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The View From Here: Ukraine’s Next Generation of Leaders

May 10, 2016 | Newpathway, Featured, The View From Here - Walter Kish, Politics

Volodymyr Kish.

Since Ukraine became independent twenty five years ago, I have lived through two so-called revolutions, neither of which have lived up to the high hopes and dreams that were generated by those who bravely and defiantly rose up against the corruption of the then prevailing authorities. Some would argue that it may still be too early to judge this latest Revolution of Dignity, but what I have seen so far does not really inspire me to believe that Ukraine has really turned the corner towards achieving justice, democracy and a true civil society. Two years after the latest venal tyrant was turfed out of office, the country is still a long way from cleansing its political, judicial and economic systems from the deeply entrenched corruption that became established over a century of misrule by first the Communists, and then for the past several decades, by a self-serving domestic oligarchy.

As I have written in recent articles, it would be unfair to say that there has been no progress. A fresh, new generation of young Ukrainian activists has made it into the governmental corridors of power including the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament. According to expert observers and analysts, perhaps as much as one third of the Rada is composed of reformers who are truly dedicated to fixing the rot that underlies Ukrainian politics and government.

Sadly, a majority of parliament, as well as most of Ukraine’s existing government mandarins, are leftovers from the kleptocracy that gained control when the Soviet Union crumbled. These people have an ingrained mindset that is dedicated to gaining power and then using it to enrich themselves and their cronies. They are incapable of even conceiving that any other political or economic systems are even feasible in this world. To them, concepts such as democracy, free enterprise, equal opportunity and justice, are fictional constructs used for PR purposes and a utopian impossibility. It is this kind of mindset that needs to be overcome before Ukraine can flourish again, and most psychologists and sociologists will tell you that accomplishing that task in a given society will likely take generations.

I too think that it will take at least a generation, if not more, to see Ukraine approaching the level of political and economic evolution that is prevalent in Europe, North America and in what we generally call the western world. I should qualify that statement somewhat in that I am not implying that we in the western world have somehow reached some ideal state. Heaven knows, we have our own faults and weaknesses. However, in countries like Canada where I live, we have achieved a level of social and political development where human rights are generally respected, where most people have good opportunity to become successful, where the rule of law works for the most part, and where the rules of democracy generally determine how we are governed. Few in Ukraine would be able to claim the same applies in their country.

Obviously, if Ukraine is to succeed as a democracy and become part of the “western world”, then it is incumbent that the younger generations that are coming up through the educational system be exposed as much as possible to the principles, values, political, social and economic structures of the countries they are striving to emulate. The alternative is the kind of closed, xenophobic society that Russia has become, and which leads to a political and economic dead end.

In this regard, there are specific glimmers of hope, one of which I was recently reminded when I met some students from Ukraine who are participating in a unique and invaluable initiative called the Canada Ukraine Parliamentary Program (CUPP). This year, some thirty three university students from Ukraine are taking part in a two month program wherein they serve as interns to members of Canada’s Parliament. Through this experience, they get to understand how Canada’s system of government functions. It is in essence an immersion course on our form of parliamentary democracy.

This program is now in its twenty fifth year and many of those that have participated over the years have gone on to hold senior and responsible positions in Ukraine’s government, as well as to leadership roles in the private sector. They have become members of parliament, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, lawyers, advisors, economists, diplomats and many other influential posts.

We need more programs such as this, where we can show Ukraine’s future leaders what a working democracy looks like, what constitutes a civil society and how an economy that is not rooted in corruption can function for the benefit of all, and not just a self-appointed few.

It may be that many of today’s leaders in Ukraine are beyond hope, in which case we should focus as much of our efforts and investments as possible on tomorrows leaders in programs such as the CUPP.

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