A Nation Born in Orange

http://www.thunderbird.edu/wwwfiles/publications/magazine/spring05/s05-orange-pg32.asp

Thunderbird Global Council member Michael Bleyzer was in Kyiv, Ukraine, in November and witnessed, and here reports on, the beginning of the Orange Protest and the birth of a true democracy.

NOVEMBER 23 LED BY OPPOSITION presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko, as many as 1 million people march on parliament, turning the narrow brick streets into a ea of orange flags and ribbons. The protest springs up as a result of the outcome of the second round of the presidential elections, held November 21, which declared the Russian-speaking Prime Minister Victor Yanukovich the narrow winner. Exit polls indicate widespread fraud, and international observers call the election results tainted.

We are in the middle of the Orange Revolution in Kyiv. It is an incredible experience to be here. We have been spending a lot of time on the streets and on the main square, Maidan Nezalezhnosti, Independence Square. No news footage can do justice to the feeling of being surrounded by a million people. It is amazing how incredible this crowd is. Think of an unhappy crowd—cheated by politicians, betrayed by the system—and you expect angry, agitated people. Think again! This is the happiest, friendliest, most incredibly loving and supportive group I have encountered, and there are a million of them! People smile, sing, laugh and offer help and support to each other. There are no police in sight. Imagine that! There are not even any reports of crime in this huge metropolitan area. Everyone is a friend, everyone is a neighbor, everyone is a brother. We are in the middle of a miracle. The people of this country came out on the streets to say, “We have had enough! Enough of criminals running the country, enough of corruption, enough of lawlessness. We want to be free, we want to be clean and civilized, we want to be a part of Europe and the World.”   
 
November 24
Tens of thousands of Orange Protesters vow to stay camped in Independence Square until reports of election fraud are examined.

It is cold out here. Most nights the temperature goes well below freezing. But the tent city that has gone up in the middle of Kyiv, now with thousands of tents, is very warm. There are mountains of warm clothes everywhere on Khreshchatyk, the main street of the city, donated by Kyivites. Food, hot coffee and hot tea are abundant and free everywhere. But you do not see any alcohol. This is the most sober one million Ukrainians you will ever meet. The crowd is completely self-organizing and is improving its collective behavior continuously. Every new day brings better organization, improved conditions and communications, and good behavior. Where are the sociologists? We are living one of the finest examples of crowd behavior in history.

November 25
Despite freezing temperatures and worsening living conditions, protesters remain in Independence Square, saying they’ll only leave when a new presidential election is held and Yanukovich agrees to step down.

It is clear to any observer that this crowd will win. There’s no way to stop it without a massive blood bath, which cannot happen in Europe in this new century, with all the world’s TV cameras turned on Ukraine. Over the last five days, the opposition has been winning continuous victories. The crowds are growing bigger, and demonstrations are all over the country. Famous athletes, actors, artists and high ranking military and police officers are joining the opposition. When Ruslana, the most famous Ukrainian singer and the 2004 Eurovision contest winner, and Vladimir Klitchko, the heavyweight champion, joined Victor Yushchenko on the podium three days ago, the crowd went wild. The following day brought Lech Walesa, senior officers of SBU (formerly the KGB) and the police and several formerly neutral “oligarchs” to the podium.

November 27
The Ukrainian Supreme Court declares the presidential election null until it considers the claims that the vote was rigged.

The media are free once again in Ukraine. Until now, only one channel was covering the events from Maiden Nezalezhnosti 24 hours a day. Our Volia Cable also was delivering its signal to some 1.5 million viewers in Kyiv despite the pressure, including 10 days in July when some of our managers went to jail. All the other channels have been ignoring the people on the streets and instead showing cartoons, music concerts and travel destinations. Most TV journalists had been fired or had gone on strike because they refused to continue broadcasting lies, so almost all stations had ceased operations. For three days, most of Ukraine had no TV news, for there was no staff left to produce the news.

