrupt. At least this situation calls for a somewhat paradoxical diagnosis: should the nations presently enslaved within the USSR free themselves through national revolu­ tions? They could in the future, after their own liberation, come to assistance of some Western countries and help to free them from the Communist yoke, by which these countries are now directly endangered. How come that Communism is in crisis within the countries controlled by it and what are the means to get rid of the Communist menace? The Communist system did not grow organically out of the life of the peoples in their own countries. The enslaved nations neither selected the Communist way of life by free will, nor by democratic election, nor civil wars within their boundaries. Not one single subju­ gated nation within the USSR nation (Ukraine, Turkestan, Byelorussia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Northern Caucasus, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and others), nor any of the satellites (Poland, East Germany, Bulgaria, Rumania, Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary, Croatia, and others) established Communism upon themselves by their own desire and efforts. Coccunism was bestowed upon them by the tips of Russian bayonets and maintained by force of the occupying troops. During 1918, and a short time after, the independent states of Ukraine, Byelorussia, Turkestan, Georgia and others (some even with Socialist governments) were re-established by the will of the peoples after the downfall of the Tsarist regime, defending their indepen­ dence. The “advent” of Lenin was a clever masking of the Messianic, imperialist Russian-Communist ideology by which the new Russian chauvinistic mafia was trying to save the empire namely, by replacing the corrupt Tsarist elite with a Bolshevik one. New slogans took over the old. Instead of the old Messianic ideology of the Tsarist regime 4 THE UKRAINIAN REVIEW in defence of the “ Orthodoxy” , Panslavism — there came to be a new one, with more perfidy and deceit, yet just as Messianic as before, preaching proletarian, international Communism aiming at “proletarian revolutions” throughout the world. Such “ ideas” had been stated already before, it was Dostoyevsky who wrote late in the XIXth century: “The Russian national idea is an universal idea, therefore, all people must become Russians” . The Tsarist ideology, and the system, therefore, became the modern Communist Russian neo-imperialist and neo-Colonial ideo­ logy and system, in that order. Lenin had Marxism applied to the Russiani realities, to the collective mentality and sociological needs of the broad Russian masses. Russians were always used to a collec­ tive way of life, having their mir, their obshchina, their “ collective” tilling of the earth. Yet, Karl Marx had meant his doctrines for the industrially developed nations and had excluded any possibilities for them to take root in Imperial Russia. MARX ABOUT RUSSIA Marx did warn the world about the “advent” of Russian imperial­ ism. During 1853-1856 he wrote a series of essays in the New York Tribune, which later were included in the collective volume Eastern Question, published in London (1897) by his daughter. Communist publishers in the USSR and elsewhere never did offer these essays to public attention. There Marx exposes Russian imperialism from a historical perspective, shows that it always used deceiving ideas in order to get a hold of and rule the entire world. Here are some quotations from what Marx had to say: “What remains constant and unchanging is the politics of Russian government. Methods can change, but Russian politics remain the same . Pan-Slavism, as a form of Russian imperialism, is not a move­ ment which aims at national independence, it is a movement which aims at Europe, aims to destroy all that, that was created by thousands of years of history. And it can not be achieved without burning out of the world’s map Hungary, Turkey, and a large part of Germany .. .. There is only one way to deal with such a world power as Russia: fearlessness ... The way of intimidation is less costly than open warfare. Russia is handing out so many diplomatic notes to Western diplomats, just like throwing bones to some dogs, to give them some harmless pleasure, while using all opportunities to gain in time . .. .. Conting upon cowardice and fear of the Western powers the Russian is intimidating Europe and screws in his demands as high as COMMUNISM IN CRISIS 5 possible only to show later how generous-hearted he is after obtaining what he really wants ... The Russian bear is going to get away with anything, as long as he knows, that other creatures he is dealing with are good for nothing .. Europe is decadent, but war would stir up some healthy elements. War would revive some lasting strengths . .. Marx also cites the court poet of Russian Tsarina Catherine the Second (Dzerzhavin), who said: ‘‘Why do you need allies, oh, Russian? March ahead and the world shall be yours!” And finally, from Marx: “ It can not be denied that at the time Russian influence upon European politics is at its peak — the true strength of the Russian army does not justify such a political conception at a ll. ..” This volume by Karl Marx, contalining over 150 pages about Russian expansionist plans always covered up by some Messianic “ideas” , did not take into account at all the fact that Marxism shall become the new deceitful “idea” , by which Communist Russian neo­ colonialism and neo-imperialism Shall cover themselves up, to force new nations and their peoples under the whip. FIRST ELEMENT OF THE CRISIS The first element of the crisis the Communist system is undergoing now in the countries behind the Iron Curtain is caused by the fact, that Communism has taken a modern form of Russian neo-Colonial- ism nad neo-imperialism. The Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), with all the satellites, is not and does not represent voluntary union of the sovereign nations. It is a “union” under a totalitarian system making up the new Communist Russian empire, enforced by Russian arms and terror, into which highly cultural nations, some looking upon more than one thousand years of heritage, are hammered. The Achilles heel of every empire was and is any enslaved nation held voithin it by force. The national-liberation struggle of any enslaved peoples destroys an empire from within. During times when contemporary development of world affairs is characterized by disintegration and decolonization processess, such processess can not terminate after reaching the present borderlines of the Communist Russian empire. Membership in the United Na­ tions has quadrupled since the inception of this organization. At the same time Russian imperialists, under cover of Communism, proclaimed the creation of a new, unheard of, phenomenon: under Brezhnev’s leadership — one Soviet people, with one Russian langu­ age is to be moulded out of all. On 13 February 1976, during the XXYth Communist Party Congress of Ukraine, the first secretary, 6 THE UKRAINIAN REVIEW “ comrade” Shcherbitsky, delivered his address in Russian rather than in the Ukrainian language.