#37|Sep09|2010

Hryvnia worries

На крок ближче до тебе –

новини on-line

.ua

Only two years after the global economic crisis knocked nearly 40 percent off the value of the Ukrainian hryvnia, the national currency is again weakening slightly against the dollar. It closed at 7.92 against the dollar on Sept. 9.

See story on page 8.

українською та російською

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vol. 15, issue 37

September 10, 2010

Billion-dollar Conflicts

“... a sizable share of the money will go directly to Yanukovych.”

– Yulia Tymoshenko, ex-prime minister

Ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko may be fading in popularity, but she remains one of the few politicians to openly denounce conflicts of interest between top officials of President Viktor Yanukovych’s administration and RosUkrEnergo, the shadowy gas trader jointly owned by Russia’s Gazprom and Ukrainian businessmen.

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Ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko this week charged top members of President Viktor Yanukovych’s administration with large-scale corruption and conflicts of interest in the natural gas trade.

Tymoshenko, speaking to foreign diplomats on Sept. 6, repeated accusations she made while in power during two terms as the nation’s prime minister.

But she added a new wrinkle by imploring nations and governments that lend Ukraine money – such as through the International Monetary Fund – to stop being complicit in schemes that effectively fleece the nation’s 46 million citizens.

The immediate flashpoint is more

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From left, Energy Minister Yuriy Boyko, presidential administration head Serhiy Lyovochkin, State Security Service of Ukraine head Valeriy Khoroshkovsky and RosUkrEnergo part-owner Dmytro Firtash. Ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, repeating accusations she made while in power, alleged on Sept. 6 that all four men are business associates in either the gas trade or in media holdings, making it a massive conflict of interest for these government officials to be involved in decisions that could transfer $5 billion worth of the state's natural gas supplies back to RosUkrEnergo, 45 percent owned by Firtash.

than 11 billion cubic meters of disputed natural gas – worth at least $5 billion.

The government may be forced to return the bounty to RosUkrEnergo, the shadowy gas-trading intermediary that is jointly owned by Ukrainian businessmen and Russia’s state-run Gazprom.

Tymoshenko cut RosUkrEnergo out of the lucrative trade before she lost the presidential election in February and, subsequently, the prime minister’s post in March. She alleges that Dmytro Firtash, part-owner of RosUkrEnergo, is the de facto financial sponsor of her political rival, Yanukovych, and his ruling Party of Regions that controls parliament. Party leadership and Firtash deny he backs the Party of Regions financially.

Now, seven months into Yanukovych’s term, Tymoshenko zeroed in on Firtash’s alleged business ties with top administration officials – the same ones who play key roles in the ultimate fate of the disputed 11 billion cubic

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Æ “She says an awful lot, and as life shows, not everything she says corresponds to reality.”

– Yanukovych aide Serhiy Lyovochkin

meters of natural gas.

With prosecutorial zeal, Tymoshenko accused Fuel and Energy Minister Yuriy Boyko, presidential administration chief Serhiy Lyovochkin and the enforcer in the bunch, State Security Service head Valeriy Khoroshkovsky, of being in cahoots with Firtash.

Boyko, Lyovochkin and Khoroshkovsky have denied connections to Firtash’s RosUkrEnergo, while Khoroshkovsky says there is nothing improper in his shared media interests with Firtash, including the Inter TV

channel – the nation’s most powerful and most-watched media outlet.

“RosUkrEnergo, when it was being formed, had current Fuel and Energy Minister Boyko as a signatory of its formation. All of this was submitted to a special investigative commission of parliament,” Tymoshenko said, laying out her case. “Thus, Boyko, in effect, who today heads the Ministry of Fuel and Energy and state-owned [energy holding] Naftogaz, is part and parcel of this system and is a direct partner of RosUkrEnergo. He is a co-founder

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of RosUkrEnergo. There are original documents proving this.”

Then she drew Khoroshkovsky into the picture.

“Also a partner of RosUkrEnergo is the current State Security Service chief, Valery Khoroshkovsky, who is a partner of Inter TV channel. In addition, in recent times current presidential chief of staff Lyovochkin has been a business partner of RosUkrEnergo. This is an obvious fact, which today doesn’t elicit any protest.”

The web of insider dealing and conflicts of interest is coming at the expense of average Ukrainians, Tymoshenko charged. She urged foreign diplomats not to be complicit in sleaze. The IMF, for instance, supported by governments internationally has recently approved a $15.2 billion loan to Ukraine.

“Therefore we will in the near future ask the IMF to send a special commission, which could look into the situation regarding RosUkrEnergo,” Tymoshenko said. “Because a part of the Æ11

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September 10, 2010

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Tomorrow’s News

Georgiy Gongadze: One murder, 10 years of injustice Human rights organizations and journalists will gather in Kyiv to raise the issue of murders and disappearances of journalists in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia at a conference titled, “10 Years On – No Justice for Georgiy Gongadze: The Need to Find New Ways to Fight Impunity.”

The Sept. 16 conference marks the 10th anniversary of the disappearance and murder of the muckraking Ukrainian journalist, who launched the Ukrainska Pravda online news site.

Gongadze exposed high-level corruption in the authoritarian regime of former President Leonid Kuchma, who is implicated on secretly recorded audiotapes plotting to silence Gongadze.

Kuchma denies any involvement.

The event will also honor other journalists from Belarus, Russia and Ukraine killed for their profession.

Those include the 2006 murder of Anna Politkovskaya in Russia and the 2000 disappearance of Dmitriy Zavadsky in Belarus.

The Aug. 11 disappearance and

presumed death of Kharkiv editor Vasyl Klymentiev, is the most recent case that has raised alarm bells of a renewed clampdown on media freedom in Ukraine. The chief editor and publisher of Novy Styl newspaper, Klymentiev often reported on public corruption in Kharkiv’s judiciary and law enforcement circles. Ukrainian Interior Minister Anatoliy Mohyliov, the nation’s top cop, speculated Klymentiev may have been killed by local Kharkiv police.

In Belarus, a prominent oppositionist journalist, Oleg Bebenin, was found hanged on Sept. 3 in his apartment.

Belarus’ opposition leaders rejected the police version of suicide, saying the journalist had no reason to kill himself.

The conference also comes against the backdrop of two highly critical international reports on press freedom in Ukraine. France-based Reporters without Borders and U.S.-based Freedom House have in recent weeks expressed concern over “a growing

Sept. 16

People light candles to commemorate the murder of Kyiv journalist Georgiy Gongadze and others on Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) on Sept. 6, 2009. (UNIAN)

crackdown on press freedom.”

Invited conference speakers will address issues linked to the protection of journalists, including – but not limited to – violence as a means of controlling the media, the lack of effective government intervention, and the resultant chilling effect on the media environment.

The conference is being co-sponsored by the London-based human rights

organization Article 19 – named after the article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees free speech – and International Media Support, a Danish non-profit working with media in countries affected by armed conflict, human insecurity and political transition.

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Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (R) and Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych prepare to drive a GAZ-M20 Pobeda car at Dmitry Medvedev’s residence in Gorki, near Moscow, on April 5. (Andriy Mosienko)

Presidents to meet at border for car rally The presidents of Ukraine and Russia will see who is faster when they take part in a friendly car rally to mark 100 years since the St. Petersburg-Odesa car race took place.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will meet on the Ukrainian side of their countries’ border in Shostka, Sumy Oblast, according to Russian and Ukrainian officials.

From there, they will drive across the border in antique cars. The leaders will then move on for a meeting in a Moscow suburb.

The two presidents last met in July at an informal Commonwealth of Independent States summit in the city of Yalta on Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.

Officials in both countries declined to provide more details into their gentlemen’s car race.

Car rides are not uncommon for Russia’s heads of state. In 2005, then – President Vladimir Putin let U.S. President George W. Bush take him for a spin in a 1956 Volga car after their meeting in Putin’s residence in Novo Ogarevo outside Moscow.

