Sound Conservatism
Young rural people attend church, are eager to work, and take pride in their country
Every year up to 18,000 villages vanish from the map of Ukraine. They become depopulated as a result of harsh living conditions. The exacerbation of socioeconomic problems in the countryside is leading to a slump in the local economy, whose development is dependent on the extent to which rural youth are interested in it. Last year this population group drew the attention of sociologists for the first time in Ukraine. This resulted in fundamental research that has now been published by the Ministry for Family and Youth Affairs.
POLITICS IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Contrary to a deeply rooted belief, young people in rural areas take more pride in being Ukrainian citizens than their urban peers. One half of young villagers identify themselves with the Ukrainian nation, first of all by virtue of the fact that they live in Ukraine rather than by any hereditary factors. These young rural people account for 90% in the western part of the country, over 72% in the south and east, and 50% in the Crimea. Most young villagers have a deferential attitude toward Ukraine’s official symbols, such as the flag and anthem. One out of every two respondents confirmed their readiness to take up arms in defense of their native land, and 11% said they would readily sacrifice their lives for their country.
Rural youth are more convinced than their urban peers that Ukraine was right to choose independence. Researchers claim that if a referendum were held today on proclaiming an independent Ukrainian state, 68% of young villagers and 59% of city dwellers would vote in favor. Eight percent of young rural dwellers would oppose independence, while one-quarter of their urban peers would be tormented by doubts about making a decision.
Sociologists did not overlook a question about the reunification of Ukraine and Russia. Thirty-two percent of rural youth are prepared to support a politician wielding the slogan of reunification. However, nearly one-half of young people in western Ukrainian villages, 48% in the northern region, and 13% in the Crimea categorically refused to vote for this kind of politician. The idea of supporting politicians who favor independence is especially popular among the youngest rural respondents. As for choosing the vector of international integration, preference is given to a rapprochement between Ukraine and the European Union. Fifty-seven percent of young villagers are ready to support a politician in favor of this kind of integration, while 45 out of 100 respondents would prefer one that champions integration within the SES. The survey also showed that one-quarter of village boys and girls favor joining NATO, while one-half opposes this idea. Thirty-eight percent of their urban peers favor NATO membership and 43% are against it.
What is the attitude of young rural people to the political life in this country? In the past ten years the percentage of those who are always interested in political developments has increased. This refers in particular to those young people who take an active part in political life or just try to keep abreast of events. The number of young people who take an occasional interest in politics (when it touches upon their personal interests one way or another) has decreased, while the number of those who are indifferent has remained unchanged. Also on the decline is the number of rural residents who, in spite of their young age, are unable to clearly state their ideological preferences. Research shows that at the beginning of this year [2004] about 20% of young villagers were ignorant about political currents, but this figure dropped to 15% six months before the presidential elections.
ON GOD, LANGUAGE, AND THE “SIMPLEST OCCUPATIONS”
The church is seen as exerting an increasingly more powerful influence on young Ukrainian villagers. The vast majority of respondents note that religion is their personal belief in God, while a quarter of those polled say this means goodness, conscience, mercy, and the moral law. One-fifth believes this is merely a tradition. Most young people attend church occasionally. In the countryside there are more believers than in the city, both on the whole and among young people. Three-quarters of young villagers who took part in the 2004 poll called themselves believers. Interestingly, they accounted for over 90% in the western region, with the lowest percentage — 59% — occurring in the south.
The number of young villagers who say that Ukrainian is their native language is rising every year. The current figure is 84%, while seven years ago the number was 8% lower. Today, 71% of rural youth speak Ukrainian at home. Sixty-five percent do so in public places, shops, and on public transport, and 57% in the workplace.
