January 24, 2020

2019: Our worldwide diaspora: engaged and united

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Presidential Office of Ukraine

At the August 23 meeting between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his staff with a delegation of the Ukrainian World Congress led by President Paul Grod. Also part of the UWC delegation are Andriy Futey, UWC vice-president and Ukrainian American Congress Committee president; Lenna Koszarny, UWC vice-president and chair of the UWC Committee for Ukraine’s Economic Development and Investment; and Serhiy Kasyanchuk, director of the UWC Mission in Ukraine.

The year started on a joyful note, when in early January the Tomos of autocephaly was granted to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The Ukrainian World Congress (UWC), the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC) and the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America (UCCA) all expressed greetings and congratulations to all Ukrainians of faith upon this historic achievement. “The Tomos, received from the Mother Church of Constantinople, returns Ukrainian Orthodoxy to its historic roots, restores historical justice and strengthens the dignity of all faithful in Ukraine,” stated UWC President Paul Grod. “We join the appeal of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to all leaders of autocephalous Orthodox Churches to recognize the newly created Orthodox Church of Ukraine.”

Also in January, the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) launched the UWC International Observation Mission (UWC Mission) for Ukraine’s 2019 elections. The head of the UWC Mission, Eugene Czolij, oversaw a working visit to Kyiv on February 11-15 to initiate the mission’s work. The meetings focused on preparations for the Ukrainian presidential election on March 31 and how the UWC mission would monitor this process. The UWC also called for volunteers to participate in overseeing the parliamentary elections on July 21, to ensure compliance with Ukraine’s domestic laws, as well as international standards for democratic elections.

The Ukrainian Cultural Center of Israel, located in Bat Yam near Tel Aviv, presented an evening dedicated to the memory of the prominent Ukrainian public leader and Church figure Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky (1865-1944), who risked his life to save Jews during World War II. Bishop Joseph Milian, the head of the Pastoral-Migration Department of the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church, spoke during the event, held in early April. Seventy-two Greek-Catholic priests from the central regions of Ukraine accompanied the bishop on this visit, during which they prayed together and visited places related to Christianity. According to Bishop Joseph, there are five Ukrainian Greek-Catholic communities in Israel, serving several thousand faithful.

Ukrainian Journalists of North America gathered at Soyuzivka Heritage Center on May 17-19 for their fifth international media conference, whose theme was “The Future of News.” Among the media outlets represented were New Pathway – Ukrainian News, Kontakt Ukrainian TV Network, Svoboda and The Ukrainian Weekly. Also in attendance were independent journalists and media professionals from across the U.S. and Canada.

On July 11, the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation declared the Ukrainian World Congress – the international coordinating body for Ukrainian communities in the diaspora representing the interests of over 20 million Ukrainians in 60 countries – an “undesirable” organization that poses “a threat to the security of the state and the constitutional framework.” Once deemed “undesirable,” an NGO’s accounts are frozen and its branches must be closed; violators of the law face fines of up to 500,000 Russian rubles ($7,930 U.S.) as well as imprisonment. Russia’s blacklisting of the UWC was, quite frankly, yet another move by Russia to silence its critics Meanwhile, the UWC underscored that it will continue to defend the human rights of Ukrainian communities around the globe and will use all legal and diplomatic means to protect the Ukrainian minority against continued discrimination and bullying in Russia.

On August 22, “Voices From Across the Ocean: Holodomor Photographic Exhibition,” honoring survivors of the Holodomor who settled in Australia, was officially opened in Kyiv by Ukraine’s Minister of Culture Yevhen Nyschuk. The exhibit was originally launched in Melbourne in November 2018 to mark 85 years since the Holodomor. It was presented in Kyiv through a collaboration between the Australia Federation of Ukrainian Organizations (AFUO) and the National Museum: Holodomor Victims Memorial. This moving tribute was brought together by Melbourne-based Halya Kostiuk, Katya Danylak, award-winning principal photographer Janina Green and photographer Andrii Gavran, who travelled across Australia for almost two years, interviewing and photographing Holodomor survivors with the help of the local diaspora. The project aimed to immortalize the stories of these incredibly resilient people – now in their 80s and 90s, some of whom have since passed away – and their families, ensuring the tragedy of the Holodomor is never forgotten.