Compiled by Mark Rachkevych

Autumn session starts in parliament with many controversies, fights Opposition lawmakers lay out banners protesting gas price rises during a ceremony opening parliament’s new session in Kyiv on Sept.

7. The opposition also protested outside the parliament building against what they view as President Viktor Yanukovych’s anti-Ukrainian policies. Despite the protests, Yanukovych’s governing coalition swiftly adopted a number of laws, including amendments that abolished district councils in Kyiv. Opposition members claim the law, if signed by the president, is a non-democratic attempt by Yanukovych's party to preserve its power grip over the capital. Kyiv city council on Sept. 9 cancelled elections to district councils, which had been slated for Oct. 31. The decision means that the city's districts will now be run by the president’s representatives. (AFP)

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September 10, 2010 Advertisement

European Business Association News

*O 'PDVT

,EADERS 4ALK

Leaders Talk: Industry Focus - Security

7

HEN INVESTING IN BUSINESS ACTIVITIES AND ASSETS COMPANIES THE WORLD OVER MUST CONSIDER HOW THEY CAN BEST PROTECT THEIR INVESTMENTS AND HOW TO GUARANTEE THE SECURITY OF ASSETS &OR FOREIGN COMPANIES INVESTING ABROAD ESPECIALLY IN COUNTRIES SUCH AS 5KRAINE THESE ISSUES ARE OFTEN MORE SIGNIFICANT AND MORE STRESSFUL BECAUSE THE INVESTOR IS NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE SECURITY SITUATION NOT AWARE OF THE NATURE OF THE THREATS THEY FACE AND DO NOT HAVE EXPERIENCE OF THE LOCAL LEGAL SYSTEM 4HIS WEEK THE %"! SPOKE TO TWO MEMBER COMPANIES TO DISCUSS THIS TOPIC &IRST $R #HRISTOF 2HEINBAY 0RESIDENT OF SECURITY FIRM !2'53 ,TD EXPLAINS A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SECURITY INDUSTRY IN 5KRAINE AND THE SERVICES THEY ARE EMPLOYED TO PROVIDE AND FOLLOWING THIS /LEH -ALSKYY OF !STAPOV ,AWYERS DISCUSSES RISK THE 5KRAINIAN LEGAL SYSTEM AND THE BENEFITS OF HAVING RELIABLE LOCAL PARTNERS

$2 #(2)34/& 2HEINBAY

0RESIDENT !2'53 ,TD

9ES 0HYSICAL ATTACKS ON PEOPLE HAPPEN MUCH LESS

BUT ROBBERY AND THEFT HAPPEN MUCH MORE OFTEN

/,%( -ALSKYY

0ARTNER !STAPOV,AWYERS

7HAT CRIMES ARE FOREIGN BUSINESSES MOST EXPOSED TO -OST FOREIGN BUSINESSES ARE EXPOSED TO CRIMES WHICH ARE RELATED TO UNFAIR DEALING BY THEIR 5KRAINIAN PARTNERS )N THIS CASE A LOT OF FOREIGN BUSINESSES RELY ON PURE BUSINESS JUDGMENT WITHOUT THE HELP OF ANY EXTERNAL ADVISERS (OWEVER THERE HAVE BEEN QUITE A LOT OF CASES WHERE START UPS HAVE INVESTED A HUGE AMOUNT OF MONEY AND TRUSTED THEIR LOCAL DIRECTOR WITHOUT PROPER FINANCIAL CONTROL AND WITHOUT EFFECT ING MONITORING )N THE END THIS CAUSES QUITE A SUB STANTIAL EXPOSURE TO LOCAL RISKS (OW CAN COMPANIES AND INDIVIDUAL INVESTORlS BEST PROTECT THEIR ASSETS IN 5KRAINE

7HAT SECURITY CONCERNS DO FOREIGN INVESTORS ) BELIEVE THAT FOREIGN INVESTORS MAY BE BEST PRO HAVE IN 5KRAINE TECTED IN 5KRAINE WHEN THEY HAVE A CLEAR ROADMAP )NVESTORS ARE MOST INTERESTED IN ENSURING THAT OR A LOCAL GUIDE TO HELP THEM THROUGH MANY PECULIARI THEIR INVESTMENT IS SAFE THAT 2EAL %STATE IS LEGALLY TIES OF THE SYSTEM !LSO FOREIGN INVESTORS SHOULD HAVE REGISTERED AND OWNERSHIP IS GUARANTEED AND THAT ADEQUATE AND REASONABLE APPROACH TO RISK OF DOING THEY HAVE ALL THE LICENCES REQUIRED TO START BUSINESS BUSINESS IN 5KRAINE )F THE EXPECTATIONS ARE CORRE IN TIME 7HEN A BUSINESS IS ALREADY IN OPERATION SPONDENT TO THE SITUATION ) BELIEVE THEY CAN MAKE A WE MUST FIRST CARE FOR THE SAFETY OF THE STAFF PREM FAIR BUSINESS JUDGMENT ISES AND INVENTORY 4HE PREVENTION OF ROBBERY AND (OW HAS THE SECURITY SITUATION CHANGED IN THEFT IS A VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR OUR CLIENTS 5KRAINE OVER THE LAST YEARS $OES THIS DIFFER FROM OTHER PARTS OF %UROPE -Y CLIENTS TELL ME THAT ROBBERY AND THEFT IS A MUCH BIGGER CONCERN FOR THEM IN 5KRAINE THAN IN THEIR HOME COUNTRIES !LSO THEFT AND FRAUD WHICH IS COMMITTED BY STAFF IS ALSO MORE COMMON 4HEREFORE WE OFTEN HAVE TO INVESTIGATE THEFT AND FRAUD 7HAT ARE THE MOST COMMON SECURITY SERVICES THAT FOREIGN INVESTORS REQUEST !S INVESTORS ARE FIRST AND FOREMOST CONCERNED WITH THE PHYSICAL SAFETY OF THEIR STAFF AND INVEST MENTS WE HAVE TO PROVIDE THE MANNED GUARDING OF OFFICE PREMISES FACTORIES AND WAREHOUSES AND OF THEIR INVENTORIES 7E ALSO PROVIDE ALARM SYSTEMS FOR BUILDINGS AND APARTMENTS AND PATROL THE SITES (AS THE SECURITY SITUATION FOR COMPANIES IN 5KRAINE CHANGED OVER THE PAST YEARS

4HE SECURITY SITUATION HAS CHANGED SUBSTANTIALLY OVER THE FIVE YEARS AND ) BELIEVE THERE HAVE BEEN QUITE A LOT OF INNOVATIONS IN THE CORPORATE GOVER NANCE )T HAS BECOME MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO TAKE OVER THE COMPANY WITHOUT THE WILL OF OTHER SHARE HOLDERS AND THE BUSINESS CLIMATE HAS IMPROVED (OWEVER THE GOVERNMENT COULD DO MUCH MORE TO IMPROVE SECURITY ESPECIALLY RELATED TO LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANIES WHICH ARE THE MAJORITY ENTI TIES IN 5KRAINE #URRENTLY MOST CHANGES RELATE TO JOINT STOCK COMPANIES ) BELIEVE THERE IS ALSO SPACE FOR INSTITUTE OF INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS WHO WILL BE NON EXECUTIVE WATCH DOGS OF COMPLIANCE AND OTHER ISSUES 7E ARE ALSO SEEING A GREATER INFLU ENCE OF FOREIGN !CTS SUCH AS THE &OREIGN #ORRUPT ACT IN THE 53! AND THE SOON TO BE IMPLEMENTED 5+ "RIBERY !CT

4HINGS TO KNOW EU publishes a Ukrainian guide to the Lisbon Treaty The Delegation of the European Union to Ukraine recently published a guide to the Lisbon Treaty in Ukrainian. This brochure aims to explain (in a userfriendly way) the major innovations and structural changes which were made to the EU with the adoption of the Lisbon treaty last year.

It explains: • The reasons why the new Treaty was needed • Institutional changes, including the new competences of various EU institutions • Modifications and changes to the most important policies (social, foreign, economic, trade, justice, fight against crime, human rights) • The new institutional setup of EU-Ukraine relations.

