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Viktor Yanukovych: 'Our strength is in unity'
23.01.2006, 09:23
In January 22, 2004 speech in Kyiv on the 85th anniversary of the Ukrainian People's Republic with the West Ukrainian People's Republic reunification I, as the Head of the Ukrainian government, said: 'Personally for me 'zluka' (reunification) is triune: united country, united nation and united future. Our strength is just in unity. We are all very different but we are all united by our land and our great desire to make our children and grandchildren' lives happier'.
Today, two years later, I could not agree more, although the political situation is completely different. At that time, everybody who felt responsibility for the future realized already that slogans of the opposition were fraught with a deep split in the nation.
Their appeals to unity assumed support of only one outlook, one cultural tradition to the detriment of another that was not in minority in Ukraine.
Acting as nation's fathers they steadily neglected our advice to think not only about power but also about responsibility for social, economic and political stability in the country.
They regarded united Ukraine as the homogeneous, multi-million masses blindly following the new 'rulers' just because they were 'thinking in Ukrainian'.
It meant that people thinking differently had to accept that fact properly. Vast eastern and southern industrial areas, owing to which Ukraine has become a modern European state, were considered as regions where not citizens but some population, just people without kin, lived.
Especially because these regions were going to vote for another presidential candidate.
Can it be the main cause of all the troubles that the country has been facing since the 'orange' came to power?
There was an attempt to unite two parts of Ukraine on January 22, 1919. Then, leaders of both republics realized how intricate were the problems that they had to solve. The question was about reunification of ethnic Ukrainian territories that by force of many historical circumstances had been developing in different cultural and linguistic environment. That is why the Western Ukraine joined the Ukrainian People's Republic as an autonomy with large rights.
This kind of autonomy the Western Ukrainian administration upheld through all 175 days of the existence of the united Ukrainian state and afterwards, when its army appeared to be under the Poles attack on the eastern bank of the river Zbruch, i.e. on the territory of the Ukrainian People's Republic.
It is a significant historical event. It shows that even then Ukrainian politicians understood the danger of ignoring peculiarities of development of different Ukrainian territories.
Hence, it can be supposed that if historical conditions in 1919 had been more favourable for Ukraine, a new federal state could have appeared on the map of Europe in prospect.
By the way, this idea was common to Dragomanov and Kostomarov. Later, Vyacheslav Chornovil shared it. I hope our political opponents will not dare to call him a separatist. At least he initiated the convocation of Galytska Assembly involving Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Ternopil regional boards' deputies as a possible version of the future West Ukrainian Federation.
In other words, the Party of Regions suggestion concerning Ukraine's federalization as the best way to overcome a deep split in the Ukrainian society has long-standing historical roots. At the same time, this idea has nothing in common with separatism that leaders of the so-called orange revolution persistently try to ascribe to us.
We perceive Ukraine's unity as the regions' right for free development of their traditions and use of the language that is the means of communication among members of the local community.
For us united Ukraine means the far-reaching local self-government and budgets that are locally formed according to the programs of regions' accelerated development.
At the same time, united Ukraine is the powerful centre that deals with such vital issues as defence, national security, ecology and a lot more. I would like to stress out that ahead of January 22 when those who deny us and many millions of our compatriots the right to live in the country where people feel themselves as masters of their destiny and not performers of someone other will are going to come out to Sofiivska ploscha in Kyiv.
Fortunately, Ukraine's people have understood already who came to power and what were their aims.
I am convinced of that at every meeting with voters from many corners of the country as I travel around almost without a break.
People have already stopped asking questions about endless crises, prices growth, when their flats become warm and whether they do not lose their jobs because of the steep rise of prices for energy sources.
They ask when responsible, professional and educated managers come to power.
And I answer them that it will be soon.
Yes, the authorities try to disrupt the political reform. They understand that they will certainly lose at the forthcoming parliamentary elections and therefore they are looking for ways of preserving their worthless government.
However, today, the situation has drastically changed. It is the beginning of 2006 and not the end of 2004.
I know that not only we are aware of this fact but many of those who believed 'orange' revolutionaries and backed them during the famous events at Maidan.
Instead of the pledges of the 'bright tomorrow', they got gloomy reality today.
It could be explained not only by the disastrous decisions of Tymoshenko and Yekhanurov government but also by the dangerous foreign policies chosen by Yushchenko and his close allies.
As a net result, Ukraine has lost its most important strategic partner that is Russia. I am not going to talk about the consequences of such policies because we have direct evidence of them.
Though, the present government has to be blamed for what happened we turned out to be the ones who betrayed national interests and are labelled as the fifth column in Ukraine.
Taking an opportunity to speak here, I would like to tell the so-called patriots again that we love our country not less than you do. At that, we think not about ourselves in politics but about politics for the sake of the better life of our people.
We go to the elections bearing this in mind.
We are convinced in our right course and we will win!
'2000' newspaper, 20.01.2006 | |
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