Сорока на плоті / The Magpie
Shedding its Past
Shedding its Soviet communist past is more difficult for independent and orange Ukraine than it is for a snake to exfoliate. Today, Ukraine is observing Defender of the Motherland (Fatherland or Homeland) Day. This is a carryover from the old imperial days when it was called Soviet Army Day.
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Volodymyr Lytvyn and Prime Minister of Ukraine Yuri Yekhanurov congratulated Ukrainians, saying, “We bow our heads before the warriors, who died for the sake of our Motherland, and express our respect to veterans of World War II, whose feats glorified them during the fight with fascism. We congratulate all those, who fulfilled their Constitutional duty to defend the Motherland, its independence and security, inviolability of frontiers, and take part in international peacemaking actions. This holiday has become not only civil, but also public. Wish you health, happiness and prosperity.”
President Yushchenko was not far out of step: “Today, we are honoring representatives of the noble military profession. I am convinced you will improve your battle and professional skills and make military power and international authority of the country grow,” he wrote. “I would like to pay homage to the older generation and sincerely thank our parents for their courageous exploits and hard work.”
We understand that there are still many veterans of the Soviet army among the living but Lytvyn, Yekhanurov and Yushchenko to admit parenthetically, at least, that from the moral point of view, they fought for the wrong side. The Soviet army may have been military victors in 1945 but they became losers since then. The men and women who served under the red banner, regardless of nationality, partisan affiliation and age, fought not in defense of their country, let’s say Ukraine, but for the preservation of the Soviet Russian system whose aim was to destroy Ukraine.
You want to have a Defender of the Motherland (Fatherland or Homeland) Day? Fine. However, include the true brave heroes of World War II: the soldiers and officers of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army and call those on the other side confused, befuddled, perplexed, bewildered, confounded if not downright traitorous warriors. Otherwise, just pay tribute to today’s troops who may be called upon to defend Ukraine against a new Russia.
IHOR
posted 23.02.2006