The brochure can be downloaded for free from the delegation website: http://ec.europa.eu/delegations/ukraine/

Moldovan Referendum Fails to Break Political Gridlock

A referendum held in Moldova on 5 September has failed to break the political impasse which has burdened the country since elections last year.

The final turnout is not expected to reach 33.34%

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which is the percentage required to to make the referendum valid.

The outcome was a blow for the Liberal Westleaning Alliance for European Integration, which had hoped that the referendum would end the current political paralysis. In this sense it is a triumph for the opposition Communists, who had called for a boycott of the vote.

Opinion surveys had predicted a vote in favour of ditching the present system, under which the head of state is elected by parliament, but ex-president Vladimir Voronin, who leads the Communists, made a powerful appeal on the eve of the poll for people to stay at home, and voting appeared to be very sluggish from the start. Moldova has had no fulltime president for 18 months, with the Alliance unable to muster enough parliamentary votes to install a head of state.

The Alliance says this has held up reforms that are urgently needed to bring the ex-Soviet state, one of Europe's poorest, into the mainstream. It had promised direct elections for president and parliament on 14 November if the referendum succeeded.

The average income is about $270 per month and more than 430,000 Moldovans work abroad to support families back home. The EU says Moldova needs major reforms to qualify to join the bloc.

Source: EuroActiv

Draft Tax Code Could Damage Dairy Production 4IPVME UIF QSPQPTFE %SBGU 5BY $PEF CF BEPQUFE DIBOHFT UP UIF FYJTUJOH TZTUFN PG NJML TVCTJEJFT DPVME TFSJPVT EJTBEWBOUBHF EBJSZ GBSNFST 4JODF UIF FOE PG UIFSF IBWF CFFO TFWFSBM MFH† JTMBUJWF JOJUJBUJWFT UP DIBOHF UIF DVSSFOU NJML TVCTJEJFT TZTUFN UP B OFX TZTUFN XIJDI DIBOOFMT GVOET UISPVHI B OFX TQFDJBM TUBUF GVOE $VSSFOUMZ VOUJM +BOVBSZ QSPEVDFST SFDFJWF UIFJS TVCTJEJFT EJSFDUMZ GSPN QSPDFTTPST XIP JO UVSO EFEVDU UIF BNPVOU GSPN UIFJS 7"5 CJMM )PXFWFS UIJT QSPDFTT XPVME CF TVTQFOEFE JG UIF -BX PO 4UBUF #VEHFU PG 6LSBJOF EFDJEFT UP DSFBUF B TQFDJBM #VEHFU 'VOE *G UIJT IBQQFOT 7"5 XJMM CF QBJE UP UIJT GVOE BOE UIFO SF†EJTUSJCVUFE BT TVCTJEJFT JO UIF GPMMPXJOH QSPQPSUJPOT QFSDFOU XPVME CF BMMPDBUFE BT B TVQQMFNFOU QFS DPX BOE QFSDFOU XPVME CF BMMPDBUFE GPS UIF DPOTUSVDUJPO BOE SFDPOTUSVDUJPO PG MJWFTUPDL GBSNT JOGSBTUSVDUVSF BOE DPNQMFYFT 4IPVME UIF TZTUFN CF BEPQUFE JNNFEJBUFMZ UIJT DPVME MFBE UP B OVNCFS PG OFHBUJWF PVUDPNFT 5IFTF Natalia Fesyun, External Relations Director at Bel Ukraine “In Ukraine the production of milk is falling swiftly, and quality is a big issue. This is the basic argument for making changes to the mechanism of subsidy payments. However, the NATALIA Fesyun new law would mean that total subsidy payments for milk producers would come from a special budgetary fund, would be paid once per quarter and, it would be calculated per head of cattle. Whilst now, subsidies are paid directly to real milk suppliers, who deliver milk to the processing plants, if the new system is introduced, from the New Year, milk subsidies could be directed to all cattle owners, regardless of whether they have produced milk, or not.

Unfortunately, the Ukrainian cow registry is also incomplete, so we are not even sure that all real cow owners would receive their subsidy. It is also unclear how "Babushkas" would receive their money. Would they need to go somewhere to obtain their payments? Or must they open bank accounts?

The new scheme is still very "raw" and would create space for corruption. It could lead to price increases for finished products and it may further reduce the number of milk cattle in the country.�

Dario Marchetti, General director of Danone Ukraine “The current VAT-based system works well for three main reasons; firstly, it encourages the production of high-quality milk (It is more competitive). Secondly, by reducing prices it helps DARIO Marchetti producers to maintain their export competitiveness, and finally it removes (or certainly reduces) the possibility of corruption.

It does so because subsidy payments are returned to producers from deductions that are made to the final VAT bill of processors. Under-declaring sales would simply reduce the subsidy, whilst over-declaring would increase VAT your VAT bill. In this sense, in terms of cheating and corruption - it is a safe system.

Switching to the proposed new system would mean that funds are administered via a special state fund and paid per cow. This introduces the risk that funds could be misused, that cattle numbers could be overdeclared or that subsidies are claimed before cattle are then sold. In short, there is no incentive to maintain the quality and quantity of milk produced. Further more, 80% of production comes from small local producers and many of these will be unable to claim as they have limited or no access to bank accounts. It may seem like a short-term way to reduce the government’s budget deficit however, damaging exports will reduce tax revenue and it will not help Ukraine to reduce its milk deficit.

By keeping the existing system, the government would help farmers and producers to remain competitive until the sector becomes more attractive to investors. “

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2%')/.!,.EWS Lviv Regional Tax Administration meets EBA Members

On 7 September 2010 representatives of the EBA’s Western Ukrainian Branch met with acting Head of the Lviv State Tax Administration, Mr Vitaliy Pekarchuk. Mr. Pekarchuk attended with Head of the Lviv Oblast Supervising State Tax Administration, Mr Olexander Yurystovskyy and Head of the Oblast Profit Department, Mr Vasyl Kresyak.

The informal meeting gave EBA members a chance to meet the Tax Administration and to discuss business issues.

Talking at the meeting, Mr. Pekarchuk said that the government is doing its utmost to launch the new system of automatic VAT refunding as soon as possible and that the Tax Administration is working hard to ensure that all declared and authorized VAT amounts were refunded. VAT will firstly be refunded to those companies engaged in export. Questions on the scope and nature of changes proposed under the Draft Tax Code were also discussed and Mr Pekarchuk was keen to stress that the document is still under construction.

At the end of the meeting Mr.Pekarchuk once again assured that the Tax Administration is ready to cooperate with business representatives and ensured that companies can count on their support. He also gave details of the local hotline (tel: 297 39 56) which businesses can call to report misconduct by representatives of the Tax Administration.

EU Launches Regional Project on Waste Governance

On Monday, 6 September 2010, an EU-funded regional project aimed at improving waste governance within the eastern countries of the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI East) formally launched its project activities in Ukraine’s pilot region – Zakarpattya Oblast.

The project called “Waste Governance – ENPI East� aims to assist the partner countries in their efforts to reduce the risks arising from inappropriate management of waste, that thereby create environmental pollution hazards to the community and to natural resources, through co-operation with, and amongst, partner states in the region.

This ambitious four-year project (EUR 5.9 million) is an important component of the EU’s ENPI Eastern Regional Indicative Programme (2007-2010) and will be implemented in all countries of the ENPI Eastern Region, namely: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine as well as the Russian Federation.

The specific objective is to improve the management of waste by promoting higher standards at waste facilities, more effective waste prevention initiatives, increased capacities for waste collection and sorting as well as increasing re-use, recovery, and safe disposal of waste. From the perspective of its activities within Zakarpattya Oblast, its intended results are: • Completed inventories of existing illegal/non-compliant waste disposal sites within the Oblast; • A 15-year, integrated, waste management strategy for Zakarpattya Oblast.

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Editorials

Barbaric nation Don’t do the crime if you can’t serve the time is a simple warning that works in civilized countries, but not in Ukraine. Here, you can be innocent and still spend up to 18 months of your life in prison.