On the eve of Ukrainian Independence Day, the leadership of the UWC met in Kyiv with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss continued cooperation in defending the interests of Ukraine throughout the world and further developing effective ties between the Ukrainian diaspora and Ukraine. Key priorities were agreed upon during the August 23 meeting, as were the next steps in supporting Ukraine internationally, securing its economic development and growth in foreign investment, and improving Ukraine’s legislative framework to strengthen the cultural, social and political rights of Ukrainians abroad and support their return to Ukraine.

Since 2010, the Ukrainian American Youth Association (UAYA) has sent young adults to Ukraine to participate in an exchange program. The exchange occurs with UAYA’s sister organization, the Ukrainian Youth Association of Ukraine. The mission of this program is to facilitate the exchange of ideas and best practices between the counselors and junior counselors of the two countries. In 2019, UAYA sent three members, between the ages of 19 and 22, to Ukraine, where they volunteered at a Charitable Camp (Blahodiynyi Tabir) for orphans of the Ukrainian soldiers killed in the war with Russia and the refugee children of the war in eastern Ukraine. The camp was held in a forest outside of Chernihiv during the first two weeks of August.

On September 6-8 at Berlin City Hall in Germany, the Ukrainian World Congress held its annual general meeting, reviewing the organization’s work since November 2018 and developing an action plan for the year ahead. Participants from over 20 countries gathered in Berlin to support the more than 100,000-strong Ukrainian community in Germany, and to focus the attention of German high-ranking officials and civil society on current Ukrainian issues.

UWC

Delegates and guests at the annual general meeting of the Ukrainian World Congress held in Berlin on September 6-8.

On September 13, during a plenary session of the Verkhovna Rada, First Deputy Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk, in the presence of the UWC leadership, announced the establishment of the parliamentary group called Ukrainians in the World. As noted by its chairman, Sviatoslav Yurash, the establishment of this important interparty parliamentary group was made possible with the active support of the UWC and the unity of political parties whose aim is to improve legislation on issues of concern to Ukrainians worldwide.

Once every three years, Plast leaders from all over the world meet to elect a new board and executives, as well as to analyze the present state of the organization. From October 30 to November 3, the triennial Conference of Ukrainian Plast Organizations took place in a castle near Munich, Germany. Some 100 representatives from 10 countries approved changes to the constitution of world Plast and discussed Plast’s future.

In a related development, at the end of May, Ukraine’s Parliament approved legislation “On state recognition and support of Plast – National Scouting Organization of Ukraine,” and sent it to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. After three months, on September 4, President Zelenskyy rejected the law and sent it back to the recently elected new Verkhovna Rada with his remarks. Subsequently, the bill was revised and, on December 17, 316 votes – including those of the president’s Servant of the People party – were cast in favor of the law on Plast and other scout organizations of Ukraine, with no obstacles now seen as standing in the way of President Zelenskyy’s signature.

In November, it was reported that the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) together with the Embassy of Ukraine in Germany and the Ukrainian community in Germany had launched a series of initiatives designed to help raise awareness of the Holodomor among German elected officials, academics and civil society. The goal of the Holodomor Awareness Campaign was to have the German Bundestag recognize the Holodomor as an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people. Earlier that year, with the overwhelming support of the Ukrainian diaspora, a petition calling for recognition of the Holodomor by Germany obtained the required 50,000 signatures and was subsequently tabled for review and further recommendations by the Bundestag Petitions Committee. The Petitions Committee met on October 21 and, following a hearing on the issue, concluded that it requires further study. UWC Vice-President Stefan Romaniw, who chairs the UWC International Holodomor Awareness and Recognition Committee, commented: “We must act together in memory of the millions of victims of Stalin’s genocidal terror.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed an American lawyer as a new adviser with a mandate to build relations with ethnic Ukrainians living in the United States and elsewhere. Andrew Mac, who heads the Washington office of the Kyiv-based law firm Asters, was officially named to the position on November 5, according to a presidential decree. As of the end of the year, nothing more had been heard about the newly created position or the appointee.

For the past 23 years, members of Plast National Scout Organization of Ukraine have joined dozens of Europe’s scout organizations in Austria in December to receive the Bethlehem Peace Light. Brought from the birthplace of Jesus Christ, where an everlasting flame burns, by Austrian scouts to a prominent Viennese cathedral, this light of good will and peace is spread by scouts throughout Europe. A few hours after Plast’s representative had received the light on December 14, a candle with the Bethlehem Peace Light was flown to Kyiv, where it was presented to the public in St. Michael’s Golden-Domed Monastery on December 15. Besides sharing the Peace Light with Ukrainian soldiers in the east, and people in hospitals and orphanages and churches, Plast scouts also brought the symbolic flame to the Verkhovna Rada on December 17.

