During this five-year incubation period for Ukraine’s fragile democracy, freedom of the press and the right to fair elections were properly cultivated and strengthened. It was in Yushchenko’s term as president that the country began to develop genuine democratic traditions and distance itself from the authoritarian political culture of the post-Soviet space. More than a decade since he left office, it is now painfully apparent that Yushchenko’s presidency marked only the end of the beginning in Ukraine’s arduous path towards Europe. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” At the time, the British war leader had sought to dampen expectations by commenting, “This is not the end.
More prudent observers remembered Churchill’s quote after the battle of El-Alamein in 1942. However, not everyone was taken in by the euphoria. From Day One, his presidency was proclaimed as the end of tyranny and the start of Ukraine’s procession towards membership of the European Union. In the previous few months, he had survived a poisoning attempt, campaigned across Ukraine, led national protests over a rigged presidential election, and ultimately won a rerun second round of voting as the world’s media looked on in amazement.Įxpectations were astronomical. When Yushchenko took office in early 2005, he did so on a tide of history and high drama. However, with great hope comes great expectations. No leader before him ever inspired Ukrainians quite like Yushchenko. Whenever I have asked Ukrainians for their impressions of Yushchenko, the most common responses range from nostalgia for the Orange Revolution to bitter disappointment. As Viktor Yushchenko celebrates his sixty-seventh birthday this week, those words may well be applied to Ukraine’s much maligned and often misunderstood third president.Īs someone who has done extensive focus group work in Ukraine since 2004, I can confirm that Viktor Yushchenko conjures up very mixed emotions. This phrase captures the idea of a far-sighted leader who is focused on the distant future beyond their own lifetime. “He plants trees which will be of use to another age,” said the Roman poet Caecilius Statius.
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