The Ukrainian Weekly 2003, No.14

www.ukrweekly.com INSIDE:• Kyiv library holds largest collection of children’s publications — page 3. • Ukrainians active at session of U.N.’s commission on women — page 5. • Taras Shevchenko and his neighbors in Washington — page 15. Published by the Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal non-profit association Vol. LXXI HE KRAINIANNo. 14 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2003 EEKLY$1/$2 in Ukraine Controversy arises over whether battalion, TDemographer advisesU Ukrainian groups W to take a close look at U.S. Census stats and Ukraine, are part of U.S.-led coalition by Roman Woronowycz it could enter the area of conflict. by Andrew Nynka mated that only 116,000 speak Ukrainian Kyiv Press Bureau Petro Symonenko, the head of the at home. Communist Party, said that President KERHONKSON, N.Y. – A closer KYIV – The Communist parliamentary Bush’s enumeration of Ukraine as part of “We’re missing out,” Dr. Wolowyna faction introduced a draft bill in the look at U.S. Census data shows that said, referring to those organizations that the coalition is evidence that Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada on April 2 ordering the many Ukrainian organizations could be require their members to speak Ukrainian authorities had deceived the nation and had recall of the Ukainian army’s special con- ignoring hundreds of thousands of self- or look down on members who don’t use more on their mind than simply a peace- tamination clean-up battalion currently declared Ukrainians living in the United that language. Some 777,000 self- keeping effort. States, a specialist in the field of demo- declared Ukrainians, or roughly 87 per- being deployed to Kuwait. The faction “The speech by the American president graphics told a summit of Ukrainian cent of the total, threaten to be pushed introduced the resolution in response to a only brought to light what we have been organizations on March 29. away from participating in organizations speech by U.S. President George W. Bush saying all along: that Ukrainian state leaders “We are creating a recipe for failure,” which could badly use their help. on March 26 in which he named Ukraine as had every intention of being in partnership said Dr. Oleh Wolowyna, president of Speaking after the conference, which part of the anti-Iraq coalition. with the U.S. in Iraq,” stated Mr. Informed Decisions Inc., during a sum- was held at the Ukrainian National Ukraine’s Parliament had ratified a rec- Symonenko. mit devoted to looking at demographics Association’s Soyuzivka resort, many of ommendation from the National Security During parliamentary debate on the reso- and communication in the Ukrainian the participants related a sense of aston- and Defense Council to send the army’s lution to send the 19th Battalion to Kuwait, American diaspora. ishment regarding Dr. Wolowyna’s pres- 19th Battalion, which specializes in nuclear, National Deputy Symonenko had stated that “Unfortunately many of our commu- entation. Several said they were com- biological and chemical (NBC) clean-up to Ukraine’s soldiers would become war casu- nity leaders do not understand much of pletely unaware of the trend and said that Kuwait on the day the Iraq war started after alties should they be forced to go to the the data on our community,” Dr. they doubted Ukrainian organizations Kuwaiti officials extended a request for that Persian Gulf. Wolowyna, a demographer who has been were addressing the situation. specific type of humanitarian support. The controversy came as accusations analyzing census data from 1970 through The U.S. Census is regarded by Amid much concern by the public and from a U.S. publication threatened again to 2000, said during the 2003 Summit of experts as the most reliable source of politicians, Ukrainian government officials darken U.S.-Ukraine relations over illegal Ukrainian American Organizations. data on the Ukrainian community have emphasized repeatedly that the battal- arms shipments to Iraq. This one arose after According to U.S. Census data col- because of its ability to take a large, rep- ion’s mission is exclusively and inviolately Newsweek published an article in which it lected in the year 2000, 893,000 people resentative sample of the population in humanitarian and precludes any possibility mentioned “Ukrainian arms dealers” as the self-identified themselves, at least to the United States. Dr. Wolowyna said that it could take part in combat or even that (Continued on page 21) some degree, as Ukrainians. Of that number, Dr. Wolowyna said that it is esti- (Continued on page 21) New York credit union donates $250,000 to Ukrainian studies at Columbia University by Illya Labunka University and the Ukrainian Studies Fund. NEW YORK – The Self Reliance (New For more than 50 years Self Reliance York) Federal Credit Union