Even now, nearly 20 years into independence, Ukraine has preserved the medieval barbarism also prevalent during the 70 years of Soviet rule, a place where human lives mattered little. Suspects can sit for months in jail before a trial. The law also permits that, “in cases involving exceptionally grave offenses, the prosecutor general may petition a judge of the Supreme Court to extend the period of detention up to 18 months.”

These provisions are being abused in President Viktor Yanukovych’s sham “crackdown” on corruption. Truth in labeling requires this to be called what it is – persecution of political enemies. The administration has no intention of ending corruption or investigating wrongdoing since so many of its supporters are implicated in some of the nation’s worst crimes.

But it’s OK to go after people who served in ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s government. Four former top-level officials are in pre-trial detention while their activitives are investigated. They include Anatoliy Makarenko, former head of the state customs service; Ihor Didenko, former deputy head of state-owned energy monopoly Naftogaz; Tetiana Hrytsun, first deputy head of the State Treasury; and former acting Defense Minister Valeriy Ivashchenko.

Former Economy Minister Bohdan Danylyshyn, who vanished from public view after a warrant was issued last month for his arrest on corruption charges, could become the fifth. Former State Treasurer Tetiana Sliuz, currently on the run, could be the sixth, and so the list goes on.

If these people committed crimes, hey should be speedily prosecuted in a fair, public trial. Until then, they should be freed on bail if they are not a flight risk. This never happens in Ukraine. During the decade of authoritarian President Leonid Kuchma, politicized law enforcers abused pre-trial detention to crush business competitors, extract bribes, obtain worthless confessions and, in general, teach political enemies a lesson.

One of the best documented cases involved Sloviansky Bank boss Borys Feldman in 2000. Secretly recorded conversations – the so-called “Mykola Melnychenko tapes” made by Kuchma’s former bodyguard – allegedly show Kuchma and now Prime Minister Mykola Azarov, then head of the tax administration, arranging Feldman’s conviction on trumped-up charges. That cost Feldman 18 months of his freedom.

Of the 145,715 people behind bars as of Jan. 1 in Ukraine, 34,148 were being held in pre-trial detention, according to the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union. Most of them deserve to be free on bail pending trial. Let us hope that the civilized world finds its voice and loudly protests this inhumanity and injustice that ruins lives every day.

Dead dissident Hundreds attended the funeral of Belarusian media activist Oleg Bebenin in Minsk on Sept. 6. The co-founder of the opposition Internet portal, Charter97.org, was found hanged at his summer house outside of the capital. Should government officials be implicated in his murder, the implications could be immense. Bebenin is not the first dissident to have died under mysterious circumstances during the reign of President Alexander Lukashenko, now in his 16th year of tyranny as the megalomaniacal rule of Ukraine’s neighbor with 10 million people. Until Lukashenko is ousted from power, Bebenin won’t be the last.

Bebenin was not well known. Andrei Sannikov, a former foreign minister, does not believe Bebenin committed suicide. The 36-year-old father of two children established himself as an editor of the Minsk-based Imya newspaper, a witty and irreverent tabloid known for biting political commentary. The newspaper was forced to close after Lukashenko established a dictatorship.

Bebenin turned to the Internet to publicize the opposition and the plight of the regime’s victims, including prominent Lukashenko critics who went missing in 1999 and 2000. “[Bebenin] helped us to survive, to become stronger and fight for the truth. We have done a lot together, but we have not finished what we have started. We know that the truth will be revealed, and justice will be administered when the current regime falls. Oleg is no longer with us – and now it’s our turn to fight for the truth about his death,” widows of two missing opposition leaders, Irina Krasovskaya and Svetlana Zavadskaya, wrote on Sept. 8.

Kremlin leaders may even have had enough of the ghastly Lukashenko show.

Russian state-controlled television stations – silent about the murders of Russian journalists – have reported extensively about Bebenin’s death. The mystery provides an opportunity for everyone to reflect on the evil person who runs Belarus and to start talking about ways to help Belarusians dismantle the last dictatorship in Europe.

Mohammad Zahoor, Publisher Jim Phillipoff, Chief Executive Officer Brian Bonner, Chief Editor Deputy Chief Editors: Andrey Chernikov, Roman Olearchyk Editors: Alexey Bondarev, Katya Gorchinskaya, Valeriya Kolisnyk, James Marson, Yuliya Popova Staff Writers: Tetyana Boychenko, Peter Byrne, Oksana Faryna, Natalia A. Feduschak, Olga Gnativ, Kateryna Grushenko, Nataliya Horban, John Marone, Olesia Oleshko, Yura Onyshkiv, Iryna Prymachyk, Mark Rachkevych, Nataliya Solovonyuk, Graham Stack, Maria Shamota, Svitlana Tuchynska Photographer: Oleksiy Boyko. Photo Editor: Yaroslav Debelyi Chief Designer: Vladyslav Zakharenko. Designer: Angela Palchevskaya Marketing: Iuliia Lysa Web Project: Nikolay Polovinkin, Yuri Voronkov Sales department: Yuriy Timonin, Yulia Kovalenko, Maria Kozachenko, Elena Symonenko, Sergiy Volobayev Nataliia Protasova, Subscription Manager Svitlana Kolesnykova, Newsroom Manager Anastasia Forina, Office Manager

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“I’ve just been to see Lenin. He’s OK. The old man will hang on yet, at least through my next presidency.”

NEWS ITEM: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Sept. 6 that there should be no rush to remove Vladimir Lenin from his Red Square mausoleum, where the Soviet leader’s embalmed body has lain since his death in 1924. “There is a time for everything. A day comes, and the Russian people will decide how to deal with it,” Putin told a meeting of foreign journalists and Russia experts. “History is such a thing... you don't need to rush.” He also hinted that he is prepared to run for president in 2012, after serving from 2000 to 2008.

Everything depends on Ukrainians, but West can still help ROMA N D. MAC

There is an old Ukrainian saying that goes something like this: “He who is not strong at 20, married at 30 and rich at 40 is a complete fool.”

Well, in just one more year, Ukraine will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of its independence, its 20th birthday as a truly sovereign state. How strong will Ukraine be at 20?

Will it approach 30 firmly wedded to the democratic values that inspired the Orange Revolution and can drive European integration? And, as it approaches 40, will Ukraine finally and fully realize the potential richness of its fertile land and worthy people?

Of course, it is too early to answer any of these questions for sure. Human rights, democratic institutions and economic reform are all works in progress. But, like 1990, when the first documents of independence were drafted, and 1991, when independence was ratified by more than 90 percent of Ukrainians in a referendum, 2010 has been an important and unique year in Ukrainian history.

For one thing, the whole world acknowledged that last February’s presidential election was truly free and democratic. That alone was a great achievement.

But although a divided nation narrowly elected Viktor

Æ If American foreign policy begins to practice what it has so long preached, the pendulum of change can swing in positive direction Yanukovych its president, the government he leads is not, in President Lincoln’s words, “by the people for the people.” Without consulting parliament and the broad spectrum of Ukrainian community leaders, Yanukovych signed with Russia a treaty that many Ukrainian lawmakers consider to be unconstitutional. The controversial tradeoff extended the stay of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet for many years to come in return for a short-term dis- Æ16

Feel strongly about an issue? Agree or disagree with editorial positions in this newspaper?

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September 10, 2010

For only good ‘news,’ tune in to national TV German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych during their news conference in Berlin on Aug. 30. (AP) HA LYA C OY N A S H

Everything was fine in Ukraine last week – nothing but good news.

If you don’t believe me, or if you have a different opinion, maybe you should watch First National TV Channel, known as UT-1. The taxpayer-financed station thinks everything is falling in place – the country is in safe hands and moving in the right direction. Sleep easy, worrywarts! Drop that negativity, pessimists!

No clouds marred the station’s report on President Viktor Yanukovych’s visit to Germany on Aug. 30.

