Summing up the Current Situation
Great summary of the new elections
Here's a great link from frequent poster dlw: Global Voices. It's a repost/translation of a Russian-language article by dibrov_s (repost and translation done by Neeka of Neeka's Backlog). It's also a very good summary of the current political situation in Ukraine. Read it!
Dan McMinn
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That includes "chasing the pharisees and the money-changers out", and, at the end, "the resurrection of Ukraine.
A very, very powerful speech.
http://5tv.com.ua/
Yanuk and his party keep calling for "calm" and "stability," and for everything to be "lawful."
Yet the Party of Regions is instigating people to demonstrate in Kyiv, and paying them to do so, and also suggesting that there will be strikes of some sort.
How does Yanuk reconcile this?
Well, Yanuk answers, the "will of the people" is something that cannot be stopped, and if done peacefully, is certainly lawful. And the people's rights must never be abridged.
I wonder how Lutsenko feels about that answer?
And does the Party of Rossiya really think that people are that stupid, that they can't see through an answer like that?
I wonder if the Party of Putin's Politics (I don't mean the Party of Rossiya here, although they may well fit the bill) will be able to register in time for these repeat elections.
dlw
http://www.tymoshenko.com.ua/eng/news/first/4079/
dlw
http://publiuspundit.com/2007/04/ukraine_may_backslide_in_just.php
La Russophobe is holding her own...
dlw
was wandering around and came across the following quote ----
Europeans ... tend to find inspiration in Bertolt Brecht′s line, "erst kommt das Fressen, dann die Moral" -- first comes getting fed, then come the moral issues.
a person would understandably cherish stability esp. when life is unstable. and Yanu speaks to that want. he is talking like Father Christmas but acting like ... (fill in the blank.)
--------
translating - tech. the greeting should be already on
http://www.president.gov.ua/en/
The passage referring to Jesus driving the money-changers out of the temple is an interesting choice, as these people were both making money off of people's devotion to the temple and occupying the single space in the Jewish temple that was supposed to be open for Gentiles to enter and worship within. And, of course, this brazen act also sealed his imminent death, though there were people wanting to kill him before hand.
I think what Jaroslav Pelikan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaroslav_Pelikan) wrote is apropos, paraphrasing him, "Not only can Man not live by Bread alone, Man cannot live by the Word alone but also by Bread."
I think it's in this spirit is right to demand political reforms that enable more Ukrainians to enjoy economic security and provisions for other needs.
dlw
http://www.postmodernegro.com/2007/04/01/someone-Asked/
what is Easter all about?
I’ll give you part of the story I’ll think you’ll appreciate. Easter is about The Peasant being vindicated. Easter was God’s Okay-ing The Peasant’s insurrectionist activity. You see…The Peasant was killed partly because he live out an impossible love that turned upside down the world as folks understood it. A world where the powerful lived to fullest at the expense of those at the bottom. The Peasant’s insurrection was beginning to turn that situation around. Before the insurrection could reach fever pitch they killed The Peasant. All was thought to be lost. But God raised The Peasant from the dead in order to vindicate and continue the Insurrection.
Who follows this Peasant today?
Those you see calling for an Insurrection against a world that subverts God’s justice.
Actually, the sit. in UA is that the polit-reform aka Kabmin bill, that the Coalition and BYuT pushed through as well as the political-reforms made by the Coalition in Parliament, are threatening democracy and ctizen rights in Ukraine ex. taking away people's right to directly elect Pres., working towards changes to Constitution (maneuvering to get 300 votes), changes at CEC leadership etc.
dlw
In the speech, he slams "guided" democray, popular today in Russia. He also very politely rejects overtures of Yanuk, and others, to intrude into the country's affairs, saying that Ukraine has the intelligence and the good will to solve its own problems.
The translation is a little clumsy, and I want to make sure the reader understands that the references to the military and the police do not remotely suggest a police state, or anything of the sort. That is just my clumsiness in translating.
At the very end, Yushchenko gives the traditional Easter greeting, "Christ Is Risen," and then he uses the same word, in Ukrainian, for Ukraine.
Literally, the translation might be "Ukraine will resurrect," but the reader should not think that "Ukraine Will Rise" is any sort of call to imperialism.
Rather, it is a call for rebirth of a nation, which has suffered long enough under non-democratic rule.
==============================================
Dear Ukrainian Nation!
I greet you on the occasion of one of the most important holidays in our life - Easter, the Day of Christ's Resurrection.
In our great tradition this - is a day cleansing and family unification. Today we turn to each other with our closest feelings and words. And I want to tell you exactly those kinds of words. Everything will be well with us. I deeply and very firmly believe this. With us is - truth, the indivisible truth of the Ukrainian nation. It is owned by everyone without exception, without politics and without division among regions.
More than once I have heard words of complaint and of disillusionment. I was never afraid of this, because I always believed in our truth and continuously worked for our mutual goal. I believed in our truth when, throughout our entire country we stood up for the defense of democracy, freedom and our beliefs. I believed when, I proposed to all parliamentary forces a model of united national cooperation. I believe today, when I took upon myself the responsibility to set aside the ruination of morals, the foundations of society and government.
