On February 4, speaking to the participants of the Non-Profit Management program of the Institute of Leadership and Management, Vice Rector of UCU Myroslav Marynovych, considering Ukraine’s prospects after EuroMaidan, noted: “If we fortify this effect – moral values – we will be one nation. I am counting on this. After all, we have a demand for a civilized state.”
According to Myroslav Marynovych, EuroMaidan already passed two phases. The first one was non-violent resistance, when in November 2013 students took to the streets because they “felt cheated.”
“But non-violent does not mean passivity or lack of leadership. It should be a meaningful struggle, not empty slogans,” said the vice rector of UCU.
But the authorities’ actions prompted the second phase – violent resistance. But it is not the EuroMaidan side that is employing a violent method. At this time, the rally participants’ emotions swelled and the next events unfolded without a meaningful plan. However, Myroslav Marynovych sees nothing unusual in this. In assessing the Right Sector, for example, he said that they did what was expected of them when the conflict reached another peak.
EuroMaidan’s problem, according to the vice rector of UCU, lies in the fact that it has not succeeded in finding a better way to outline its demands.
“In Soviet camps, it was easiest to go on a hunger strike ‘to the end,’ in order to have demands met. But this did not end with the system making concessions. So now the demands should be more wisely expressed, otherwise they will lead to a dead-end with no possibility to maneuver,” said the former dissident.
On the other hand, one of the positive aspects of EuroMaidan Myroslav Marynovych believes is the fact that there is not one leader. It means the people will not pin their hopes on a “political messiah” but collectively resolve all issues.
The vice rector sees the EuroMaidan developing because people are uniting around moral values.
“What is the driving force behind the uprisings in Ukraine? The moral idea. Not political or statist ideas. And only when political or ideological issues appear is there discordance,” he said.
Myroslav Marynovych compared what is happening in Ukraine to the process of transformation of a caterpillar into a butterfly. When the caterpillar wraps itself in a cocoon, inside begins the process of self-destruction, in which crystallizes the new creature – a butterfly. This butterfly is a “new generation that no longer knows the taste of slavery, that has a a certain degree of freedom.” This new generation is the youth, the people born in independent Ukraine. Their distinguishing feature is the “willingness to take on the responsibility for the situation in the country.” This new generation must become a force that will change people’s opinions and lead the others. Moreover, they are ready to sacrifice.
“But we must understand the difference between ‘being a victim’ and ‘sacrifice.’ Jesus Christ sacrificed his life for the salvation of humanity, and did not become a victim of the regime,” said the vice rector.
As for the future of Ukraine, Myroslav Marynovych suggested that each region “should be respected” regardless of its differences, for there is “unity in diversity.”
“God does not punish us because we are different in Ukraine. He gave us a chance,” he said.
The priority in this issue should be the decentralization of power, transferring power to the regions, and granting them a certain amount of financial independence. He believes this will not lead to the division of the country.
But soon EuroMaidan will enter its next – third – phase. What it will be is difficult to say. Too many factors simultaneously influence the process.
UCU Press-Service