“The European – Ukraine Association Agreement [which could bring the nation closer to European Union membership] should be signed in the near future,” a report on Yanukovych's meeting in Berlin with German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

It’s not clear why the reporter is so certain. The lyricism regarding their “friendly handshake” and how the chancellor “personally checks that the honor guard is ready to greet the high-ranking guest” is somewhat embarrassing.

It would be understandable if all these sweet and positive comments were made through the president’s website – this is what it’s there for.

But actually, we are dealing with the news on the First National TV channel, which is there to inform the public of important events in the country and abroad. Whatever other roles it may be performing, it abysmally fails at this task.

The headline from one of the world’s biggest information agencies, Associated Press, said it all: “Germany’s Merkel voices concerns over media freedom in Ukraine at president Yanukovych’s visit.”

The chancellor, we are told, urged Yanukovych to strengthen media freedoms in the country and spoke of Germany’s interest in a continuation of democratic processes. They apparently had a very open discussion on the subject.

Are we to assume that UT-1 simply decided that this theme was of no interest? Well, not quite.

The subject was not ignored. It was covered differently: “The issues ranged from energy security, joint innovative projects, an increase in trade between the countries and to the processes of democratization in Ukraine.”

I have to especially stress that this news item came from the national channel, financed by supporters of various political forces, believers of different faiths, etc. But it was this channel that saw fit to mislead

Æ Everything is beautiful – especially with government – on First National TV viewers, for example, by failing to mention the appeal by Germany’s Reporters without Borders, a free-speech watchdog, to Merkel to raise the issue of threats to freedom of speech with Ukraine’s president.

It was just as silent over the damning report published by Reporters without Borders on Sept. 1 with an equally telling title: “Temptation to control.”

Silence was extended to the court ruling on Aug. 30 by the Kyiv Administrative Court of Appeals, which upheld the cancellation of the results of the January tender for frequencies and declared the subsequent licences of Channel 5 and TVi invalid. This is entirely logical if you follow the logic of UT-1’s deputy

director, Walid Harfouche, who believes the channel must only speak positively of the regime.

So, it’s no surprise that the channel goes mute when confronted with the extraordinarily negative consequences of this civil case where the plaintiffs are part of Ukraine’s largest media holding, owned by Valery Khoroshkovsky, who is also head of the State Security Service and a member of the High Council of Justice, with direct influence on the appointment and dismissal of judges.

Quite possibly, Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and other world leaders sometimes dream of a blissful day when the press will lay off or write only glowing praise about their actions.

They remain, however dreams. Most leaders know this is the price of being in power. The Ukrainian authorities who react to critical comments by hushing them up should follow suit.

What can be said about a TV station’s management with a policy of blanket avoidance regarding subjects inconvenient to those in power?

Given Yanukovych’s words about the wish of the Ukrainian people “to do everything to become part of a common European great family,” warnings from Reporters Without Borders should be mentioned.

After the attempt in June, initiated by the State Security Service, to briefly prevent Nico Lange, director of the Kyiv office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, from entering Ukraine, it was easy to predict that Merkel would raise inconvenient Æ16

In Sevastopol, citizens get caught up in divisive Ukraine, Russia politics DA N P E L E S C H U K

SEVASTOPOL, Ukraine – It is perhaps Ukraine’s most politicized and controversial city.

Since Ukraine achieved its independence in 1991, Sevastopol has been a flashpoint for identity politics and geopolitical wrangling between Russia and Ukraine – occasionally involving the West – over the basing of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet and ownership rights over the city.

Often painted as a place rife with toxic ethnic animosity between its majority Russian and minority Ukrainian populations, it also remains at the helm of disputes between Moscow and Kyiv over historical memory and just how close Russians and Ukrainians should be. The scene is often the same: Russian

Æ Language issue not as polarizing as politicians, media think officials contend that both nationalities come from the same pot and should thus entitle Russia to its privileges in Sevastopol – and elsewhere in Ukraine – while Ukrainian officials retort that Ukraine’s independence presupposes its control over all of its current territory, including Sevastopol.

But while officials exchange jabs and leverage Sevastopol to meet their own electoral needs, it’s the ordinary people who become caught up in the

politics. While many indeed harbor pro-Russian sympathies, they say the issue is too often harped upon, causing conflict where there shouldn’t necessarily be.

“In my opinion, it’s a Russian city – history points to that,” said Nona Konstantinova, a 63-year-old ethnic Russian. “Russians and Ukrainians are one people, and so we should live in harmony. But I’m not a fanatic. Others may feel differently, and I accept their opinions. It’s the powers from above that make this an issue and complicate things.”

Sevastopol often finds itself at the heart of thorny regional disputes, among them the recurrent question of separatist threats. According to the 2001 national census, the city is made up of about 71 percent ethnic Russians, and about 22 percent ethnic Ukrainians, among others.

What’s more, the Russian Black Sea Fleet has enjoyed a long and storied history there, which its proponents – among them top Russian officials – make sure to highlight.

Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has been the Æ16

Opinion 5 VOX populi WITH KATERYNA GRUSHENKO

What’s the most prestigious profession in Ukraine?

Oleksiy Magazeba, student “It depends on how high you climb the career ladder in your profession, not which profession you chose. For me, it’s very important that my job brings me a lot of money.

I’m interested in programming and photography.”

Serhiy Vashchenko, student “Divers and astronauts.

What has been left unexplored in this world?

Oceans and space. I major in engineering, because engineers create devices that help to explore the world.”

Tetyana Sushkina, cleaning lady “Teacher.

It’s the most necessary and respected profession.

Many other professions are selfish, but a teacher gives themselves to the students every day.”

Yulia Vladimirova, student “Economists, those who work in the field of international relations and lawyers. But for sure, not teachers and doctors, which are the most necessary professions. Ukraine has many economic problems so we need many economists to solve them.”

Artem Shevtsev, actor “For sure, not acting. In Moscow, my profession has already become very popular, but our businessmen still don’t understand that they can make big money out of it. Politics is a prestigious career path now.”

Vox Populi is not only in print, but also online at kyivpost.com with different questions. If you have a question that you want answered, e-mail the idea to news@kyivpost. com

6 Business

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Kvazar-Micro wants to make global mark

China pledges investments

Kvazar-Micro, a leading Ukrainian information technology company, has rebranded as KM Core. The move was announced at a press conference (above) on Sept. 2 by Yevhen Utkin, president of KM Core (right), and Bohdan Kupych, the company’s vice president (left). Utkin said he wanted to take KM Core from a regional level and create a global holding. KM Core is engaged in information and communications technology, semiconductors and energysaving technology. Utkin said he would invest $100 million in the company by the end of 2011. (ITC Publishing)

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych visits the Expo 2010 exhibition in Shanghai on Sept. 5 during his state visit to China (above). During the visit, the Ukrainian government touted economic ties between the countries. A number of deals were announced, including a $1 billion loan to build a rail link between Kyiv and Boryspil airport, a $700 million investment in a steam-gas power plant in Crimea and the purchase a drilling rig to extract oil and gas on the Black Sea shelf. Read more: http://www.kyivpost.com/news/business/bus_general/detail/80803/#ixzz0ywwF9bnH. (Andriy Mosienko)

ÆOn the move REINIER SCHLATMANN

Send On the Move news to gnativ@kyivpost.com, or contact Olga Gnativ at 234-6500.

Send business photos and press releases to: news@kyivpost.com, or contact the newsroom at 234-6310.

THEODORE KITSOS became

was appointed chief executive officer and chairman of the management board of Philips Ukraine, a part of Royal Philips, an electronics, health and well-being company. Schlatmann will manage company operations across all major Philips business sectors – consumer lifestyle, lighting, health care – and country organization. Ukraine makes up one-fifth of the entire Eastern European market for the company. Schlatmann previously was general manager of consumer lifestyle for Philips in Ukraine and Moldova. Prior to being stationed in Kyiv, Schlatmann was area marketing officer at Philips Nordic/ Baltic and became a chairman of Nordic marketing board. Schlatmann has been with Philips for more than six years. Having joined the company in 2004 as manager global corporate finance, corporate treasury, Schlatmann was directly involved in successful establishment of a pan-Asia strategic partnership for leasing and service for Philips Healthcare in six countries.

