Two Years After Financial Crisis Hit, Bank Depositors Still Owed Money
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INSIDE: • Yanukovych downgrades Ukraine’s EU ambitions – page 3. • San Diego’s House of Ukraine turns 50 – page 9. • Photo follow-up: Ruslana’s return to Soyuzivka – pages 12-13. THEPublished U by theKRAINIAN Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal Wnon-profit associationEEKLY Vol. LXXVIII No. 38 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2010 $1/$2 in Ukraine SBU targets Lviv historian UAV National Monument site studying occupation regimes in South Bound Brook is blessed PARSIPPANY, N.J. – The Security was detained on the orders of SBU chief by Anna Krawczuk April 11. UAV national and post colors Service of Ukraine (SBU) on September 8 Valeriy Khoroshkovsky. He added that the made an impressive and beautiful addi- detained a historian who is director of the goal of the detention was to hinder his work SOUTH BOUND BROOK, N.J. – The tion to the day’s ceremonies. National Memorial Museum of Victims of with declassified documents and thus pre- blessing of the prominent plot of land on The day of the blessing was also vent their dissemination. which the Ukrainian American Veterans Occupation Regimes, Prison on Lontsky, marked by solemn tributes to the fallen. and the next day announced it had started a Mr. Zabilyi voiced his demand that his (UAV) National Monument will be erect- Following St. Andrew’s altar servers and computer and hard drives – which he said ed here at St. Andrew Cemetery was subdeacons, the UAV, led by National criminal investigation against him for alleg- another step toward realization of an Commander Leonid Kondratiuk, pro- edly revealing state secrets. iconic project that will honor all cessed from St. Andrew Memorial Ruslan Zabilyi, 35, was taken into custo- (Continued on page 17) Ukrainian American men and women Church to the large ceremonial cross at dy by six SBU agents as he arrived who served in the U.S. armed forces. the center of the cemetery where a by train in Kyiv from Lviv. He was Concelebrated by Archbishop Antony memorial service (panakhyda) was held. not told the reason for his detention and Bishop Daniel of the Ukrainian Special services were then held at the and was held incommunicado at the Orthodox Church of the U.S.A., and cler- Holy Resurrection Ukrainian Orthodox gy, the blessing ceremony was attended SBU headquarters, where he was Mausoleum, where His Holiness interrogated for 14 and a half hours. by UAV members and others interested in Patriarch Mstyslav I is interred. The UAV His personal laptop computer and the project. contingent also held a brief memorial cer- Archbishop Antony and Bishop Daniel emony at the graves and monument of external hard drives were confiscat- blessed the site and spoke about the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA). ed. Ukrainian Americans in the U.S. military The Ukrainian American Veterans Inc., The Prison on Lontsky Museum and their contributions. UAV members expressed gratitude to Archbishop is dedicated to the victims of occu- from Posts 1, 6, 17, 30, 31, 42, and 101, Antony for his continuous support for pation regimes in Ukraine. Located as well as members-at-large, participated in the jail used during the Polish, (Continued on page 4) in the event, held on St. Thomas Sunday, Nazi and Soviet occupations of western Ukraine, it was established during the presidency of Viktor Yushchenko at a time when former- ly secret archives of the Soviet KGB were opened to the public. The memorial museum was opened in June 2009. It continues to be the property of the SBU, the successor in Ukraine to the Soviet-era KGB. Speaking on September 9 at a press conference in Kyiv, Mr. Zabilyi, whose research interest is Ukrainian Information Service the Ukrainian liberation movement Demonstrators in Lviv on September 10 protest of the 20th century, detailed his the actions of the Security Service of Ukraine in ordeal the previous day. He stated launching a criminal probe against historian M. Orysia Jacus that although the SBU agents did Ruslan Zabilyi of the memorial museum Prison not identify themselves, they said he on Lontsky. The UAV contingent at the site of the future UAV National Monument. Two years after financial crisis hit, bank depositors still owed money by Oleksander Kryvenko hasn’t satisfied several hundred clients, Special to The Ukrainian Weekly who collectively are still owed as much as $43 million, as estimated in November KYIV – Nearly two years after the by the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU). global financial crisis rattled Ukraine, Officials haven’t reported how much of tens of thousands of depositors of the that owed money has since been paid, nation’s commercial banks are still hold- and how much remains. ing out hope they will receive the money “It’s not difficult to presume the fur- they entrusted. ther theft from already duped depositors Depositors of Bank ARMA in Kyiv of defunct