It is very sad and a shame to write and then publish the article that humiliates Ukrainian women in the eyes of a foreign reader.

ng and living in France. I have never written comments before concerning the articles provided by the Kyiv Post until today when I read your Aug. 7 front­page article “Rising sex tourism unwelcome.”

You started off good by writing about protests that Ukrainian women held on Independence Square, as well as writing about the FEMEN non­governmental organization that noticed the sex tourism boom in Ukraine and is trying to counteract this trend.

But then you literally advertise sex tourism in Ukraine by citing Vasyl Myroshnychenko, a partner at CFC, a strategic communications, government relations and investment consulting firm, who said: “Ukraine has a competitive advantage, simply put, our women are the best in the world!” Since the Kyiv Post mainly targets foreign readers, sex tourism is promoted in an indirect way!

Not to mention the passage where you advertise the website www.kiev­tour.com by providing details of the party that can be booked on­line. Also you mention the prices $1,250­­$1,600, “depending on the type of girl and her English­­speaking skills” the price that is affordable for a foreigner for these kind of services! You provide advantages for the customer’s financial security: “the site offers confidentiality and discreet billing, private cottages outside of Kyiv or apartments in the capital, round­­trip transport to Boryspil airport and discounts for longer stays.”

Why would a foreigner go to Thailand if they can have “the best women in the world” in Ukraine for a very good price?

Is this where the Kyiv Post newspaper gets financing from? By receiving money from such businesses as prostitution in Ukraine? I thought the whole point was to stop prostitution, rather than promote it.

It is very sad and a shame to write and then publish the article that humiliates Ukrainian women in the eyes of a foreign reader. I believe it is unacceptable for the European press to publish an article like “Rising sex tourism unwelcome,” since the Kyiv Post is one of the few English­language newspapers in Ukraine for an increasing number of foreigners (23 million visited the country in 2007, as you say).


Olena Ganziuk

Nice, France