Schlatmann graduated from Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University Rotterdam in Netherlands and Wharton Business School, Michigan State University and Indiana University in the United States.

YURIY AVDYSH

vice president of human resources in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, for Unilever, an international consumer goods company.

In his new post, Kitsos is responsible for the implementation of strategy in organizational, talent and corporate culture development. Kitsos came to Kyiv from Unilever’s London headquarters where he worked as vice president of global human resources efficiency.

Kitsos started his career at Unilever in 1992 as a management trainee in the procurement department of Elais S.A., Unilever’s representative office in Greece. In 1997 he was transferred to Unilever’s representative office in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia where he held different posts in the human resources field. From 2003 to 2005 he was vice-president of organizational structure improvement and human resources development at Unilever Bestfoods Europe in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

Kitsos is a graduate of National & Capodistrian University of Athens in Greece.

He also has a master’s of business administration degree in finance and management from Wagner College in New York City.

was appointed commercial director at UVK, a Ukrainian logistics company.

In his new post Avdysh will be responsible for managing existing client relationships and coordinating the sales and marketing departments.

Prior to joining UVK, Avdysh worked for three years at Avis, an international rent a car leasing company.

Avdysh graduated from the Kyiv National University of Trade and Economics.

TATYANA NIKITOVICH was appointed head of Smart Solutions, a recruitment agency operating in Ukraine.

In this position, she will be responsible for the strategic development of the company’s business and staff services including recruitment, out staffing, consulting, staff leasing, payroll and human resources operational activities. She will focus on developing and improving the delivery of up-to-date products and services to the company’s clients.

Nikitovich has over eight years of experience working within the recruitment industry. Prior to joining Smart Solutions, she held the position of executive recruitment consultant providing job placements for industry sector in Hudson Global Resources Ukraine, and before that was a leader of a recruitment team at Addforce.

Nikitovich graduated from Kyiv Taras Shevchenko National University with a master’s degree in biology and obtained her Masters of Business Administration degree from the International Management Institute.

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Business 7

September 10, 2010

Business Sense

Editor’s Note: Business Sense is a feature in which experts explain Ukraine’s place in the world economy and provide insight into doing business in the country. To contribute, contact chief editor Brian Bonner at bonner@kyivpost.com

WITH VOLODYMYR VOROBEY V.VOROBEY@SVB.ORG.UA

Companies catching on to corporate responsibility With Ukrainian businesses maturing and becoming bigger players on a global scale, companies are increasingly aware of the need to manage their non-financial risks. A growing number of Ukrainian companies are starting to manage their corporate social responsibility in a systematic way, addressing issues material to their business. Ukrainian business is following the path that Western (in particular Western European) companies walked just less than ten years ago.

It is a fragile process worth supporting.

The acronym CSR entered the vocabulary of Ukrainian companies some five years ago, either passed down from Western-based headquarters, or brought in locally out of a desire to look like decent corporations by the standards of civilized society. The United Nations Global Compact network in Ukraine – which promotes good corporate ethics – played (and is playing) a pivotal role in raising awareness.

Philanthropic activities were a start, but the notion of social responsibility is migrating closer to the board, away from the corporate public relations departments. Ukrainian corporate social responsibility is, in general, maturing as Ukrainian business matures.

CSR Ukraine Community – a nonprofit organization that promotes the issue in Ukraine – has recently conducted a study of the non-financial reporting in Ukraine, commissioned by the Ukrainian network of United Nations Global Compact. This first-ever study supplied some good insights into the Ukrainian scene.

The ideal report contains information on the issues material for the corporate business, enumerated targets that the company set itself and the progress made to achieve such targets.

Eliminating wasteful industrial practices, shrinking often bloated workforces, establishing partnerships with nongovernmental organizations, increasing salaries, implementing innovation systems, converting to renewable energy, educating consumers, working in partnership with local authorities, extending markets, and tackling corruption can take years, if not decades. No one expects miracles, but effort is what counts. The ability to manage a long-term strategy defines how well a company can manage its own nonfinancial risks.

The Global Reporting Initiative, a de facto global standard in reporting this issues, provides a useful framework of coroporate responsibility issues that

companies could address and report on.

To date, 38 Ukrainian companies have published 55 non-financial reports.

There are only seven Global Reporting Initiative-based reports prepared by five companies. Three are owned

by System Capital Management, the holding company of Rinat Akhmetov, Ukraine’s richest man: energy holding DTEK, steel group Metinvest and System Capital Management itself. The others are Nadra Bank and brewery Obolon.

The first corporate social responsibility report in Ukraine was prepared and published by Akmetov's group in 2005.

It was essentially a collection of responsible business practices. However, System Capital Management's next reports (2007, 2008-2009) included specific indicators, both for the holding and for the individual companies.

Nadra Bank was the first Ukrainian bank to publish Global Reporting Initiative-compliant reports. However, the case of Nadra Bank requires a thorough review, as it faced a number of challenges last year, including nearbankruptcy, protests by disgruntled clients and widespread allegations of corruption. Hopefully, the bank will address these issues for the period in question.

Considering the short history of corporate social responsibility reporting in Ukraine, companies are disclosing information on their non-financial performance cautiously. Health and safety, human capital development, environmental protection, philanthropy and local community development are the issues most commonly disclosed in the reports. Description of one-off initiatives and projects prevail, often not linked to material issues for the reporting companies.

It is notable that the majority of companies that issue non-financial reports have Ukrainian capital and work only on the Ukrainian market. No large multinational company has produced a report for its Ukrainian operations, though many have a large presence in the country with significant financial and non-financial impact.

Still, only 10 percent of the top 100 Ukrainian companies issue non-financial reports, compared with 80 percent in developed countries. Many large Ukrainian companies with a significant impact on the economy show no signs of any tangible social responsbility.

While working on the study, the CSR Ukraine Community surveyed managers. Our findings showed that non-financial reporting in Ukraine will continue its growth. The number of

non-financial indicators covered will grow, the scope of corporate social responsibility reports will extend and companies will upgrade to Global Reporting Initiative-compliant reports.

Yet the future of corporate social responsbility reporting depends on the ability of the Ukrainian non-governmental organizations, media, consumers, academia, think-tanks, trade unions and the state to demand from business a proactive role in finding solutions to the country’s problems. Capital providers, e.g. international financial institutions and international financial markets are becoming the drivers behind the growth of corporate social responsibility in Ukraine, too. Information on the material non-financial issues for and verifiable CSR performance of companies in Ukraine is increasingly finding its way to investors’ screens.

There are multiple processes in action in respect to CSR strategies and reporting in Ukraine. Tailored strategy and a clear reporting to the stakeholders would be the best corporate reaction, both multinational and national companies alike.

Volodymyr Vorobey is a partner at CSR Ukraine Community, established in 2008 to promote and advance corporate social responsibility in Ukraine. He can be reached at v.vorobey@svb.org.ua

In case you missed them, read the last five Business Sense columns by experts online at kyivpost.com Septembet 3 with Andriy Yarmak, independent agribusiness expert: “Government is eating hand that feeds it”

August 20 with Kirill Ratnikov and Ivan Trofimenko. Kirill Ratnikov is a partner with Magisters. Ivan Trofimenko is a Kyiv-based associate with Magisters: “Progress made in effort to start public-private partnerships”

August 13 with Anastasia Golovach, top macroeconomist at the Kyiv offices of Renaissance Capital: “Hryvnia should strengthen against dollar by year’s end”

August 6 with Jorge Zukoski, president of the American Chamber of Commerce: “By taxing foreigners at higher rate, tax code will hurt investment”

July 30 with Alex Frishberg, founding partner of Frishberg and Partners: “Tips for tricky importexport trade in Ukraine”

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8 Business

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Worries rise as hryvnia weakens against dollar (Reuters) A sudden fall of Ukraine’s hryvnia against the U.S. dollar this month has highlighted investors’ concerns about the impact of President Viktor Yanukovych’s power consolidation drive on economic policies.

