“Lest There Be Another War...”
The Ukrainian version of The Day continues to publish readers’ responses to the question, “What should the future president do for Ukraine?” Residents of Khmelnytsky, Zhytomyr, Rivne, Kharkiv, Lviv, Chernivtsi, Vinnytsia, and Odesa oblasts, and the Crimea have already voiced their expectations of the future head of state on these pages. Today residents of Kherson oblast have their say. We invite you to join our discussion.
Halyna BAKHMATOVA, lecturer at Kherson State University, deputy chair of the Kherson Oblast Organization of the Ukrainian Voters’ Committee:
“Of course, I would like our president to work a miracle in the foreign policy sphere, i.e., bring the world to complete disarmament lest there be another war, so there would be no need to maintain the military industrial complex or manufacture weapons. But, of course, this is not feasible. I also wish Ukraine would join the united Europe, so that together with the rest of the world we can stand up to the contemporary evil of terrorism.
“As for domestic policy, I would like our president to duplicate the feat of the American president during the Great Depression of the 1920s — 30s. I’ve been told that the American leader made an honest admission to his people: “We are all in a big hole; we have a crisis in every sphere of life. I know a way out of this crisis; I have a program, but it will require a few years of effort, a few years of self-dedication. In other words, we will have to endure, tighten our belts, go hungry for a while, and work more. But it is worth it. I will be the first to trim my presidential expenses and will keep only what is essential, things I need to maintain my international authority. I will begin with myself, with my family.’
“Such a frank and open address inspired the American people. At the time people were also emigrating. I remember from our movies that Americans would come to us to earn a living, but these were individual cases. The American people believed their president, tightened their belts, and worked. I saw an old American movie starring Meryl Streep about the Great Depression. Some laborers were sitting around a dinner table with only water and potatoes boiled in their jackets. They sat and ate, and instead of cursing their homeland and dreaming of a speedy escape, sang ‘God Save America.’ None of them said a cross word about their homeland. I think the credit for this goes to the president. So, I would like our president also to set an example for all the citizens with his deeds and respect for the law.”
Kseniya BORYSOVA, teacher:
“The future president must bring the country to order and address social problems by redirecting cash flows toward social needs. Is it normal for me to be paying my mother ‘one more pension’ for her to live decently?
“My primary concerns are education and medical care. It’s not true that our medical care is free of charge: we have seen a mushrooming of private clinics, which are almost free of all controls. The idea of insured medicine doesn’t seem bad to me, as long as free, qualified assistance is available in cases of emergency, because in our country today you’d better not get sick. I’m terrified even to think about it, even though my family and I all work.
“I also think that institutions of higher learning must provide a certain percentage of free scholarships. Otherwise, we won’t have any decent specialists. We must support gifted children and increase the number of free scholarships or at least create state-sponsored scholarships. The state must think about its future. So, my concerns are those of the man in the street. In a normal country a person’s primary concern should not be politics but the problems of establishing a life in this world.”
Iryna SCHEPAKOVA, journalist:
“The future president’s foreign policy vectors are quite a complex question. This depends on the orientation of the particular individual: one, for example, is looking toward Russia, and we sign agreements with Russia. Meanwhile, the other one is looking toward Europe, and we sign all the conventions, etc., and adopt the European lifestyle model. Of course, no one will open up the borders for us, but it will be much simpler to travel there. If he looks to America, this will mean burgeoning business and stronger legislation, because despite its touted democratic principles, America is quite an undemocratic country, and the relationship between the people and the state follows a different principle there. No matter who comes to power, I would like the resulting changes not to harm the man in the street. I don’t want to be afraid of the elections. Now people are afraid that if they plan something, their plans may go down the drain after the elections. We have yet to feel that the state is developing in a stable manner.
“Second, I may be wrong, but I get the impression that public sector organizations and officials themselves can’t cope with the multitude of tasks they are charged with, given the size of funding they receive. That’s why they begin to manipulate this money. Because of this we have nontransparent relations with those in power, because they themselves don’t know how to hide this or find a way out of this situation. The payment of wages is delayed because this money is being used for other ends. Officials constantly occupy the gray area between law and lawlessness. There has to be an end to this.”
Mykola HOMANIUK, 2003-2004 Lane Kirkland Program scholar:
“I expect the future president to take decisive steps to further liberalize our society. Above all, this means abandoning the rigid, centralized, and nontransparent system of government inherited from the Soviet Union. In foreign policy I would like finally to see some progress in the direction of Ukraine’s strategic goal of European integration. The aspiration to live up to WTO and EU standards should have its effect on the economy, which should be open and attractive to foreign capital. In the financial sphere there is a need to support small and medium businesses and to offer tax concessions for priority directions in industry and the tertiary sector, such as information technologies and tourism. Ukraine should stop being viewed as a source of raw materials and intermediate products in the international market.
“Unfortunately, diversification of the fuel and energy complex remains in the realm of wishful thinking. It needs a critical and creative approach. The situation in education and science also requires changes. Educational standards should be brought into line with European standards. This will enable lecturers and scholars to make scientific advances instead of thriving on kickbacks at schools of higher learning. Special attention should be given to the Ukrainian media. Instead of banning channels and programs, those with the means to do so should diversify them. The market will do its work. Ukrainian-language television programs should be allowed to compete fairly with Russian-language ones. The same mechanism should be at work in addressing the language issue. Laws alone won’t solve the problem. Since we failed to build a social state in Ukraine on a solid economic footing, this means that we can build it in a different way, whereby every citizen would be able to provide for himself and his kin, minimizing the role of the state. The regions should be given more rights. This applies to the budgeting process and stimulating a policy of self-sufficiency. In general, paternalistic relations are an anachronism. There is a need to show more initiative. Meanwhile, Ukraine has no shortage of enterprising people.”
