Ukraine strips nationalist leader of honor

[MeMyselfAndI]

Ukraine strips nationalist leader Bandera of honor

January 12, 2011

(JTA) -- A Ukrainian court reportedly has annulled a decree that posthumously granted nationalist leader Stepan Bandera the Hero of Ukraine award.
The announcement of the decree's annullment was released Wednesday by the office of Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.
Former President Viktor Yuschenko last year granted the prestigious award to Bandera, the leader of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, shortly before national elections, which he lost. The award recognizes either heroism or achievement in labor.
The Ukrainian nationalist forces led by Bandera fought against the Nazis and the Soviet army in World War II, and led an armed battle against Soviet rule in Ukraine into the 1950s. Bandera was assassinated by a KGB agent in Munich in 1959. He is held in high esteem by Ukrainians.
Jewish groups in Ukraine and abroad decried granting the award to Bandera, calling him a Nazi collaborator.
Elan Steinberg, vice president of the American Gathering of Holocaust Survivors and their Descendants, praised the announcement that Ukraine has stripped Bandera of the title.
"By annulling Bandera's decoration, Ukraine has removed a disgraceful blot on the country's moral standing in the world," Steinberg said in a statement released Wednesday. "As an ally of the Nazis, Bandera was complicit in the murder of thousands of Jews and the destruction of their towns and villages.
"Last year we joined the European Parliament in calling on Ukraine to remove the shameful award bestowed on Bandera. In doing so, Ukraine has restored its honor and has helped repair relations with both the Jewish and international communities."
Ukraine has bestowed the Hero of Ukraine on nearly 200 people since the award's creation in 1998 by then-President Leonid Kuchma.



http://www.jta.org/news/article/2011/01/12/2742522/ukraine-strips-nationalist-leader-bandera-of-honor

First, the phrase 'He is held in high esteem by Ukrainians.' is misleading. He is praised in North-West Ukraine, but his memory is spat on in the South-East. In Odessa, a year ago, a man was stabbed to death for praising Bandera. Just to point out.

Also, this shows that Yanukovich, the now-ruling Ukrainian President, is pro-Russia. Ukraine is same like Russia: courts do not make decisions, powerful people do, and those people call the judge and tell him how to decide. Was like that under Yushenko too, have no illusions, my friends. There is no 'democracy' or 'independent judiciary' in Former USSR, except maybe in the Baltic republics. Never was, never will be. This was Yanukovich's decision, he bowed to Moscow, to Putin (and Medvedev, I suppose, though Medvedev has about as much power or say in anything around here as the already mentioned judges). Russia should take this opportunity. If we can create a sort of block, with Ukraine perhaps joining our economic union with Belarus and Kazakhstan, I think it can accomplish a lot. But, our dear leaders, in all four nations, will, of course, screw it up, as they always do.

[Michael]

It is interesting to watch the 'struggle' in Ukraine trying to decide which way to turn - Russia or Europe.

But ultimately, Ukraine's position with Russia seems to be similar to that of Canada with the USA. There really is no actual choice in the relationship - it just has to be.

Ukraine flirting with the idea of westernism, liberal democracy and EU membership is just that - it ain't going to happen in this lifetime. Ukraine's future is thus tied to Russia whether Ukraine likes this or not. Ukraine ought to make the best of it. Sleeping next to an angry bear (or elephant) is dangerous business for the smaller party.

(Btw, Canada's relationship with USA is often described as a 'mouse sleeping with an elephant' - the idea being that the mouse needs to be nibble because when the elephant rolls over, the mouse can be killed and the elephant won't notice or care)

[MeMyselfAndI]

It is interesting to watch the 'struggle' in Ukraine trying to decide which way to turn - Russia or Europe.

But ultimately, Ukraine's position with Russia seems to be similar to that of Canada with the USA. There really is no actual choice in the relationship - it just has to be.

Ukraine flirting with the idea of westernism, liberal democracy and EU membership is just that - it ain't going to happen in this lifetime. Ukraine's future is thus tied to Russia whether Ukraine likes this or not. Ukraine ought to make the best of it. Sleeping next to an angry bear (or elephant) is dangerous business for the smaller party.

(Btw, Canada's relationship with USA is often described as a 'mouse sleeping with an elephant' - the idea being that the mouse needs to be nibble because when the elephant rolls over, the mouse can be killed and the elephant won't notice or care)

Pretty much. Well, there is also history. See, in the old days, I mean, very old days, when Hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky was leader of Ukrainian nation, and he led the uprising against their then Polish rulers; Ukraine was stuck, they could not win a war against the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, a considerable military power in that time. They had a choice, whom to ask for protection: Turkish Sultan or Russian Tsar. And they, majority, chose the Tsar. Most of South-Eastern Ukraine today consists of descendants of those pro-Russian Ukrainians, as well as a large ethnic Russian population, and Russian-speaking Jews who dislike North-Westerners for their anti-Semitism. The one group in that region who by majority still hold unfavorable views of Russia are Crimean Tatars. This is due to the blame they place on Russian government for their persecution at the hands of Joseph Stalin, who once deported them all to Central Asia. Under President Yushenko, Ukrainian government supported this. Under Yanukovich though, they lost this support. And there is information that Putin now is trying to counteract anti-Russian influences among Crimean Tatars by send in Putinist, Russophile mostly young activists from our own, Russian Tatars, from Tatarstan, to infiltrate their community organizations, gather information, and spread such views and sentiments there, and to try to in any way discredit and silence anti-Russian elements.

That's South East. North West is different. They were part of Poland until the 40s. Suffered much from Red Army when it entered there. A lot of brutality on both sides. The descendants there are still bitter about their grandparents' experiences in the USSR.

So, Ukraine is a very divided country indeed. A historically divided nation. A very hard place to govern.