And with it came alarm, at home and abroad, about how an extremist and “neo-fascist” party had just been vaulted to the nation’s legislature.
However, Svoboda is not the only concern. The ruling pro-presidential Party of Regions finished in first place again and the Communist Party experienced a resurgence. Both embrace Soviet nostalgia.
The countless crimes against humanity, including the murder of millions of Ukrainians in the Soviet era, have never been condemned in the same way that Nazi crimes have been.
The Party of Regions downplays these atrocities while the Communist Party denies them and still celebrates Josef Stalin and his henchmen. Nowadays, both parties perpetuate crony capitalism.
Some lawmakers and top government officials deny Ukrainian heritage and language. The party in power has voted to prolong the stay of a foreign army and for laws that divide society, like the one elevating the status of the Russian language.
Their actions have heightened divisions. Recall how, in 2004, Party of Regions leaders, including Deputy Prime Minister Borys Kolesnikov, called on the southeast to secede from the rest of the nation.
Svoboda found voters among Ukrainians who think that the Regions Party and the Communists are intent on keeping Ukraine in Russia’s orbit. Svoboda is today’s bogeyman, and we’ve yet to find out whether this reputation is deserved.
Svoboda’s challenge now is to show that its members are not extremist, xenophobic or anti-Semitic. Such a program would deservedly bring their political demise. However, the Communists and the Party of Regions also carry plenty of threats to Ukraine’s national security and sovereignty.