On December 6, the Bethlehem Peace Light also arrived in the United States, when it landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. During a special ceremony held at Our Lady of the Skies Chapel, senior members of Plast Ukrainian Scouting Organization’s “Ti, Shcho Hrebli Rvut” sorority, as well as other scouts and community representatives, received the flame for distribution across North America. To initiate this task, the “Hrebli” sorority organized and conducted a ceremony on December 7 at St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church in Whippany, N.J., where members of the area’s scout organizations, including Latvian and Polish scouts, as well as parishioners received the Peace Light in order to pass it on to others.

In 2019, the Ukrainian diaspora throughout the world was aligned in its thinking and focused much attention on rebutting the disinformation disseminated by the Russian Federation, as well as countering Russia’s aggression and malign acts in Ukraine and beyond. A number of strong statements were issued by the UWC, the UCCA, the UCC and the AFUO as they spoke with one voice in the name of the Ukrainian diaspora.

At the beginning of the year, on February 19, the UWC called upon the international community to join the International Action “Stop Russia’s war against Ukraine!” on the fifth anniversary of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. The UCC remembered the fallen heroes of the Heavenly Hundred with a statement issued on February 20, the fifth anniversary of the day when “more than a hundred Ukrainians paid the ultimate price in a battle for a free and democratic Ukraine.” The UCC pointed out that “The Heavenly Hundred stood for democratic values, fundamental human rights and principles that define Western civilization. They stood against corruption and the authoritarian regime.” The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organizations (AFUO) noted that the Heavenly Hundred “created the newest history of Ukraine. They gave their lives protecting human rights and freedoms, the ideals of democracy and the European future of Ukraine.”

On May 7, the UWC condemned the violence committed against representatives of the Ukrainian community in Lisbon, Portugal, on May 5 by participants of the Russian initiative “Bessmertnyi Polk,” or “Immortal Regiment,” during a rally commemorating the so-called Great Patriotic War (1941-1945). Members of the Ukrainian community were attacked for standing alongside participants of the rally with placards informing the people of Portugal about the crimes of Joseph Stalin and Russia’s military aggression in the Donbas region of Ukraine. The UWC called on the Portuguese authorities to launch an immediate investigation into the incident and urged the international community to condemn the crimes of the Soviet totalitarian regime and Vladimir Putin’s hybrid war against Ukraine and its people both in Ukraine and around the world.

“As a result of unprecedented pressure and financial blackmail by the Russian Federation, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) restored the voting rights of the Russian Federation, ignoring the council’s own findings that the Russian Federation had repeatedly violated the Statute of the Council of Europe and Russia’s commitments to the council,” the UCCA wrote on June 28, four days after the PACE vote. The Ukrainian American umbrella body said: “UCCA condemns the Council of Europe’s decision to restore full rights to Russia in the council, and stands with the nations of Ukraine, Georgia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia following their courageous walkout of PACE. The defiant statement of these delegations to the European continent calls into question the future of the Council of Europe, which they see as ‘losing the trust of the people it stands to protect.’ ” The UCCA’s Canadian Ukrainian counterpart, the UCC, said of PACE’s vote: “With its decision to reinstate the rights of the Russian delegation, PACE has betrayed the Council of Europe’s principles of defense of human rights, democracy and rule of law. History shows that there is great danger in appeasement of a criminal regime. Appeasement inevitably begets more war and aggression.” The UWC said it “rebukes the Council of Europe’s decision to restore full rights to the Russian Federation in the Council, despite Russia’s continued ongoing military aggression against Ukraine, violations of international law, and human rights abuses in Ukraine, Russia and around the world.”

The three umbrella bodies were on the same page again when the fifth anniversary of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) was observed on July 17. All 298 people aboard that flight were killed when a Buk anti-aircraft missile was launched from Russian terrorist-controlled territory in Ukraine. “It is appalling that on the fifth anniversary of this criminal act of terrorism against innocent civilians, Russia continues to deny its responsibility for this tragedy. Kremlin spin doctors have maintained a fervent disinformation campaign with the goal of sowing doubt about the validity of the findings while attempting to transfer the blame to Ukraine and its authorities,” stated Ukrainian World Congress President Paul Grod. “Ultimate responsibility for this heinous crime lies with the leadership of the Russian Federation,” stated Alexandra Chyczij, national president of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress. “The international community must respond strongly to the threat to international peace posed by the Russian regime.” UCCA President Andriy Futey stated: “The downing of MH17 is an egregious example of the Kremlin’s disregard for innocent life. Righteousness must be delivered for the victims of this horrible tragedy, and the UCCA hopes that the Russian Federation will finally accept responsibility and fully cooperate with the international community so that those responsible are brought to justice.”

