Ukraine protests: What’s at stake?

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to 55. Provide unemployment and retirement payments at the level of union wages 6) To combat inflation: A sliding scale of wages and pensions that matches the rises in comsumer prices. To combat high medical costs: A free, universal, public 7) Immediate citizenship for all undocumented workers. No job discrimination; equal pay for equal work — regardless of gender, sexual orientation, skin color, or 8) Nationalize manufacturing, big agribusiness, energy, and transportation corpora­ tions and place them under the control of elected committees of workers.

9) To mobilize support for the demands it adopts, the EMERGENCY CONGRESS should organize ACTION COMMITTEES in every workplace and neighborhood threat­ ened by the crisis. These committees can draw up more concrete demands than the 10) To put all these measures into effect, we need a LABOR PARTY — based on a fighting union movement and all people who are oppressed and exploited. For a T he protests that have rocked Ukraine are making worldwide headlines. The largest protests be­ gan in December and were attend­ ed by anywhere between 250,000 and 300,000 people.

The initial protests were much small­ er and were a response to Ukraine’s un­ expected refusal to sign an association agreement with the European Union. The EU and the Ukraine had been nego­ tiating the terms of their agreement for nearly a decade, so it came as a bit of a shock to those in the Ukrainian bour­ geoisie whose interests are, for the mo­ ment, more closely aligned with the EU. Since the initial protests, the manifesta­ tions have had ebbs and flows, and the demands have changed with time.

The catalyst to the movement was when the very first and small protests were met with police brutality. This gave the movement a decided jolt. It il­ lustrates again that the agents of capi­ talism fail to learn that brutality against peaceful protesters always inflames the passion of a people’s cause. In this case, it helped ignite the biggest protests since the “Orange Revolution” of 2004. However, instead of protesting electoral fraud, the Ukrainian people were voic­ ing their rejection of police brutality and the continued economic relation­ ship with Russia.

The Ukrainian government was act­ ing well within its power by rejecting the agreement. After all, the EU had de­ manded a number of changes in Ukrai­ nian economic and political policy, and the Yanukovich government righteous­ ly refused.

The most odious part of the agree­ ment was a loan from the EU, contin­ gent upon meeting various demands of the International Monetary Fund. Among its demands was a restructur­ ing of its economy by currency devalua­ tion, government austerity, the freezing of wages, and a rise in oil and natural gas prices.

In short, it was more “bitter medicine” to a country that is already experienc­ ing economic and social contraction. This economic issue was to temporar­ ily take the back seat as the government continued to make missteps.

The latest round of protests is a re­ sponse to “anti-protest” laws that were people mobilizing in the streets!

But one must ask the crucial question for any protest movement: who are its actors and principal instigators? And who is actually attending these pro­ tests?

While it is impossible to know the ex­ act class composition of these protests, we can make an educated guess given the attendance of certain parties. Oil and gas magnate and billionaire Evge­ nia Tymoshenko, father of jailed former Prime Minister Yulya Tymoshenko, far-right groups, patriarchs of the Orthodox church, and Ukraine’s neo-Nazi Svodo­ ba (Freedom) Party were present.

In later protests, John McCain, that rejected and forgotten pariah of the Re­ publican Party, was present to deliver his message, “We are here to support your just cause, the sovereign right of Ukraine to determine its own destiny freely and independently.” Never mind that the Yanukovich government was elected in free elections, and determin­ ing its economic policy is well within its mandate; such hypocrisies clearly don’t bother the agents of imperialism. Cam­ eo appearances aside, the leading po­ litical groups in the protest movement clearly point to a reactionary character.

However, we can also assume that given the sheer amount of protesters, the working class is certainly repre­ sented. The right wing is exploiting working-class anger, which is often the case in economically depressed areas. The Ukraine is one of Europe’s poorest countries and has all the accompanying social indices, such as high infant mor­ tality rate.

Furthermore, due to ongoing budget crises, the Ukrainian government can­ celed unemployment benefits in June 2013. The resulting social morass is definitely a cause for concern and well worth protesting. Moreover, the history of fascism teaches us that when there is a lack of revolutionary leadership dur­ ing social upheaval, reactionary groups happily fill the void and exploit the working class.

Although the Ukrainian government initially accepted an economic lifeline from Russia to the tune of $15 billion and an agreement to cut the price of natural gas, the Russian government has since suspended their agreement until the Ukraine is able to convene a new parliament. In other words, it wants to make sure it has a government that will continue to be preferential to the Kremlin.

Whether the pro-EU or pro-Russian wings of the bourgeois class come to the fore in Ukraine, the subjugation of the working class will continue. The choice at this point essentially boils down to either a government that will sell out to Russian oligarchs or one that will sell out to EU oligarchs; both are worthless for the working class. The Ukrainian working class needs organi­ zations that represent it independently of its own national bourgeoisie and EU and Russian influence. n