LETTERS TO THE EDITOR (05/19/96)

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

President Clinton deserves support

Dear Editor:

In a recent letter to The Ukrainian Weekly it was pointed out that the Reagan State Department - not President Ronald Reagan himself - made the decision to deny Myroslav Medvid his bid for freedom a decade ago. This is an important point. In all likelihood, the same officials who advised President Reagan to return Mr. Medvid to Soviet custody also made the decision to fight the creation of the Ukraine Famine Commission and to use only the Russian language on USIA missions to Ukraine. Probably the same group of foreign policy experts later counseled President George Bush to personally intervene to try to block Ukrainian independence.

So, even though the Reagan-Bush foreign policy was decidedly anti-Soviet, it was not the least bit pro-Ukrainian. It is important for Ukrainian Americans to keep this in mind because the same people who advised against the independence of Ukraine are now hoping for a Republican victory in November so they can get their old jobs back.

This is not a trivial matter, nor is it one that should interest Ukrainians only. The Clinton foreign policy team has made Ukraine a cornerstone of its global strategy. President Bill Clinton and Vice-President Al Gore continue to affirm the critical importance the United States attaches to an independent, democratic and prosperous Ukraine. They do this, not to please our community, but because it makes sense for the United States and for global peace.

The Bush initiative to save the Soviet Union five years ago has been proven to be wrong for Ukraine and wrong for America. An independent Ukraine serves as a strategic counterbalance to Russia, blocking that country's historic aspirations for empire. The architects of the policy that tried to block Ukrainian aspirations on a "minor" matter like the Famine Commission or a major one like independence showed extremely poor judgment and should not be given renewed access to power.

President Clinton, on the other hand, has demonstrated a profound understanding of Ukraine's role in the world and in history. As a result, he is the most pro-Ukrainian president we have ever had. President Clinton and his foreign policy team have the right approach toward Ukraine, and he deserves our wholehearted support in the upcoming presidential campaign.

Andrew Ripecky
Chicago

Sheftel's book exposes the truth

Dear Editor:

After reading Dr. Myron Kuropas' review (The Ukrainian Weekly, February 4) of the Yoram Sheftel book: "The Demjanjuk Affair: The Rise and Fall of a Show Trial," I tried to purchase this book in the Chicago area. After a considerable search through major bookstores, I was told that this book is not available, and I would have to find the publisher on my own. Through my local library, I managed to get the book from the Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, through the Interlibrary Loan Service.

Mr. Sheftel in his excellent book demonstrates that it was clear even before the trial began that the court, like the media, would find Mr. Demjanjuk guilty at the end of the show-trial it was planning. Not only did Israel fail to appoint an independent national commission of inquiry, but, in an astounding display of callousness, it rewarded two of the judges who sent Mr. Demjanjuk to the gallows for crimes he never committed. They were appointed to the Supreme Court bench.

Mr. Sheftel should be commended for exposing his nation's juridical fault line, at great risk to his career and to his life. "The Demjanjuk Affair..." may be purchased directly from the publisher: Victor Gollancz Ltd., A Division of the Cassell Group, Villiers House, 41/47 Strand, London WC2N 5JE; ISBN: 0 575 05795 5.

Bohdan J. Bodnaruk
Clarendon Hills, Ill.

Re: Veryovka in Jackson, Mich.

Dear Editor:

In March, at Jackson's most modern auditorium and the home of the Jackson Symphony Orchestra, we met the Veryovka artists in their most colorful costumes. They have captured our hearts from the beginning. Numerous songs and dances earned a standing ovation from the audience, most of whom know nothing about Ukraine. Jacksonians of Ukrainian descent were well represented. All three families attended the performance.

After the show, one of the performers asked me to visit him in the hotel where they were staying overnight. Their instruments were loaded on a truck and shipped overnight to Steubenville, Ohio. Before 9 p.m. the bus arrived with the performers from a shopping center. They entered the motel carrying bags of bread and cold meats for sandwiches. They had been shopping all this time instead of having dinner in the restaurant, as I had thought.

I asked my acquaintance if he had dinner and he said no - he had a sandwich for lunch, and he was not hungry. So I took him to McDonald's for a Big Mac, french fries and a coke (it was after 9 p.m., and he was tired). It took less than a minute for him to consume the food. Then I took him to my home.

He told me that the performers finally got a little money after a month's time. They had refused to perform unless they were paid. Any profits from selling souvenirs, tapes and cassettes are pocketed by a separate company, and nothing goes to the performers. I wonder how much longer they could perform those strenuous dances without a proper balanced hot meal each day and vitamin/mineral supplements? What a shame!

Why can't the Ukrainians in this country provide assistance, interpreters and travel guides for these most wonderful ambassadors of Ukraine?

I met several of the performers at the motel that night, and they spoke Ukrainian well and did not smoke or drink.

Andrew Zakala
Jackson, Mich.

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