While the rise of youth movements has played an important role in political changes in post-communist societies, young people usually get abandoned after they are no longer needed by the political forces.

Olena Nikolayenko, an expert in non-violent youth resistance, presented results of her fieldwork in Ukraine, Serbia, Georgia, Azerbaijan and Belarus at Kennan Institute in Washington, D.C. on January 15. Olena Nikolayenko has a Ph.D. degree from the University of Toronto, and she is currently a visiting scholar at Stanford University.

What does the post-Soviet generation, which grew up in the wake of the collapse of the evil empire and its dissolution, think about politics? Which political forces will it support? Taking into account that the Orange Revolution was “a youth-driven venture” in many respects, the answer to this question is essential.

Comparative analysis of the movements Pora in Ukraine, Otpor in Serbia, Kmara in Georgia, Yokh, Yeni Fikir and Magam in Azerbaijan, and Zubr in Belarus reveals striking similarities in timing, issues, mobilization, framing processes and action repertoires. These organizations emerged during election time, when young people, mostly students, demanded fair voting, depoliticization of universities and freedom of press. In addition, they frequently opposed corruption in the educational system.

Serbia’s Otpor “played a prominent role in removing Slobodan Milosevic from power,” Nikolayenko said, but as for the movement itself, it made a failed attempt to transform itself into a party. Similarly, Georgia’s Kmara became inactive and Azerbaijani movements dissolved after their leaders were arrested for conspiring with Armenian security services.

As for Ukraine, two major youth movements at the time of Orange Revolution, Black Pora (“pora” means “It’s time”) and Yellow Pora, resurfaced within the Orange camp. Poras, student unions and young people in general organized the protests, cheered the leaders and participated in all the demonstrations. According to Nikolayenko, Yellow Pora made an attempt to transform itself into a party. Its leader, Vlad Kaskiv, became a member of the Parliament at Verkhovna Rada. Black Pora, meanwhile, formed an NGO “Opora” (Support). However, a big number of participants of those events experienced a kind of abandonment and did not find any future relationship with these youth organizations.

Every post-Soviet country has had various youth movements. In Russia, there is a government-funded youth movement Nashi (Ours), in which the government has tried to continue Komsomol traditions. A similar organization was created in Belarus – Belarusian Republic Youth Union. Every major Ukrainian political party has had some kind of youth group, and, according to Nikolayenko, they are very active in Kyiv-Mohyla Academy in Kyiv. The presenter highlighted that there are frequent attempts of political leaders to engage students into their personal conflicts and protest for different causes.

Some activities for Ukrainian youth are provided by SUM (Ukrainian Youth Association). SUM includes 7,000 members worldwide. Besides Ukraine, it exists in Canada, USA, Australia, Argentine, Belgium, Great Britain, Estonia, Germany and France. Based on the history, which started in 1930s, SUM’s programs promote the principles of Christian ethics and pride in the Ukrainian national heritage around the world. A big part of SUM’s agenda are sports, camping and different cultural activities.

In conclusion, Nikolayenko defined the rise of youth movement in Ukraine during the Orange Revolution as “an episode of struggle for a better future,” which did not create the basis for the long-term development of youth movement. She also highlighted that there is a lot of uncertainty about how youth can participate actively in making decisions and how different groups can be united.

The history of youth movements should be utilized by future generations to teach young people to avoid being used in politicians’ struggle to win against each other.