www.ukrweekly.com INSIDE:• Papal visit recalled on its fifth anniversary — page 3. • Team Ukraine soccer fans from around the globe — page 7. • Scholars from 10 countries at diaspora conference — page 11. Published by the Ukrainian National Association Inc., a fraternal non-profit association Vol. LXXIV HE KRAINIANNo. 27 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JULY 2, 2006 EEKLY$1/$2 in Ukraine T U Party of theW Regions blockade Ukraine heads for quarter-finals halts work of Verkhovna Rada in debut at soccer’s World Cup by Zenon Zawada Ms. Tymoshenko is the coalition’s Kyiv Press Bureau nominee for prime minister, while Our Ukraine had nominated Petro Poroshenko, KYIV – Ukraine’s government slipped a wealthy businessman and close confi- back toward chaos as the Party of the dante of President Viktor Yushchenko. Regions issued a fierce ultimatum on Mykola Tomenko, who is the June 26, launching a blockade of the Tymoshenko Bloc’s likely candidate for Verkhovna Rada until the new coalition vice-chairman of the Parliament, accused government meets its demands. the Party of the Regions of opposing the The opposition demanded separate vot- package vote as part of its plan to bribe ing for prime minister and speaker, a secret enough national deputies to vote for Mr. ballot vote for the Parliament’s chairman- Yanukovych as Rada chair. ship, proportional distribution of committee The Party of the Regions has created a chairs according to election results and a $250 million slush fund to bribe deputies, ban on moonlighting by national deputies. Mr. Tomenko alleged, and wants the “Violating parliamentary and constitu- secret ballot vote to enable enough tional procedures, the so-called Orange deputies from the coalition government coalition is trying to seize power at any to vote for Mr. Yanukovych without pub- price, stepping over the nation’s laws and lic exposure. the will of the people,” Victor Among the goals of the blockade, Yanukovych said on June 29, threatening political experts speculated, was to pres- to maintain the blockade even if it led to sure the coalition government to its limit, the Parliament’s dismissal. with the possibility of breaking it before The Party of the Regions announced it even began to govern. the blockade after leaders of the Our If exacerbating division among the Ukraine bloc, the Yulia Tymoshenko coalition forces was among the Regions Bloc and the Socialist Party of Ukraine AP/Darko Vojinovic goals, early successes may have already signed an agreement on June 22 to form been apparent. Ukraine’s goalkeeper Oleksander Shovkovskyi (right) celebrates with teammates a parliamentary coalition. at the end of the penalty shootout against Switzerland on June 26. Already fragile to begin with, the The Party of the Regions immediately coalition government began to show declared its opposition to the govern- signs of cracking when Socialist Party by Matthew Dubas World Cup’s first penalty kick shoot-out, ment, declaring that any coalition exclud- with Ukraine scoring on three of its four Chairman Oleksander Moroz declared PARSIPPANY, N.J. – In its debut ing Ukraine’s most popular political June 29 that his party wouldn’t support shots and Switzerland succeeding on force was creating division in the nation World Cup performance, the Ukrainian none. The Swiss went home after playing Our Ukraine nominee Petro Poroshenko soccer team has exceeded expectations, and bound for failure. for the Rada chairmanship. four games in the tournament without In announcing its ultimatum, the Party making it to the quarter-finals by defeat- yielding a single goal. His announcement was a direct viola- ing Switzerland on June 26. of the Regions expressed vehement oppo- Ukraine’s road to the June 26 game tion of the coalition agreement, which The Group of 16 match held in sition to Our Ukraine’s proposal to select explicitly states that no party or bloc Cologne, Germany, ended in the 2006 (Continued on page 7) the nation’s prime minister and parliament would oppose another’s party or bloc’s chairman as part of a package vote, in nomination to a post that it has control of. which the national deputies would have to approve or reject both candidates together. (Continued on page 11) 20,000 protest consumer price hikes by Zenon Zawada they can barely afford to live now, let Kyiv Press Bureau alone after such increases. Arriving from all oblasts of Ukraine and KYIV – Olena Lytvynova, 45, doesn’t representing each shade of the political know how she’s going to make it. spectrum, the protesters banded together Her daughter’s college bill exceeds her under an umbrella organization, the $107 a month salary, and two more chil- Federation of Ukraine’s Trade Unions dren are hoping to enter college soon. (FUTU), and demanded a moratorium on Already in debt with her utility bill, price hikes, exacting higher wages instead. she can’t fathom an increase. “We turn to the president of Ukraine, “I can’t give my children a higher edu- as the Constitution’s guarantor, to