“It is time to think in the categories of success”

People’s happy faces, flags on the cars, and singing the national anthem in unison… This is not simply a European football championship in Ukraine, this is a need for positive. Euro is a historical event, which has given us a chance to erase the borders disuniting us. Everyone, from big to small, from the Galicians to the residents of Donetsk, from village to city, is gripped today with the energy of unity. Sport has become the force that has united the citizens. The successful start of the Ukrainian National Team and victory over Sweden has done more in a matter of few hours than our politicians over many years. The little boy Tymur with his several-second reaction to Shevchenko’s goal has glorified Ukraine much more than specially invested promotion money. Football so far remains the only factor, which is able to unite Ukraine. There is a demand for unity, but what prevents us from using it in our everyday life in one, two, or three months? What other features, events, facts, and spheres can help us unite?

“THE MOST IMPORTANT FACTORS THAT UNITE UKRAINE ARE INITIATED FROM BELOW”

Tetiana NAHORNIAK, candidate of politics, associate professor, Department of Political Studies, Donetsk National University:

“The sports achievements have always been one of the symbols of Ukraine, and Donetsk region in particular. They have played an important role within the country, as well as abroad. Ukraine is recognized thanks to its hospitality, football, and beautiful girls. And for the Donbas football is the most recognizable and consolidating factor. Children’s football and sport for disabled people have always been quite developed in this region.

“I think that the most important factors that unite Ukraine are the initiatives coming from below. If we look at the markers that are being produced by the government during the Euro, these will be development and overcoming something. All this is important, but our leaders do not always create the values which would be typical of the Ukrainian people and had our peculiarities. Currently we have lots of programs on city development and branding. I like the programs of Lviv, Odesa, and Ivano-Frankivsk, because the initiative there goes from below, meeting the needs of the citizens. Kyiv and Donetsk’s city structures are often ‘deaf,’ therefore their branding programs are not so precise and complete, and frequently they fail to reflect all the realities. For the values which could unite us it is important to define what a region is and what its positive and negative features are. We need to speak about this, for we are indeed proud of many things: our art, creativity, and football. As for the social questions, it seems to me children are the most important uniting factor here.”

“THE NATION TAKE SHAPE ONLY WHEN THE ELITE EMERGES, WHICH FORMS THE PROGRAM OF THE STATE DEVELOPMENT”

Hennadii MAKHORIN, candidate of history, associate researcher, Philosophy, Political Studies, and History Department, Zhytomyr National Agro-Ecological University:

“The society always retains the demand for unity, and it is not triggered by soccer. Clearly, the Euro-2012 events and our national team’s efforts have united Ukrainians, because this is a very powerful factor of boosting patriotic feelings, this is a favorable moment in our history which without doubt will give its moral and emotional impetus.

“But nevertheless Ukraine needs to prepare the things aimed for the future. It seems to me we have lost the emotional charge which we gained from the renovation of Ukrainian statehood in 1991, the moment when we had an opportunity to create an integrated and nationally aware society. We needed to carry out a clearly articulated policy and declare our positions. Above all, this refers to the question of language: one language for all state officials. From my own experience I know that the majority of Russian-speaking population would have accepted it calmly. Everyone would have been ready to switch to Ukrainian, if it was clearly proved. The parents would have been telling their children that the latter need to learn Ukrainian because only in such a way they can realize themselves in the state life.

“Another problem is that we lack the national leaders, whose name would not arouse doubts. For example, writer Valerii Shevchuk, noted philosopher Myroslav Popovych, philosopher Vadym Skurativsky, renowned journalist and The Day contributor Ihor Losiev are people whose intellect makes me bow to them, but unfortunately they are not involved as the intellectual potential of the state.

“Why in the time of Ukrainian national revolution of 1917-18 did the people consolidate? Because the events were headed by historical Mykhailo Hrushevsky, writer Volodymyr Vynnychenko, economist Khrystofor Baranovsky, etc. This proves the fact that the power should involve the intellectual force, artistic and scholarly elite in the leadership of the state. Only then the nation will take shape, because the nation takes shape only when the elite emerges, which formulates the program of the state development. The elite’s function is to spread this program in the broad public. The fact that the populace does understand that there is a need for a state, is a signal to forming the nation.

“Unfortunately, in our country everything is being done to split the society, violate its language, culture, and territorial integrity. To overcome this, we need an approach to formulate the national idea. We need to put the greater attention to the uniting factors. Those are topped by the folkways problems, the problems of simple survival. Under current situation, people have no time for spiritual demands.

“But in spite of everything the Ukrainian nation can unite around the idea of promoting Ukraine in the world. How does a person confirm its love to the fatherland? By his/her belief in the state and its victories. Taking to heart the victory in the European football championship should be spread in other spheres: culture, science, economy, etc. Ukraine needs to be more active in submitting its people for the Nobel Prize, taking part in various artistic forums, international programs. There are many intellectuals and talented people among Ukrainians.”

“NON-POLITICAL VICTORIES SHOULD COME TO HELP THE UKRAINIAN PROJECT”

Ostap DROZDOV, author and host of the political program “In Direct Words” of the ZIK TV channel in Lviv:

“When Shevchenko scored the victory goal, I shouted so loudly that I strained my voice. And everything became unimportant right away – the fact that all of the players of Ukrainian National Team are Russian-speaking, and our classy coach Blokhin speaks only Russian, and the fact that the words of our anthem were sung aloud in an ignominious manner, and even the fact that FB star, six-year-old Tymur turned out to be a son of a ‘trunk’ MP. Everything becomes unimportant compared with the fact of the victory. It means that the call for positive, an inner flash of patriotism is spouting. Not only is this a call for positive, this is a nationwide demand, a nationwide ultimatum: it is time to think in the categories of success, victory, achievements, and unity. Only God knows whether Ukraine will be same lucky in the further matches. After all, this is not important for me, it is important to catch and not to lose the adoration feel proud of our people, of ourselves. It is not without a reason that namely sport has become the domain where the blue and yellow stopped being a political color, and the trident – a privatized symbol. I can be hardly called a football lover, not even a fan. But I cannot stop smiling when six-year-old children with two colors painted on their cheeks are holding their hands over their hearts when the national anthem is performed. I am almost sure that this Tymur does not even know the lyrics of the anthem. I think by holding his hand this way he is simply copying the gesture he has seen before. But this is always the start. Ukraine is a bad place for living. Ukraine has not become a native home for millions of those who consider the Independence Day a routine day. And non-political victories should lend a helping hand to the Ukrainian project. They infect, they spread positive fluids which cannot be resisted. Let it be football today, boxing – tomorrow, and music – The Day after tomorrow. It is weird and wild not to rejoice at our successes. I cherish a great hope that lumpens and tumbleweed in Donetsk will look at the pride with which the English or French wrap in their flags and ask themselves: why am I not doing so? Why am I so hard-hearted to my country? Why do they rejoice at their identity and I have none? I cherish a great hope that positive is infectious and even those who have never taken pride in Ukraine will strain their voices when a player in blue-and-yellow jersey scores a victory goal. You only need to rearrange your brains for civil positive. ‘This is my Ukraine’ should be the words for everyone to say, who wants to die here, no matter where he was born and grew up. One day Tymur will grow up, look at the stadium photos and say: ‘This was The Day I became a Ukrainian,’ because it was not Shevchenko who scored the goal, it was Ukraine, our Ukraine.”

Prepared by Tetiana KOZYRIEVA, The Day, Lviv; Kateryna YAKOVLENKO, Donetsk; Yulia HUZ, Zhytomyr