Ukrainians around the globe were overjoyed to hear the news that 35 political prisoners and hostages held by Russia were returned to Ukraine on September 7, as part of a major Ukrainian-Russian prisoner exchange. Unfortunately, the list from the Russian side also contained the name of Vladimir Tsemakh, who had commanded an air-defense unit of the Russian-supported militants fighting in the Donbas and who had boasted how he helped hide the Russian Buk missile system that shot down MH17. While the UWC, the UCCA and the UCC welcomed the release of the illegally jailed Ukrainian citizens, they voiced displeasure about the swap’s inclusion of certain others who had been detained by Ukraine. “Ukraine had to pay a high price for the freedom of its citizens – many of those turned over to Russia today are perpetrators in Russia’s war against Ukraine and are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity. We call on the international community to bring these criminals to justice,” said Mr. Grod. Ms. Chyczij also expressed concern “about the plight of the many remaining Ukrainian political prisoners who continue to be illegally incarcerated in Russian jails.” Her words were echoed by Mr. Futey who called “for the immediate release of all Ukrainian prisoners illegally held in Russian captivity.”

The UWC issued a media release on November 21, commemorating the Day of Dignity and Freedom, which marks the day in 2013 when “the people of Ukraine gathered in the capital’s Independence Square in defense of their will to live freely in a democracy that respects the choice of the people.” UWC President Paul Grod stated: “The fight for freedom that began six years ago continues as the hybrid war of the Russian Federation against Ukraine persistently claims the lives of brave soldiers and innocent civilians alike, and a rampant disinformation campaign aims to discredit Ukraine and its people.” The UCC’s statement pointed out: “The Revolution of Dignity was an expression of a nation’s resolve to live in freedom, of the Ukrainian people’s centuries-long struggle for self-determination. Through their courage and their unity, the Ukrainian people cemented their right to choose their own common destiny.” The UCCA hailed “the indomitable Ukrainian spirit” and praised “the courage and self-sacrifice of these Euro-Maidan protesters.”

As the date of December 9 approached, the anxiety in Ukraine and the Ukrainian diaspora increased over the impending Normandy format summit that would bring together Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France in an attempt to revive talks aimed at attaining peace in eastern Ukraine. The UWC on December 2 reiterated its position “that Russia must be compelled to end its military aggression against Ukraine,” noting: “For more than five years, Russia and its proxies have been waging a bloody war against Ukraine, having invaded and occupied parts of Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region, after annexing Crimea in 2014. Russia’s war in Ukraine has resulted in over 13,000 deaths, 30,000 wounded and 1.5 million internally displaced people, and it continues to this day.” The UWC listed “red lines” that could not be crossed and expressed concern that doing so “will seriously impair the sovereignty of the Ukrainian state, security in Europe and cause civil strife within the country – which is exactly Russia’s intent.” For its part, the UCCA repeated the points delineated by the UWC, voiced trepidation about the so-called Steinmeier formula, and underscored that “Ukraine must never agree to Russian demands regarding Ukrainian elections, and any elections held in Ukraine must stand in accord with the Constitution and laws of Ukraine.” Both organizations called for peace – but not at all costs.

At the end of the year after Ukraine and the Russian-backed “authorities” in the Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” carried out another prisoner exchange, whereby 76 Ukrainian were swapped for 127 people who were released to Russia’s proxies, the UWC reacted by citing “the real cost” of the prisoner swap. The UWC said its concerns “relate to the exchange by Ukraine of suspects accused of torturing and killing peaceful protesters during Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity in 2014.” The demand by Russia for their release “further demonstrates its direct involvement in the crimes committed against the 2014 peaceful demonstrations in Ukraine, which they continue to deny. This is another glaring example of the hybrid war Russia wages against Ukraine,” the UWC emphasized. “The world needs to be reminded that brave Ukrainian men and women continue to die and be wounded almost on a daily basis by Russian-controlled forces. We urge the international community to support Ukraine in the face of continued Russian hybrid aggression which takes many shapes and forms. Implementation of the Normandy resolutions is necessary for peace in Ukraine, but it must be fair and not at all costs,” commented Mr. Grod.

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