De-Russification of Ukraine Must Be Pursued More Carefully than De-Communization has Been, Poshivaylo Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, June 15 – Ihor Poshivailo, an ethnographer who directs Kyiv’s Museum of the Revolution of Dignity, says that de-Russification of Ukraiine is a continuation of a kind of de-communization but that it must be prepared and pursued in more thoughtful ways than its antecedent has.

            There is no question that de-Russification of the public space in Ukraine is necessary, he says. After all, at the present time, according to the head of Ukrainian libraries, half of the books held in those institutions are anti-Ukrainian but their maintenance is still being paid for by Ukrainian taxpayers (nv.ua/art/etnolog-igor-poshivaylo-o-neobhodimosti-derusifikacii-ukrainskogo-kulturnogo-polya-50250363.html).

            Creating institutions in both Kyiv and throughout the country to discuss how de-Russification should be handled is critical, but that is no easy task because as a result of Soviet Russian repression, many Ukrainians don’t know enough of their own national past to have an informed opinion about what should be included and what excluded.

            Consequently, while it is important to consult everyone, it is also important to remember that many Ukrainians may not be able to address this issue fully and fairly. Moreover, there are issues such as how to handle Pushkin that spark sharp debate even among the best informed. That means that de-Russification must be thoroughly discussed and carefully pursued.

            Only if that is done can Ukraine be saved and can that happen without the kind of scandals that sometimes have marred the de-communization effort, Poshivailo says.