RUKH IS READY TO GO SOLO ON THE RUINS OF THE NATIONAL IDEA

The People’s Movement of Ukraine (Rukh) addressed the population with an appeal that from now on Rukh would be the only representative of national and democratic forces in Verkhovna Rada and “now our members are the only fighters for the national idea in Parliament.” Devoid of false modesty, the appeal’s authors claimed that Rukh is ready to assume such responsibility, and blamed “parties, ideologically similar to Rukh, for the failure to make real steps toward unity and thus contributed to the defeat of the national idea and democracy.”

First, it should be specified that although among all of the parties and elective associations which brought forward Ukrainian national slogans, Rukh was the only one to overcome the 4% barrier, and representatives of other parties of similar orientations, in particular KUN (Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists), KhDPU (Christian Democratic Party of Ukraine), and URP (Ukrainian Republican Party), managed to get elected to Parliament only in majoritarian electoral districts. They often have to struggle through the opposition of Rukh high bureaucrats in the state administrations of Ternopil, Chernivtsi, and other regions.

But the most striking about the appeal is that this is poorly covered gloating at their “ideologically similar” partners’ and the rejoice of the monopolist who has finally got rid of competitors. It is obvious that Rukh leaders prefer the pragmatic adherence to themselves, the “ideologically committed” ones, than to serve the national idea “in itself” (which actually assumes at least some unselfishness).

Photo by Valery Myloserdov, The Day:
Vyacheslav Chornovil in the role of Hetman