Last night it all changed. The owners of the major channels gave in to the demands of their journalists and allowed honest news reporting for the first time in the history of independent Ukraine. Some ran their evening news broadcast with a group shot of all journalists standing together, with one of them reading a statement in which they swore to report honest news only. It was an unbelievable and inspiring sight. And then the miracle happened: They showed a direct feed of a million proud Ukrainians on Maidan Nezalezhnosti in Kyiv to the whole country. If there was a defining moment in the birth of this nation, that was it!

November 28
In a day of tension and loud protests both on the street and in parliament chambers, the democratically-elected body declares the election results invalid. Three days later, the parliament votes to fire the entire presidential staff.

Today was another exciting day with the extraordinary session of the Ukrainian Rada, or parliament. It started four hours ago and is being shown live on television all over the country. We are all glued to our television screens. The Rada already voted to consider the runoff elections invalid, and it expressed no-confidence in the Central Election Committee, along with other important actions. They are still debating, but they are progressing well. Things are looking up! The Orange Revolution continues!

December 23
The Ukrainian Supreme Court invalidates the presidential election results and orders a new election to be held Dec. 26.

December 26
Election results show that Viktor Yushchenko has won with 52 percent of the vote to just 44 percent for Victor Yanukovich.

January 23
Yushchenko is sworn in as president. Inauguration balls are held through Kyiv.

Now what?
The Orange “revolutionaries” are in charge, but will they lead with transparency and honesty, and bring stability to the country?  
 
I wrote these diary entries in the last days of November 2004 at the height of the Orange Revolution in Kyiv. It was the most exciting time of my life. I did not know what the final outcome would be, or if violence would erupt despite the optimism, or how power would be transferred if the revolution did succeed. But I knew that I was witnessing one of the most incredible events of recent years.

Now, many months later, we know that the Orange Revolution was a resounding success, greater than even the most optimistic expectations in November. The long term consequences for Ukraine and the world now depends on what the Orange revolutionaries do with their new power. Many challenges lie ahead, not least of which is the difficult legacy of 10 years of slow and painful transition to a market economy.
The “revolutionaries” are in charge of all government institutions and agencies. It is amazing to realize that the revolution was accomplished without any violence nor a single shot fired. The largest peaceful revolution in history had a quick and victorious end, with power transferring to the Orange team with little resistance. It took less than three months in all.

The Orange Revolution was exciting and full of energy and color despite the cold, dreary days of Ukraine’s winter. Even a revolution staged by MTV would not have seemed hipper, happier, nor more photogenic. The chants razom nas bahato, nas ne podolaty (together we are many, we cannot be defeated) and svobodu ne spynyty (freedom can’t be stopped) should be taught in every school. These incredibly powerful chants were turned into inspiring songs by bands during the revolution.

The three months of the Orange Revolution was the great awakening of the Ukrainian nation and an incredible cleansing of its civil society. A democratic nation was born. The new rulers were anointed by the street, and Ukrainians are better off now because they can always remember nas bahato, nas ne podolaty! What happened was even better for Ukraine than if Yushchenko were simply elected cleanly and transparently in the first round. People came out in the streets and said, “We do not want these guys any longer. We want those guys!” And they got them! What can be more democratic?

The Ukrainian people and the world expect a lot from the new government: Simplicity. Transparency. Predictability. As an investor, I want simple and effective solutions that can be explained to the Ukrainian people. I want frequent and open communications between the new government and the people. The government needs to listen closely to what the people say. And I want a stable and predictable business and legal environment where local and foreign investors feel secure deploying new capital without surprises and sudden shifts.

The government needs to take care of the bulging budget deficit left by the previous government’s efforts to get re-elected at any cost, the overgrown and unruly government bureaucracy that needs reform; strengthening the rule of law, deregulating businesses to further liberalize the economy, promoting internationally a strong image for the nation to attract foreign direct investment that will help sustain and accelerate economic growth. Yes, there are challenges ahead, but there is also a new government with lots of young, dedicated, energetic and patriotic people. I am optimistic about the future in Ukraine. The Orange Revolution was a beautiful and heroic movement. It will not go to waste. Ukraine will succeed!