Our truth is to live by the letter - and most importantly by the spirit of Ukraine's Constitution.
In the democratic elections of March 2006 you gave your votes to those political forces, whom you trust. The elected parties reflected your choice. I respect it. As the Law provides, I recognized the formation of the parliamentary majority and its government, and created the circumstances enabling its work.
In the interests of the people and the country, on my initiative, there was put forth a plan for mutual work - concrete and straightforward matters about how to raise your pay and standards of living, how to improve your health care, how to protect you from criminals, how to protect your language rights, how to create a re-birth of our national identity.
Over the past eight months, in fact, not one of the platforms of this plan, the Universal agreement of national unity, was carried out. They forgot about you, your needs, the development of the country.
Something else happened - the relentless, goal-oriented war for ever increasing power, the failure to carry out promises, and, indeed, secret pacts. Some in the government thought - they have immunity, so they can buy and sell your vote.
Your election - they changed.
This is - an insult to everyone of us, a brutal manifestation of political corruption.
Step by step, artificially and unlawfully this coalition grew, in order to obtain 300 votes. The coalition broadened, not on the basis of factions, but by account of individual individual members of parliament, contrary to the Constitution.
If by this method a constitutional majority can be created, then nothing else is needed - not the Ukrainian nation, not Ukrainian courts, not the thoughts of the voters. This kind of government becomes uncontrolled. It restricts your rights and changes the tone in the country. This is called usurpation.
The road to usurpation began with betrayal, wrapped in nice words. The movement to usurpation was speeded up by corruption, which is ruining the entire country.
The President is the guarantor of national sovereignty, territorial integrity of Ukraine, adherence to the Fundametal Law, the rights and freedom of each person and citizen. It is the obligation of the President to stop any assault on the government and on the people. This is - the letter and the spirit of the Constitution. This is - the letter and the spirit of my oath of office.
My obligation together with yours is to cleanse the temple of phasisees and moneychangers.
I signed a decree about an immediate halt of the authority of Ukraine's fifth session of parliament, not for the sake of conflict, but for the sake of cleansing. And this matter is not about what a new parliament will look like. Because it will reflect your will.
The most important thing is for the Ukrainian politician to always remembers his responsibility to you, and in that way our country has a vaccination against tyranny and usurpation.
It's necessary to respect the country and its will. A "guided", [підтасована і бутафорна] democracy - that's not for us.
My decision is - constitutional and lawful, there will be no rescission. Similarly, there will be no social conflict or danger. I guarantee this. The police and military organs are clearly carrying out the instructions of the President of Ukraine.
New elections will take place freely and honestly.
Repeat elections are a normal process which takes place calmly and without conflict in European democracies.
We will independently solve our own problems. We have the necessary intelligence and good will for this.
What unites us is the wise, plentiful and great Ukrainian nation, which today celebrates the holy day of Easter.
All will be well.
With a sincere heart I ask each of you not to stand on squares and streets right now, but to unite yourselves to all of our nation at our holy day family table. I firmly believe in our truth and our perspectives. We - are a free people. That's the way it is, and that's the way it always will be.
Christ Is Risen!
Truly He Is Risen!
Ukraine will rise!
I reworked it a little bit, correcting some minor errors and reposted it at my blog...
http://sodsbrood.com/antimani/2007/04/08/ukraine-will-rise/
dlw
http://samiawad.wordpress.com/2007/04/06/celebrating-easter-not-as-the-past-but-as-the-present/
dlw
http://blog.taraskuzio.net/2007/04/07/has-yushchenko-made-the-right-decision/
dlw
Probably a better way to state this in Yushchenko's speech is:
"there is no turning back" instead of there will be no rescinding it.
At any rate, he accuses "a few individuals" of trying to usurp power for their own purposes.
He accuses "those individuals" of incompetence, previously demonstrated when they were at the helm.
He says that "we" are not against snap elections - just against elections that are called unlawfully.
He says that "those individuals" were good only at creating large costs from privatization, bringing the gas transit system to bankruptcy, crawling into astronomical public debt, raising prices for meat (a slam at Yulia Tymoshenko), sugar, gasoline and other goods, and through their adventurism, provoking an increase in tariffs and prices for communal services.
He claims that parliament has been working for increased standards of living, and "they" understand that this decreases "their" chances in government.
So, as a result, "they" speculate falsely about language and church issues, and drape themselves in a monopoly of patriotism, understanding full well that "their" opponents are no less patriotic.
The difference, he says, is that "they" merely shout about their love for Ukraine, while others, namely Moroz and his compatriots, confirm it through their everday work.
He then says that the people who support "them" are not working for Ukraine and truth, but for a couple of adventurists whose goal is to return to themselves the means for usurping power.
And to place their parents, relatives and in-laws in comfortable government positions, to further rob the gas pipeline system, to further experiment with the police and military for their own benefit, and to perfect a system of skimming from taxes.
There's more, but he ends by claiming that "we" are protecting the Constitution and the rights of people, and "we" are for constitutional order and a united country.
It's a very strange, funny speech.
http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2007/4/9/57135.htm
In the same breath, he also says that "we" are against conflicts among citizens.
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=70224
dlw
http://www.kyivpost.com/top/26434/
dlw