has donated New York has been actively addressing the $250,000 to the Ukrainian Studies Fund’s needs of the Ukrainian community. The Columbia University Project. The major Self Reliance New York credit union offers donation sets the cornerstone for the estab- numerous financial services and supports a lishment of a new $1 million endowed broad range of important Ukrainian cultur- fund projected to support Columbia al and national endeavors. University’s new Center for Ukrainian The Columbia University Project envi- Studies. sions a multi-phase expansion of The fund is the first of several to be Ukrainian studies at one of the most presti- established at Columbia and, once gious and influential American universi- endowed, it will support the teaching of ties. It will financially strengthen the primarily new courses in Ukrainian history Center of Ukrainian Studies, thus enabling and other traditional disciplines of it to engage a variety of lecturers and spe- Ukrainian Studies. These courses will be cialists to teach a rich curriculum focusing offered as part of the center’s new inter- on Ukraine. disciplinary curriculum. The Ukrainian Studies Fund’s project Self Reliance’s monumental gift is the also hopes to establish funds supporting largest, single donation received by the additional key activities at Columbia: Ukrainian Studies Fund for this goal to scholarships for undergraduates and gradu- date. ates, acquisition and processing funds for “We hope that the center of Ukrainian the university library’s Ucrainica collec- Studies at Columbia will provide many tion, and organization of colloquia and opportunities for our youth, enabling them seminars on Ukraine. access to the study of Ukraine’s history Significant ground has been covered in and related socio-political disciplines at the reaching the project’s objective. Two dis- highest academic level. This center will tinguished Ukrainian organizations – the become a beacon of knowledge about New York-based Shevchenko Scientific Ukraine in America,” said Dr. Bohdan Society and the Ukrainian Studies Fund – Roma Hadzewycz Kekish, president and CEO of the Self have pooled their resources to jointly facil- Dr. Oleh Wolowyna delivers the keynote address at the 2003 Summit of Reliance (New York) Federal Credit itate the introduction of the new curricu- Ukrainian American Organizations held at Soyuzivka. Seated is one of the Union, during a gift conveyance ceremony lum on Ukrainian history at Columbia. summit’s organizers, Andrij Wowk. attended by representatives of Columbia (Continued on page 27) 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2003 No. 14 ANALYSIS NEWSBRIEFS Ukrainian president revitalizes CIS, NEWSBRIEFS Kyiv denies selling Iraq anti-tank missiles pontiff to address the Ukrainian and Polish peoples on the occasion of the 60th anniver- gets Russia’s backing for 2004 elections KYIV – Foreign Affairs Ministry sary of a bloody interethnic conflict in spokesman Markian Lubkivskyi on April 1 Volyn, now in northwestern Ukraine. In by Taras Kuzio both in the West and in the East. Nobody denied that Ukraine has supplied anti-tank 1943-1944, Poles and Ukrainians in Volyn RFE/RL Newsline understands a country that demonstrates an Kornet missiles to Iraq, UNIAN reported. killed each other in a bloody interethnic absence of any kind of [foreign-policy] “Newsweek” reported on March 31 that conflict, with an estimated 75,000 Poles and When the presidents of Ukraine, vector.” Iraq has purchased 1,000 laser-guided 35,000 Ukrainians dying. On February 13 Belarus and Kazakstan arrived in Moscow Ukraine’s deeper integration into the Kornet missiles. The magazine cited Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma and on February 22-23 the talks with their CIS, Ukrainian critics have pointed out, unidentified Pentagon generals as saying Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, will become a negative influence on the that Ukrainian dealers sold about 500 announced in a joint statement that Poland focused on the planned creation of a free- country’s democratization process. Kornets to Iraq in January. According to Mr. and Ukraine have agreed to honor the mem- trade zone. At the informal CIS summit in Democratization throughout the CIS since Lubkivskyi, the report is “yet another ory of all the victims of the conflict. “I Kyiv in late January, Ukrainian President the late 1990s has been in reverse. Prof. attempt” to undermine Ukraine’s interna- asked the Pope to express his thoughts, in Leonid Kuchma said the best way to revi- Oleksander Derchachov of the National tional standing. (RFE/RL Newsline) order to bring about deeper mutual under- talize the Commonwealth of Independent University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy standing and reconciliation between Poland

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