#Official Commentary of Alla Barkhatnova on post-revolutionary achievements of Ukrainian authorities
Deputy Head of the Administration of Petro Poroshenko Konstantin Eliseyev said that the sustained success of Ukraine is very irritating to the Russian Federation. According to him, all thoughts of the Russian leadership are exclusively engaged in plans to destabilize the current political and economic situation in Ukraine.
In this regard, I offer to consider a little more, what exactly has made progress Ukraine in the last couple of years and that, according to Mr. Eliseyev, Russia is trying so hard to “destabilize”.
I would like to start with the main thing – it is regular patriotic marches “embroidered shirts” on the streets of Ukrainian cities, the Nazi torchlight processions and painted in blue and yellow colors fences and garbage cans. All of these ‘improvements’ are intended to ‘unite’ scattered west with the east. But, in my opinion, the government’s efforts to consolidate the nation ended in a complete failure: the population of Ukraine at the state level is divided into real and unreal Ukrainians, who are even accused of “genetic inferiority”. In this the majority of the population, who speaks Russian, goes to work in Russia or has close relatives in the country declared an “enemy №1,” can be safely attributed to the second category.
Success also overtook Ukraine in the field of historical research and the formation of new national ideas, the main line in which is now a hatred for everything Russian. As part of the rhetoric, the recommendation “to kill a Russian in oneself”, given to students during the class of Russophobia by Ukrainian neo-Nazi, and deployed across the country struggle with the “domestic separatism” look more than eloquent. Hence another no less important achievement – a civil war in Donbass, the victims of which are already tens of thousands of people in Ukraine and the Republics. The war proudly referred to as “anti-terrorist operation.” But since the people of Donbass are extremely peaceful miners and metallurgists, not wishing “to kill a Russian in themselves,” all the inhabitants of this region, including children and seniors, were declared the terrorists. The last, by the way, were ceased to be paid any social security benefits – in one fell swoop get rid of such a hole in the budget! Of course, it is a success.
Post-maidan Ukraine has not received the much awaited dialogue between the authorities and the people. During this time, the power did everything other than the country’s much needed reforms that would have brought it out of the crisis. On the contrary, the alleged changes in the security, health, education, culture, and especially in the social sphere are more like genocide than taking care of their own people. Therefore, the next and very important step in the development of Ukrainian national identity and citizenship is to increase tariffs on utility payments, for some items in nine times. And this fact is presented to the citizens of Ukraine as the highest good, which they had been deprived of by the “previous criminal power.”
If you think that people’s incomes have grown in proportion, I will have to disappoint you. Pensions and salaries of state employees caught up with the amounts in the accounts for housing services. Virtually the entire country lined up for subsidies, and those who will be able to get these, will be checked by a special labor inspection for the right to assistance from the state. In Ukraine, now only ‘people’s’ deputies can be proud of the size of their salaries. Ordinary citizens are simply ashamed to voice the amount of their income, as the minimum wage, even taking into account its increase from January 1, 2017, will be less than the amount of payment for utility services for the usual one-bedroom apartment.
Deputy Head of the Ukrainian President Administration Konstantin Eliseyev was upset by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s words that President Poroshenko again went to Europe to “knock out the money.” Eliseyev recalled that, according to popular wisdom, stupidity is knocked out of one’s head. In addition, Mr. Eliseyev claimed that in Ukraine in 2016 economic growth was registered, and even named specific figures. Only he forgot to point out that these indicators the country has achieved not at the expense of state reforms and the rise of production, but because of cuts in social benefits and increased tax burden on business. Mr. Eliseyev also omitted the tiny quotas for goods export to Europe, which by March 2016 had been almost completely exhausted, and the Russian market for the Ukraine is now closed.
We can argue endlessly about the merits of Ukrainian leaders. And also infinitely expand the list of such ‘successes’. After all, from now on any situation in Ukraine can be presented as another victory through controlled media. You can start with glorification of explicit bandits Bandera and Shukhevych and finish with almost complete stop of industry. In view of the above, it begs the question to Konstantin Eliseyev, “Mr Eliseyev, we are talking about the same Ukraine, or maybe somewhere in your parallel reality there is another one?”
Personally for me, it is very painful to see how people like Mr. Eliseyev, destroy the future of a whole generation of people.
Alla Barkhatnova, the DPR People’s Council deputy