President of the People’s Movement of Ukraine (Rukh)


Borys Tarasyuk:
 
“In formulating our vision for the future, the democratic forces of Ukraine must first articulate the need for regime change, while also promoting those ideas, that would truly consolidate our society, based on an appreciation of the urgency to give power back to the people, to establish a new political system, in which tyranny in all its forms will be denied and which will also be capable to eliminating all the negative residue of the last 5-6 years.”
 
Borys Tarasyuk, elected President of the People’s Movement of Ukraine at XIII^th All-Ukrainian Rukh Congress on May 3, 2003.
Member of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine since 2002.
Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine on European Integration.
Director of the Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation.
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine from April 1998 through September 2000.
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary since 1992.
 
 

Rukh in the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine

Rukh MPs in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine

Rukh enjoys popular support in nearly every region of Ukraine. The party’s largest electoral base is in Ukraine’s Western regions (the Lviv, Ternopil, Ivano-Frankivsk, Volyn and Rivne provinces), where voters overwhelmingly support Rukh’s pro-European platform.
As an integral part of the “Our Ukraine” parliamentary faction, Rukh’s parliamentary group presently consists of 19 MPs, four of which are Chairpersons of Standing Parliamentary Committees: on European Integration; on Human Rights, Ethnic Minorities and Inter-Ethnic Relations; on Culture and Religion; on Agrarian Policy and Land Relations. Also, three Rukh MPs are deputy chairpersons of parliamentary committees.
Rukh has been represented in the Ukrainian Parliament since 1990 and has always taken an active part in the legislative process. On the initiative of Rukh MPs, significant legislation was adopted in the economic, social, political and cultural fields. Notably, Rukh parliamentarians were actively involved in the drafting of laws on Ukraine’s Civil Code, the electoral system, on the President, on the judicial system, as well as in the critical area of agrarian reform.
During the first “democratic” convocation of the Rada (from 1990), Rukh MPs played a key role in the drafting of the Declaration on the State Sovereignty of Ukraine and, subsequently, of the Act of the Proclamation of Ukraine’s Independence. Moreover, the present Constitution of Ukraine, which was adopted in 1996, is to a large extent a reflection of the many contributions and proposals that were forwarded by Rukh members.
 

Rukh on the cusp of a new era


Presently, nearly thirteen years after having renewed independence, Ukraine is still far from being a functioning democracy, where the rule of law is unflinchingly observed, where human rights and civil liberties are irreproachably respected, and where government rules by the people, for the people and of the people. The authoritarian vestiges of the former totalitarian system have proved to be more resilient to change than originally expected. On the contrary President Leonid Kuchma’s regime, in power for nearly a decade now, has fostered and even perfected some of the authoritarian tendencies of the Soviet era.
Hence, as a matter of priority, Rukh is determined to counter these authoritarian tendencies, which increasingly jeopardize the nascent roots of freedom, democracy, equality and justice in Ukraine. With this aim in mind, Rukh already in 1997 urged that all the patriotic democratic forces of Ukraine consolidate their strength and form a powerful political electoral coalition. With the creation of the “Our Ukraine” bloc, also on Rukh’s initiative, such a coalition was finally formed, while almost immediately capturing the imagination of the Ukrainian electorate (re: 24% of the popular vote in the 2002 parliamentary elections). The next challenge facing the “Our Ukraine” coalition is the upcoming presidential elections. Rukh’s candidate, “Our Ukraine’s” candidate will be former Prime Minister Viktor Yushchenko.
In the economic field, Rukh is particularly active in promoting changes in Ukraine’s agricultural policies, specifically through Rukh-sponsored local committees in support of agrarian reform. These committees have proved to be instrumental in facilitating economic, political and social change in Ukraine’s rural areas. Rukh also pays special attention to developing small and mid-size business, which, in turn, is the backbone of any country’s middle class. Moreover, Rukh traditionally devotes much attention to encouraging the growth of local self-government, which is the cornerstone of any vibrant democracy.
Much of Rukh’s efforts are focused on an active promotion of Ukrainian culture, which was nearly completely traumatized by the Soviet regime. Together with a wide range of community organizations, NGOs, Rukh has spurred a rebirth of Ukrainian national identity, of the Ukrainian language, of Ukrainian pride. Of course, one of the focal points of Rukh’s activities in this regard is the country’s educational system, which must be mandated with the obligation to nurture a new set of values and principles in Ukraine’s youth.
Finally, Rukh has always been the foremost proponent of Ukraine’s integration into European and Euro-Atlantic structures, i.e., membership in the European Union and NATO. Although for many years the ruling regime in Ukraine hesitated adopting this position as a high-priority policy directive, recently Rukh’s position in this regard has become declared policy in Ukraine, although much more is needed in terms of concrete steps to be taken to achieve these lofty goals.