Журнал Viche 2007 №1

№1, 2007

From the agreements of Ukrainian Central Council – to the Agreement of national unity: political and lawful measuring

The year 2006 went down in the newest history of the state and law of Ukraine with significant events: coming into force of the amendments to the Constitution that foresaw transition to the presidential-parliament republic; holding on elections to the parliament, to the Verkhovna Rada of ARC and to organs of local self-government according to the proportional electoral system; signing of the Agreement of national unity, and also the state solemnities on occasion of 15-th anniversary of proclamation of independence of Ukraine; commemorating of the 80-th anniversary since the day of death of Symon Petlyura, 140-th anniversary since the birthday of Mykhaylo Hrushevs’kyi and 130 years since the birthday of Serhiy Yefremov – unordinary figures of Ukrainian statecreation.

It is right to say without any idealization that each of the mentioned personalities is meaningful for our past. And Hrushevs’kyi and Yefremov were concerned with the acceptance of agreements of Ukrainian Central Council of 1917-1918 years. On August, 3, 2006 the Agreement of national unity was signed. Historical and legal parallels offer themselves automatically.

However political and legal realities certify: subject to “postgenocide Ukrainian society” (James Mays) and “mafia postcommunism” (Vatslav Havel) it was succeeded in forming only transitional political and lawful system. In other words it slowly carries out transition to democracy and market economy, has low efficiency in the sphere of rights and freedoms of citizens, high level of corruptibility and shadiness of economy, insignificant extent of growth of gross domestic product, unproviding of the proper level of social standards of life and so on. Resentment about the present political and legal system was reflected in the public moods during elections on March, 26, 2006, when citizens voted for world outlook opposite political parties. It again demonstrates the tragic division in the middle of Ukrainian political elite, dissidence of the country into two parts according to mental, historical and political characteristics.

Leonid RYABOSHAPKO, Stepan RUTAR