Situational Analysis Case Study Zakarpattia region About International Alert International Alert works with people directly affected by conflict to build lasting peace. Together, we believe peace is within our power. We focus on solving the root causes of conflict, bringing together people from across divides. From the grassroots to policy level, we come together to build everyday peace. Peace is just as much about communities living together, side by side, and resolving their differences without resorting to violence as it is about people signing a treaty or laying down their arms. That is why we believe that we all have a role to play in building a more peaceful future. www.international-alert.org © International Alert 2019 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without full attribution. Layout: Marc Rechdane Front cover image: Festivities during the Hungarian holiday ‘’Bread of Hungarians - 15 Million Grains”, village of Gatcha, Berehovo district, Zakarpattya oblast, Ukraine © Serhiy Hudak Situational Analysis Case Study Zakarpattia region February 2019 2 | International Alert Situational Analysis Case Study: Zakarpattia region Acknowledgements This report was written by Marina Nagai, with contributions from Iuliia Serbina, Iryna Brunova-Kalisetska, Sergiy Danylov, IMaksym Ieligulashvili and Dmytro Tuzhanskiy. Primary field research was conducted by Iryna Brunova- Kalisetska, Sergiy Danylov, Maksym Ieligulashvili and Dmytro Tuzhanskiy. Special thanks are given to International Alert staff who reviewed the briefing and provided comments. This research was carried out and published within the framework of the project “Conflict analysis in three potential risk areas in Ukraine”, which is funded by the British Government’s Conflict Security and Stability Fund (CSSF). The project is implemented by International Alert. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and may not coincide with the official position of the UK Government. Situational Analysis Case Study: Zakarpattia region International Alert | 3 Contents Abbreviations 3 1. Introduction 4 2. Methodology 5 3. Context Analysis 6 4. Key Conflict Dynamics 10 4.1 Political conflict between ‘pro-Hungarian’ and ‘pro-Ukrainian’ blocks 10 4.2 Resource management and distribution 12 4.3 Exclusion of the Roma community 13 5. Conflict Triggers 14 6. Existing Peacebuilding Capacities and Recommendations 15 5.1 Peacebuilding capacities/sources of stability 15 5.2 Recommendations 16 Abbreviations NGO Non-governmental organisation SBU Служба Безпеки України (Security Services of Ukraine) SME Small and medium-sized enterprise Festivities during the Hungarian holiday ‘’Bread of Hungarians - 15 Million Grains», village of Gatcha, Berehovo district, Zakarpattya oblast, Ukraine © Serhiy Hudak 1. Introduction Five years on after the conflict in the east and the annexation of Crimea, Ukraine continues to face a number of geopolitical and domestic challenges. Against this backdrop, concerns for Ukraine’s integrity feature highly in the national discourse and are echoed by some international observers. This case study presents a conflict analysis of Berehove, a town in Transcarpathia oblast (hereafter Zakarpattia), the centre of Berehiv rayon (district). According to the 2001 census,1 Berehove’s population was 26,554 people, of which Hungarians (48.1%) and Ukrainians (38.9%) constituted the majority ethnic groups. The region was selected for the following reasons: its proximity to the international border with Hungary and strong links between Hungary and ethnic Hungarians in the region; Hungarian majority-minority in Berehove; geographical remoteness from Kyiv; agricultural economy; and a long history of patriarchal traditions. This case study forms part of an analysis of three regions in Ukraine: Kherson, Odesa and Zakarpattia. The common findings from each region are summarised in a synthesis report, which also proposes peacebuilding recommendations. 1 http://2001.ukrcensus.gov.ua/rus/results/general/nationality/zakarpatia/ Situational Analysis Case Study: Zakarpattia region International Alert | 5 2. Methodology In October and November 2018, a series of in-depth interviews and focus group discussions were carried out in Berehove city of the Zakarpattia region. The qualitative study draws on views and experiences of 21 respondents, of which 10 people (9 men and 1 women) were interviewed individually and 11 (6 women and 5 men) participated in focus group discussions. Depending on their preference, the respondents were interviewed in Ukrainian or Hungarian. The respondents were sampled from a wide range of professional and social backgrounds, and included: local government officials and local deputies, representatives of education services, researchers, businesspeople, journalists and civic activists. They identified with diverse (majority and minority) ethnic and religious groups present in the region and represented different age categories (25–60 years). Given the sensitivity of the research topic and the pre-election political environment, all participants have been anonymised. Based on a relational (referring to the social construction of masculinities and femininities) and intersectional (as systems of power shaped by other identities)2 approach, the methodology included questions on gender dynamics to ensure gender was mainstreamed through the research. This allowed for the most prominent gender issues to be highlighted. However, a more focused methodology is required to uncover deep-rooted gendered drivers and effects and find ways to help to overcome a lack of interest in gender issues among local stakeholders (a fact brought to light during this project). The study also included desk research and a review of literature, including media reports (including social media); and documents of national and local authorities and statistical bodies. 2 H. Myrttinen, N. Popovic and L. Khattab, ‘Measuring gender’ in peacebuilding: Evaluating peacebuilding efforts from a gender- relational perspective, London: International Alert, 2016, https://www.international-alert.org/sites/default/files/Gender_ MeasuringGenderPeacebuilding_EN_2016.pdf; S. Tielemans, Gender & conflict analysis toolkit for peacebuilders, London: Conciliation Resources, 2015, https://www.c-r.org/downloads/CR%20Gender%20Toolkit%20WEB.pdf 6 | International Alert Situational Analysis Case Study: Zakarpattia region 3. Context Analysis Proximity to the border with Hungary has a large impact on community development in terms of (in)security and the establishment of family and clan relations. It contributes to community perceptions of being at a double ‘dead end’ of a ‘big country’ (on the edges of both Ukraine and Hungary). The border is also a means of livelihood for many, including family and clan networks that operate illegal and semi-legal cross-border trading businesses. There is a strong sense of a Zakarpattian identity, particularly among local Hungarians, 62% of whom cited Zakarpattia as their “motherland” in a recent poll, whereas only 27% of Ukrainian respondents felt the same.3 This local identity has been shaped by geographic and political factors. Hungary is omnipresent in all spheres of life in the region, from economic and political to humanitarian and charitable. Hungarian authorities consider the region as historical lands of the Hungarian nation and the Hungarian minority as a part of that nation that enjoys the same rights and opportunities as those Hungarians living on the borders of today’s Hungarian state. A clan-based community system has developed primarily as a mechanism for community survival under authoritarian rule. This model continues to impact upon the way in which decisions are made and resources are managed. At the same time, the need to manage life on the borders of two large states and the external pressures this brings means that people established informal systems of governance based on a network of interconnected yet individual communities. “Clanship [has been] caused by the mountains. Group leaders make decisions, so-called opinion makers and priests are listened to. They might not have respect but they are listened to. A head of the village council may not have respect but [people] take note.”4 The economic, political and social crises that began with the break-up of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) led to a greater level of self-organisation in the communities. This was accompanied by ever lower levels of trust in the Ukrainian state authorities and politicians, especially at the central level. At the local level, this led to the formation of stronger parallel institutions to the state that were able to ensure economic survival and community security. “People self-organise. There is quite a high level of self-organisation and the state [was] replaced where deemed defective. They understood there that there is no support from the state. In Dobrush, Velikaya, the people themselves started to renovate the roads. If we do not get aid, we will manage it on our own.”5 The civil service and local self-governance, service provision (budgetary) and small entrepreneurship (tourism and agriculture) are the mainstays of the local economy. The illegal and semi-legal business activities that exist are linked to cross-border trade and natural resource management. Remittances from family members abroad and