Some analysts fear the country is drifting back toward becoming an autocratic regime where the interests of a few tycoons take precedence over wider economic considerations.

The hryvnia fell on Tuesday to a five-month low of 7.94 per dollar, having been weakened after a reshuffle at the central bank. The fall was relatively small compared with gains made since February but has prompted concerns about the hryvnia’s future direction.

On Sept. 1, central bank First Deputy Chairman Anatoly Shapovalov, who was closely involved in the exchange rate policy, resigned and was replaced by young banker Serhiy Arbuzov, seen as a close ally of Yanukovych.

The move led to some investor concern that the government, backed by steel exporters who bank-rolled Yanukovych’s campaign, would tilt the exchange rate policy in their favour by devaluing the hryvnia – or at least stopping it from strengthening.

“The presence of a strong steel lobby in the government reduces the probability that the hryvnia will strengthen, at least within the nearest 3-6 months,” ING said in a note.

The central bank, which has been buying dollars for the last few months to stop the hryvnia from appreciating too quickly, said on Tuesday it would intervene to maintain hryvnia stability.

It has, however, pledged to allow more exchange rate flexibility under a $15 billion deal with the International Monetary Fund in July.

The way in which the central bank allowed the hryvnia to weaken sharply following the reshuffle – intervening only twice – could signal it is starting to follow the fund’s wishes. But artificially keeping the hryvnia weak would displease the IMF and hurt banks.

retreat, too sharp a move risks stoking public discontent, as more expensive imports eat into household budgets already strained by utility bills raised last month.

Hryvnia dip 'unrelated'

A woman exchanges currency in Kyiv on June 8. (UNIAN)

The hryvnia rose to 7.92 per dollar on Thursday from 7.93 at the end of the previous session, according to Reuters data.

The Ukrainsky Novyny news agency quoted central bank governor Volodymyr Stelmakh as telling a meeting of government officials and regional governors on Thursday: “The (exchange) rate ... will be stable. (...)

Of course, we do not foresee a large appreciation.”

Successor?

Local business weekly “Delovaya Stolitsa” suggested on Sept. 6 that Arbuzov, “a dark horse to Kyiv’s financial beau monde,” could become the chairman of the central bank next year.

Arbuzov’s appointment appeared to be a part of Yanukovych’s wider campaign to concentrate power, which he started by putting together a parlia-

mentary coalition and naming his ally Mykola Azarov as prime minister after his election in January.

In June, his government effectively sidelined the elected mayor of Kyiv, Leonid Chernovetsky, by stripping him of most powers in favour of a newly appointed deputy.

As part of the same campaign, Yanukovych and his supporters are seeking to reverse amendments to the constitution made in 2004 that limited presidential powers in favour of the parliament.

The move would give Yanukovych powers enjoyed by Leonid Kuchma, president in 1994-2005, whose rule has been described by observers as autocratic and driven by interests of a select group of “oligarchs”, powerful and wealthy businessmen.

Current central bank governor Stelmakh is seen as a confidant of

previous president Viktor Yushchenko.

Yanukovych has said he will not seek to remove Stelmakh this year but has given him no further public assurances.

If Stelmakh were to leave, a further bout of hryvnia weakness would look likely. But the negative market reaction to Shapovalov’s replacement makes Stelmakh’s departure less likely.

“The market has certainly voted this down (replacing Stelmakh by Arbuzov),” said Ivan Tchakarov, chief economist for Russia and the CIS at BofA Merrill Lynch Global Research.

“Replacing a central bank governor is rarely a market-positive development, in particular when set against the overall tendency of Yanukovych filling in the key positions in the government with people close to him.”

In addition, while the steel makers may be pleased by the hryvnia

Some analysts say the hryvnia’s weakness had nothing to do with the central bank reshuffle.

“These things are completely unrelated,” said Kyiv-based Renaissance Capital analyst Anastasia Golovach.

“The main factor behind the hryvnia’s weakness was that (state energy firm) Naftogaz started buying dollars from the market, unlike in previous months when the central bank sold dollars to it.”

Other market participants have said the sharpness of the move was due to investor nervousness following the reshuffle exacerbating the already heightened dollar demand from Naftogaz.

Two other factors that may have contributed to the move were import contracts, traditionally renewed and paid in autumn, and demand from individual investors, which grew in August, according to central bank data, Golovach said.

Thus, Golovach sees the sell-off as short-lived and expects the hryvnia to strengthen to 7.5 per dollar by yearend on strong balance of payments and inflation concerns with the main risk coming from massive speculative purchases by individuals.

Those who see the reshuffle as the key cause for the move are less bullish, with ING seeing no appreciation this year.

Tchakarov of Bank of America Merrill Lynch said he saw the hryvnia “broadly unchanged” at around 8 per dollar by year-end, supported by the same positive factors.

“On the negative side, the fiscal situation is fragile and you have local dynamics (elections) that may prove to have a negative effect,” he said, referring to the October 31 elections of local councils and mayors.

The government’s ‘final version’ of tax code remains secret for taxpayers

BY S V I T L A N A T U C H YN S KA TUCHYNSKA@KYIVPOST.COM

The long-running tax code saga took another turn on Sept. 7 as parliament sent the latest draft back to the government for revisions.

Prime Minister Mykola Azarov presented what he called the “final version” of the tax code on Sept. 3, touting the document as a significant liberal reform. But few details of the draft tax code have emerged and no copy has been made public, fueling concerns that it remains slanted in favor of the tax authorities and will do little to ease conditions for small- and medium-sized businesses.

Azarov presented his version of the country’s tax bible – the third edition since Deputy Prime Minister Sergiy Tigipko was put in charge of the issues – with a vague PowerPoint presentation. No copy of the draft code was made available.

Azarov hyped the code as “establish-

ing the lowest taxes in Europe” and creating a favorable investment climate in the country. He said the document includes a property tax, a progressive income tax, and reduces corporate profit tax to 19 percent from the current 25 percent.

According to the presentation, those earning more than 10 times the minimum wages – or Hr 9,220 ($1,160) from Dec. 1 – would be taxed at a progressive rate of 17 percent instead of current flat rate of 15 percent.

Properties of more than 100 square meters in cities and towns and more than 200 square meters in rural areas would be taxed at a rate of Hr 10 per square meter.

Azarov also said the government plans to automate reimbursement of value-added tax (VAT) and resume the payment of penalties for delays in VAT reimbursement by the state at 120 percent of the discount rate set by the National Bank of Ukraine.

However, experts and parliamen-

Æ “What Azarov gives with one hand he takes away with the other,” – Sergiy Popov, a partner at consulting firm KPMG Ukraine tarians are suspicious because of the lack of details. “On Sept. 7, we were supposed to hear a report on the tax code without actually having the text itself,” said Serhiy Teryohin, head of the parliamentary committee on tax and customs.

Some say that very few people, aside from Azarov and his closest aides, know what’s in the proposed legislation. So what is touted as a progressive code may turn out to be a regressive one.

“The drafts of the tax code have continued the Ukrainian practice of significantly limiting the expenses that can be deducted for tax purposes,” said Sergiy Popov, a partner at leading consulting firm KPMG Ukraine. “This means that although the corporate profit tax rate might be reduced, the effective tax rate paid by a business will be much higher than the headline rate. What Azarov gives with one hand he takes away with the other,” he said, adding that despite the proposed new

VAT rate of 17 percent, the real barometer for investor will be progress with the cash VAT refund.

“They also suggest excluding from expenses services obtained from nonresidents, such as consulting, engineering, marketing and PR services,” said Vladimir Kotenko, head of Ernst and Young's tax and legal department.

“They also want to exclude the deduction of services and good obtained from single-tax payers.”

Many are concerned with replacement of the vehicle owner’s tax by an increased excise duty on fuel. This may cause a significant increase in fuel prices, depending on the level of new excise, which has not been disclosed.