cease cation, and then there’s heating, electrici- the anti-people, anti-social and anti-con- ty, food and clothing to pay,” said Ms. stitutional acts by the government and, as Lytvynova, a doctor in Oleksandria of the the Constitution’s guarantor, to defend Kirovohrad Oblast. “It’s impossible to go the people of Ukraine,” said Oleksander on living like this.” Yurkin, president of FUTU. Ms. Lytvynova was among more than The organization represents more than 20,000 Ukrainians who rallied at Kyiv’s 10 million Ukrainian workers, 44 trade Independence Square on June 27 to unions and 26 territorial coalitions of protest government measures that they trade union organizations, whose mem- say would make living unaffordable. bers range from miners and laborers to In recent weeks, the Ukrainian govern- teachers and doctors. AP/Efrem Lukatsky ment has announced steep consumer FUTU organized the All-Ukrainian price hikes for natural gas, utilities, Trade Union Protest on the eve of the Lawmakers from the Party of the Regions block the podium in the Verkhovna sewage and telephone communication, Rada on June 29. The banner on the presidium reads: “No to package vote for drawing outrage from citizens who say (Continued on page 10) speaker [Rada chairman] and prime minister.” 2 THE UKRAINIAN WEEKLY SUNDAY, JULY 2, 2006 No. 27 ANALYSIS Ukraine’s new ‘Orange’ government NEWSBRIEFSNEWSBRIEFS Lawmakers differ on session agenda possibility of influencing the activity of Parliament and monitoring the work (or faces the same hurdles as the first KYIV – The newly formed parliamen- idleness) of the authorities,” the Party of tary coalition – Our Ukraine, the Yulia the Regions said in a statement on June 27. by Jan Maksymiuk made a considerable effort during the Tymoshenko Bloc and the Socialist Party The newly recreated Orange coalition in RFE/RL Newsline nearly three months of coalition talks to of Ukraine – wants to swear in judges of the Verkhovna Rada intends to hold a vote install an elaborate system of checks and the Constitutional Court on June 27, on the approval of the nominees for prime The three allies of the 2004 Orange balances to prevent her from gaining too UNIAN reported on June 26, quoting Ivan minister and parliament chairman – Yulia Revolution in Ukraine – the Yulia much power. Bokyi, a member of the Verkhovna Rada’s Tymoshenko and Petro Poroshenko, Tymoshenko Bloc, Our Ukraine and the A coalition deal signed on June 22 interim presidium. Mr. Bokyi added that respectively – on June 29. (RFE/RL Socialist Party – decided on June 22 to provides for the distribution of election the opposition Party of the Regions and Newsline) recreate their ruling coalition, which spoils between the Orange allies on a the Communist Party are “decidedly” existed for eight months in 2005. The broadly proportional basis. This means against this idea, demanding that the Trade unions protest utility price hikes renewed Orange coalition, however, that the Tymoshenko Bloc (129 seats) Parliament elect the chairman and consti- KYIV – Some 15,000 people gathered comes into being under new rules of the should get 53 percent of government tute parliamentary committees first. on Independence Square in Kyiv on June political game determined by a constitu- posts, Our Ukraine (81 seats) 33 percent, Mykola Katerynchuk of Our Ukraine told 27 to protest increases in payments for tional reform that took effect at the and the Socialist Party (33 seats) 14 per- journalists that the Communist Party is beginning of 2006. electricity and gas supplies, as well as for cent. planning to block the parliamentary ros- Yulia Tymoshenko, leader of the housing and public transport, UNIAN But this arithmetic does not apply to trum and prevent President Viktor eponymous political bloc, was fond of reported. The rally was organized by some major state posts that the Yushchenko from entering the session hall asserting during the parliamentary elec- Ukraine’s Federation of Trade Unions. At Constitution defines as a presidential if the coalition pushes for the swear-in tion campaign earlier this year that vot- the end of May, the government decided to quota. In particular, the president has the ceremony. The Constitutional Court has ing for the Verkhovna Rada on March 26 nearly double consumer gas prices as of right to appoint the foreign affairs minis- been inactive for nearly a year, because would decide who would actually govern July 1. It was the second gas price hike this ter, the defense minister, the procurator- opposition lawmakers refused to invest its Ukraine over the next five years. In this year in Ukraine, following a Ukrainian- general, the head of the Security Service judges, fearing that President Viktor way she was highlighting the new, Russian deal in January that increased the of Ukraine, the head of the National Yushchenko may ask the court to cancel enhanced powers of the Parliament and gas price for Ukraine from $50 to $95 per Bank of Ukraine and all regional gover- the 2004 constitutional reform.