banks, occurring at the stage found that government-appointed admin- of preparing to pay back guaranteed istrators and liquidators are just as inef- amounts,” said Volodymyr Zavalyi, the fective as the bank’s employees had been deputy director of the Depositors Rights themselves in managing finances, wheth- Defense Association. er through carelessness or suspected About 18 commercial banks in criminal intent. Ukraine are currently faced with liquida- The February appointment of liquida- tor Maryna Slavkina to Bank ARMA tion following the failed attempts of tem- porary administrators to make them via- Oleksander Kryvenko ble. Several others, such as nationally Oleksander Kryvenko is a free-lance Bank ARMA depositors stage a protest in Kyiv back in September of 2009 to journalist and lawyer from Kyiv. (Continued on page 4) demand the return of their money. 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2010 No. 38 ANALYSIS NEWSBRIEFS Party of Regions of Ukraine Yanukovych meets U.S. undersecretary the 25th anniversary of the Chornobyl nuclear accident, particularly in connection KYIV – President Viktor Yanukovych with the issue of nuclear materials security. fashions its election strategy met on September 9 with U.S. (Press Office of President Viktor by Taras Kuzio cy of what Yale University’s Keith Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Yanukovych) William Burns. Mr. Yanukovych expressed Eurasia Daily Monitor Darden has described as the “blackmail state.” The SBU has always collected confidence that the U.S. official’s visit to Undersecretary comments on meetings The Party of Regions of Ukraine Ukraine confirms both states’ willingness to files on corruption within Ukraine’s elites KYIV – Speaking at a media roundtable (PRU), according to an extensive analysis to keep them in line. If they do not heed continue positive dialogue started during his in Ukrayinska Pravda (August 30), is meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama. on September 9 after his meetings in Kyiv their threats, criminal charges are institut- with Ukraine’s president, prime minister, seeking to obtain a majority in local ed. On August 25, the Kyiv City Council He noted that the visit of U.S. Secretary of councils in the October local elections. If State Hillary Clinton and the meeting of the senior government officials and opposition voted to cancel raion elections and, there- and civil society leaders, as well as the the Party of Regions secures a majority in fore, the Kyiv city elections in October. Strategic Partnership Commission reaf- the area between the Don (the Russian- firmed that the two countries have many American Chamber of Commerce. U.S. The Party of Regions has never been Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Ukrainian border) and the Zbruch (the popular in the city. common interests. The president said William Burns said, “I emphasized in the former Tsarist-Austro-Hungarian border) In addition, the election law was Ukraine is actively conducting reforms, extensive schedule of meetings that I had rivers, it will control Ukraine. changed from a full proportional to a full which are possible only under conditions of today the very high priority that President This represents a battle for the hearts majority system. The proportional local political and economic stability, which he [Barack] Obama attaches to the strategic and minds of the swing region of central election law was criticized for ignoring said had been achieved. Mr. Yanukovych partnership between our two countries. I’m Ukraine. In the 1994 elections this region the fact that political parties were not cited reforms in the areas of economic poli- happy to be here to follow up on the suc- voted for Leonid Kuchma, giving him a well represented at local level and failing cy and the bureaucracy, judicial reform and cessful meeting that our two presidents had slim 52 percent victory, and 10 years later to provide local individuals to represent the battle against corruption. He also spoke in Washington last April and Secretary [of the region voted for Viktor Yushchenko them. At the same time, the new law about the European integration of Ukraine, yielding a similar victory. slows the development of political parties noting, “Our dialogue and cooperation with State Hillary] Clinton’s very important visit That western Ukraine has been written and encourages businessmen and officials the EU are the matters of constant attention last July.” He noted that he and his interloc- off as a no-win region for the PRU could to campaign as “independents” who are of the MFA and of my own.” On the topic utors spoke about a broad range of impor- be seen in presidential congratulations open to “inducements” to join PRU-led of local elections scheduled for October 31, tant issues. “We talked about the importance sent to Donetsk on its annual holiday majorities in local councils. Mr. Yanukovych said, “There is no man the United States attaches to deepening eco- (www.president.gov.ua, August 28).