· March, 2006

Stories about Ukraine from March, 2006

Ukraine: To Debate or Not To Debate?

  10 March 2006

Oleksandr of Messages From Canada explains why he thinks Ukrainian politicians have to take part in pre-election debates and why many aren't willing to. He concludes: “Dear leaders of political parties of Ukraine, debate now, when you have the chance and have to do so. Otherwise, one beautiful day you...

Ukraine: Election Pancakes and Hot Dogs

  10 March 2006

Stephan Clark of Everybody I Love You compares free pancakes served in Kharkiv on Maslenitsa in order to advertise Ukrainian political parties to “that great American political tradition, the parking lot hot-dog give-away.”

Ukraine: New Customs Rules For Transnistria

  10 March 2006

Dan McMinn of Orange Ukraine writes about Ukraine's relationship with Transnistria: cracking down “on smuggled goods out of a country whose economy is based on smuggling” – and the reactions this new policy is getting.

Ukraine: Freedom of Information Campaign

  10 March 2006

Maidan: An Internet Hub for Citizens Action Network in Ukraine reprints Stephen Bandera's report on Ukrainian freedom of information activists and their campaign to publicize secret governmental documents “that bear the ‘not for publication’ stamp.” So far, the justice ministry has agreed to provide the dates and titles of nearly...

Russia: FedEx Alternative

  10 March 2006

Yuri Mamchur of Russia Blog writes about a cheaper Russian alternative to FedEx, UPS and other such services – and a faster and more secure alternative to the local post service: passenger trains.

Ukraine: Potential Yushchenko-Yanukovych Coalition

  10 March 2006

Dan McMinn at Orange Ukraine writes about the potential Yushchenko-Yanukovych coalition following the March 26 election: “As Taras Kuzio, among others, has repeatedly said, one of the greatest failings of the Yushchenko government is that it reneged on its promise ‘Bandits to Jail!’ in favor of the informal ‘Bandits to...

Ukraine: Election-Rigging Expert Expects Election To Be Rigged

  10 March 2006

Victor Yanukovych, an election-rigging “expert,” says the upcoming parliamentary election will be rigged, despite victory forecasts for his party. Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes comments on this unwise campaign strategy: “Discredit an election that it looks like you'll do well in. That will lay the groundwork for what? A...

Ukraine: Taras Shevchenko's Birthday 5 Years Ago

  9 March 2006

March 9 is the 192nd anniversary of the birth of Taras Shevchenko, Ukraine's national poet. Two translations of his best-known poem, The Testament, are posted at Orange Revolution. Peter Byrne at Abdymok recalls this day five years ago, when opponents of Leonid Kuchma's regime clashed with the police – first...

Ukraine: Jackson-Vanik Amendment Scrapped

  9 March 2006

Dan McMinn of Orange Ukraine reports that Ukraine is finally going to have “normal trade relations status with the United States,” after the House of Representatives passed legislation yesterday “to graduate Ukraine from the Jackson-Vanik Amendment.”

Central & Eastern Europe: International Women's Day

  8 March 2006

March 8 has been an official day off in Russia and Ukraine, and here are some bloggers’ reactions to the holiday – in Russia and Ukraine, as well as elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe. Scott W. Clark of Foreign Notes, a Kyiv-based blog, is not happy about the universality...

Ukraine: Rinat Akhmetov and Freedom of the Press

  6 March 2006

Rinat Akhmetov, one of Ukraine's richest men, is running for parliament now; an online publication attempts to dig into his past; Akhmetov's U.S. lawyers accuse the publication of “spreading slanderous statements and blackening their client's name.” LEvko at Foreign Notes watches how the story develops.

Ukraine: Election Gifts

  3 March 2006

Christopher of From Ukraine With Love writes on how good the upcoming election is for a small-town Ukrainian school – good in a twisted sort of way: “From how it’s been explained to me, elections time is when politicians start giving out gifts.”

Ukraine: Our Ukraine's Rumored Future Alliance With Regions of Ukraine

  3 March 2006

LEvko at Foreign Notes writes of the comparatively inconspicuous campaigning style of Victor Yushchenko's Our Ukraine Bloc, which alienates potential voters but may prove not harmful to the politicians in the end, if they agree to forge an alliance with Victor Yanukovych's Regions of Ukraine Party, the former archrival. One...

Ukraine: Dirty Campaign Tricks

  2 March 2006

Oleksandr of Messages From Canada writes about the futility of certain election campaign tricks: “I think they all forget that Orange Revolution in 2004 proved again and again the fact that Ukrainian people are way more sophisticated and more self-conscious in their choice for the future. The only problem is...