Traveler, Writer, Aquarius, Peace Corps Volunteer
The evidence
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What Have You Done For Me Lately?
There is no question that the Ukrainian economy has been doing better the past few years. From what older volunteers have told me, they don�t even recognize many of the cities as they�ve grown so much over their two years of service. Ask any Donetskian what life was like when Yushenko was Prime Minister, and they�ll tell you a tale about miners not getting paid for nearly a year, about marches on Kyiv that resulted in jailing, and about the selling off of the country�s energy utility, resulting in Ukraine having to buy back its own energy. They�ll again talk about how Yushenko mismanaged funds and money ended up in the accounts of his allies. Under Yanukovich, the past two years have seen improvement. He paid off the government�s debts to the miners and pensioners and raised salaries. The Western response? Yeah, but he simply printed more money and devalued the currency to do it. Just wait for the effect to kick in. And as for Yushenko, they blame the instability and uncertainty of the time when he was Prime Minister for the problems, when Ukraine was a fledgling nation and struggling to survive in the post-Soviet world.
It�s a Money Thing
While a hundred thousand Yushenko supports rally on Independence Square, the bulk of Yanukovich supports are busy back home toiling in the drudgery of coal mines whose conditions are among the worst in the world. When they see the rally, they fume. They see people not working, leaving their job for a party, while they can�t miss one minute in god-awful conditions so that they can feed their families. Because of the nature of the industrial East, they contribute a far greater share of money to the country, and get disproportionately less in return. This has helped fuel the cries for autonomy within Ukraine, which should not be confused with independence. The people of the Donbass (mining region) don�t want to be part of Russia or their own country. They simply want to be like Crimea, and autonomous republic of Ukraine with their own local government and taxes, free to decide how much they contribute to Kyiv and free to develop their own industries. This, in all likelihood, will never happen. But it�s important to know that the cries for autonomy were not simply because they feel they were cheated.
Propaganda
One of the hardest things to find in the mix of all of this is the truth. Was Yushenko poisoned? Did someone throw a rock at Yanukovich? Did thugs keep Yushenko from speaking when he tried to come to Donetsk? Is Yushenko�s ally, Julia Tymoshenko, wanted by Interpol? Is Yushenko�s wife an American spy? This is the kind of stuff that gets thrown around on a daily basis here. The problem is, nobody seems to know the truth, and the press doesn�t seem to keen on trying to find out. For the entire course of the election, Yushenko has maintained that the government (read: Yanukovich) controlled media has not been allowed to show any footage of Yushenko or his rallies in Kyiv or Lviv during the run-up to the election, and had to be forced to show the rally in Independence Square after the election or many journalists would have quit. In response to the main Ukrainian channels lack of coverage came a cable channel dedicated to showing what was really going on. As you might expect, it�s skewed about eighty-twenty in favor of Yushenko.
By Whom Would You Rather Be Fleeced?
I had a journalism student here tell me that America was funding Yushenko so that it could squeeze Ukraine dry. People here constantly hear how the United States is funding Yushenko�s campaign and hate it. The United States wants to control Ukraine like they want to control everywhere else, they say. The flip side of that is that Russia has been equally busy giving money to Yanukovich. Russian President Putin not only endorsed Yanukovich, but congratulated him immediately after his announced victory, well before Parliament had a chance to decide the election�s legality.
Keep On Your Own Side of the World
Finally, perhaps the hardest thing for Eastern Ukrainians to understand is why, exactly, does the United States have the right to come into Ukraine and dictate what�s fair and what�s not? They see a country half a world away that�s busy traipsing the globe telling other countries how they should govern themselves. For people here, this is not about ensuring democracy, nor is it about balancing Russian influence. This is about sovereignty, about the right to be governed how they choose, whatever that ends up being. Do the logic from their side: another country has come into ours, invalidated our election, given money to our opposition, and why? Because they want to keep Russia weak and keep Ukraine for themselves.
And so the discussion goes. I�ve spent hours ad nauseam discussing this with Ukrainian friends on both sides of the campaign, and the only thing that�s clear is that both are equally patriotic and angry, and couldn�t be further apart ideologically. For Western Ukraine, this election is about reform and getting out from under the thumb of Russia once and for all. For Eastern Ukraine, they�re convinced both sides are corrupt and if they have to support someone, better someone from their area who will at least bring them money and growth. You hear plenty of passion and conviction. Unfortunately, what you don�t hear any of is mediation and understanding, and until that happens, this is a country with serious problems.
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