The greatest number of young people with a higher education is found in the villages of Ternopil, Lviv, Donetsk, Vinnytsia, Kyiv, and Cherkasy oblasts. There are far fewer highly educated young people in southern villages. Quite a few young people in Mykolayiv, Kherson, Zaporizhia, and Sumy oblasts either have a primary education or are even illiterate. Educational level is closely linked to employment. Limited opportunities for young villagers to obtain employment and realize their professional potential, as well as inefficient application of education by those who are employed, have created a situation in which nearly 45% of young villagers aged 14 to 27 perform the simplest functions at work, i.e., they belong to the group of “simplest occupations.” To carry out a task, they usually make do with manual tools and exert considerable physical effort. Farming is the basic type of economic activity among Ukraine’s rural population. Even if a young person is employed, his/her household almost always has a subsidiary farm outside the sector in which s/he works. Yet, as the survey indicates, rural boys and girls have a lukewarm attitude to agricultural work today. As few as 13% named this as their vocation, while 22% say they have to do it, although they admit it helps them survive.
SUPPORTING REFORMS
At the same time, young rural people are in favor of market reforms. In any case, during the presidential elections it mattered for 40% of the respondents whether the candidate favored a market economy. The market-related option of young villagers was also confirmed by their attitude to ownership of farmland: 34% think that land should be private property, 30% favor all kinds of ownership, while 15% and 11% opt for public and collective ownership, respectively. One in ten young rural respondents spoke out against private farms, and 15% were unsure.
It should be noted that both rural and urban young people are almost equally worried about problems stemming from domestic and foreign economic policies. Twenty- five percent of those polled in the countryside and 30% of young urbanites closely follow the economic situation. Only five out of a hundred respondents are troubled by ineffective economic reforms, and one in ten deplores the lack of real investments in the economy. Experts attribute this to the isolated nature of the rural lifestyle and limited access to information. They claim that, although young villagers are not very satisfied with the current economic policy, they display a generally positive attitude to market-economy transformations. However, they are not prepared to participate actively in the latter.
Tellingly, rural and urban young people cherish almost the same work ethic. A poll conducted by the State Institute for the Study of Family and Youth Problems in the summer of 2004 showed that both rural and urban youth believe that the most important thing is that work should be well-paid, interesting, and conform to the individual’s abilities. Both in the countryside and in the city, young people value work that commands respect, has a suitable schedule, and leaves enough leisure time. Yet, young villagers are less fearful of hard work than townees are. They are also less worried about showing initiative at work and the possibility of achieving early success. Besides, young city dwellers more often express discontent over their wages than their rural peers (74% versus 67%). One-half of polled young villagers named hard manual labor as the main drawback of their employment, while only one-quarter of urban residents raised the same complaints. Townees far more often indicate a long working day, and irregular holidays and vacations as the main disadvantages of their job.
The experience of labor migration is now playing an important role in building young people’s character. Among young rural residents who have worked abroad, there are 2.5 times as many who tend to solve problems on their own instead of turning to friends and relatives for help. A long stay abroad also reflects on the life philosophy of young Ukrainian citizens. During the presidential elections, young Ukrainians working in Russia supported those politicians who favored Ukraine’s integration with the SES and full- fledged CIS membership. Conversely, those who worked in Western and Central Europe cast their votes for the politician who advocated integration with the EU and NATO membership. These attitudes are typical of former labor migrants from both the countryside and the city. Young people who work outside their permanent place of residence mostly live in Kyiv, Chernihiv, and Zhytomyr oblasts. They mostly obtain employment in Kyiv, where so-called “pendulum migrants” usually work in the transport, civil construction and health-care sectors, and perform lower-skilled jobs in comparison to Kyivans.
Can the countryside be made economically and socially attractive for today’s youth? Researchers do not advise equating the rural population with agricultural producers, for this is a far broader notion. Increasing numbers of rural residents are engaged in all kinds of activities: they work in industry, civil construction, transport, and the service sector. Today, the countryside attracts many as a habitat — in other words, deurbanization is underway. Industrial progress is reducing the number of farmers in this country because the countryside means not only farming but also roads, water and gas supply lines, sewage systems, telecommunications, medicine, education, consumer services, and small-scale business. Therefore researchers think the state should be pursuing a policy of active market-economy transformation of the agrarian sector. Now that the economy of Ukraine is gradually developing (in the countryside, too), when society has seen burgeoning optimism, it is crucial for as many young people as possible to spearhead these transformations. Experts believe that creating proper educational opportunities for rural youth should be the basic element of the government’s policy toward young people.