According to Tigipko, the new draft of the code might appear in parliament in 10 days. Azarov already said he wants the document to come into force as soon as the start of next year.

Kyiv Post staff writer Svitlana Tuchynska can be reached at tuchynska@kyvipost.com

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

9

10 News

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Demonstrators hold posters of animals that died in the Kyiv Zoo recently during a protest on April 30. The most recent deaths include Johnny the chimpanzee on Sept. 1 and three penguins three days later. (PHL)

Criticism rises as zoo deaths mount

BY S V I T L A N A T U C H YN S KA TUCHYNSKA@KYIVPOST.COM

Zoologichna Street

A government investigation into numerous deaths at the Kyiv Zoo, recognized as one of the world’s worst, has been criticized by animal rights activists as a whitewash.

The investigation, which also looked into alleged financial irregularities, absolved the zoo’s director, Svitlana Berzina, and the zoo administration of wrongdoing.

Several prominent members of the zoo industry refused to sign the investigation report, compiled by an expert commission for the Ministry of Environmental Protection, as they said it was an attempt to hush up zoo management’s responsibility for the high number of animal deaths.

Meanwhile, zoo deaths continue to mount. Johnny the chimpanzee died on Sept. 1, just three days after arriving at the zoo. Three male penguins died on Sept. 4. The death toll this year at the zoo already includes eight large

Kyiv Zoo y nd Va

et tre iS o sk lev sy Va

Perem

ohy A v.

The above map shows the location of the Kyiv Zoo.

animals: an elephant, a tiger, a giraffe, a camel, a zebra, a bear, a bison and an armadillo.

Critics attribute the deaths to poor living conditions, malnutrition and mismanagement. Zoo management denies the claims.

Whitewash The commission was set up in June after widespread accusations of kickbacks and a spate of animal deaths.

Several ministry officials, other heads of Ukrainian zoos and animal rights activists were included. Several experts refused to sign the report and cried foul over the violations they witnessed.

“According to what we found out, animals died from poor nourishment, poor living conditions and negligence,” said Tetyana Tymochko, deputy head of the Ukrainian Ecological League, an animal rights organization, and a member of the investigative commission. She says the commission was a setup, and the conclusions of critical members were not taken into account.

Volodymyr Tolkachov, the head of Mykolayiv Zoo and another commission member, said the reason for the horrifying conditions at Kyiv Zoo is unprofessional management. “A veterinarian was responsible for setting the diet for the elephant [that died], but it should be a diet technician. The people who decide the animals’ menu do not have any education in that field whatsoever. Most of the animal keepers are not qualified either. For example, animals are often left sleeping on a bare cement floor or occupy tiny cages,” Tolkachov said.

Experts and former zoo workers say that up to 100 employees have been

fired or left due to poor working conditions in the last year.

Questions have long been raised over zoo director Svitlana Berzina’s qualifications. She does not have training as a veterinarian or zoo technician, critical for her work.

She was dismissed in June by Kyiv Mayor Leonid Chernovetsky, but has been back at work since July 2.

She said the accusations are groundless. “The zoo had 14 investigations in 2010. Trust me, if any of them would have found any violation, I wouldn’t be occupying my post,” she told the Kyiv Post.

Previously she had claimed that her rivals had poisoned some of the animals in a bid to get her fired.

However, while the police did not find any poison in the dead animal bodies, the Kyiv prosecutor is backing the ministry’s report. “According to experts who conducted the [elephant] autopsy in the Kyiv Zoo, the death might have been caused by cyanide.

However, the case is being investigated by police in Shevchenkivsky district and [its findings] are due by the end of September,” said Myroslava Mushka, a spokeswoman for the Kyiv prosecutor.

According to her, their investigation did not reveal any violations of animal living conditions and food.

But animal rights activists said it appears the authorities are doing everything to keep Berzina in her post and silence critics. “As in many other spheres in Ukraine, the whole situation around Kyiv zoo has shown once again that investigations can be forged, critics ignored and the ‘right’ people kept in their positions if there is political will to do so,” said Sergiy Hrihoryiv, head of the Help

Zoo activists’ organization, who was fired from the zoo last year after publicly criticizing the animals’ poor living conditions.

Roman Slysarchuk, deputy head of the nature reserve department at the Ministry of Environmental Protection, denies that the commission covered up any violations at the zoo.

“Some members of the commission did not sign the investigation report, but others did,” he said. However, according to press service of the ministry, the report has not been released yet, as all members’ signatures are required.

City officials also deny hushing up the scandal. “We have invited a European expert, who has already arrived. He will observe Kyiv zoo for a couple of days and give us his professional opinion,” said Oleksandr Popov, first deputy head of city administration.

The government-hired expert, Koen Brouwer, of Maguari-One Zoo Consultants S.L. consultancy, backed Berzina as well. “I am confident in her team and I am quite sure in couple of years we can make Kyiv zoo one of the best in Europe,” he told Kyiv Post on Sept. 9.

Anatoliy Holubchenko, deputy head of the city administration, said on Sept.

9 that Berzina will keep her job.“We believe she is able to solve many problems of the zoo…We also have to take into account that problems of Kyiv zoo started before her appointment in 2008. She inherited many problems,” he said.

He said lack of financing is at the root of most of them. “In 2009 zoo received only Hr 1 million from state budget while it needed Hr 10 million.”

More deaths While authorities struggle to deal with previous zoo scandals a new one is brewing connected with the recent animal deaths.

According to Berzina, the Kyiv zoo head, the penguins died from an infectious disease they were suffering from since they arrived at the zoo back in 2004. “We bought 14 penguins, and all of them have died except for one female,” she said.

As for Johnny the chimpanzee, she said he was in quarantine as a newcomer and died from kidney failure.

“He was born with a poor heart, poor liver and poor kidneys,” she said.

But why did the zoo buy an ill animal? Animal rights activists said they have an explanation – to embezzle money. “According to our sources, the chimpanzee did not cross the Ukrainian border in August, when he was allegedly brought to Kyiv,” said Tymochko from the Ukrainian Ecological League.

“We suspect he was either smuggled or bought illegally from a circus.”

Tymochko also says the zoo administration might be concealing mass deaths of exotic birds, which have disappeared from the zoo in the past year.

Oleksandr Stetsenko, a spokesman for the zoo, said the chimpanzee was brought from a European zoo, which he couldn’t name because of the contract.

“The animal seemed healthy, and he died when our veterinarians were examining his condition,” he said. He declined to comment on the birds, saying he needed time to gather information.

Kyiv Post staff writer Svitlana Tuchynska can be reached at tuchynska@kyivpost.com

www.kyivpost.com

News 11

September 10, 2010

Tymoshenko accuses top Yanukovych aides Æ1 state’s finances will be withdrawn and given to RosUkrEnergo, which, in it its part, will break the overall (financial) balance of the nation.

This means that if $5.4 billion is given to RosUkrEnergo, the financial imbalance of Ukraine will deepen to such an extent that Ukraine essentially will further fall into risk of not repaying money to the IMF.” Tymoshenko claimed that IMF money is indirectly being used to pay off RosUkrEnergo at the ultimate expense of Ukrainian taxpayers. “I think this isn’t an empty issue,” Tymoshenko said.

“Indeed, the money that the IMF gives to Ukraine and other countries comes from the taxpayers of your citizens.

And if your citizens finance corruption in Ukraine, then I believe this requires great attention.”

The background Tymoshenko eliminated RosUkrEnergo from the multi-billion-dollar business as monopoly gas supplier to Ukraine in 2009, after she – as premier – struck a deal with her Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.

Before this, RosUkrEnergo generated huge profits. On paper, billionaire Dmytro Firtash owns a 45 percent stake in the company while Ivan Fursin owns a 5 percent share. Both are close associates of Lyovochkin, Yanukovych’s chief of staff. Boyko, the energy minister, has close ties to Firtash.

Western anti-corruption watchdogs such as London-based Global Witness have long questioned the transparency of RosUkrEnergo. The other half of the gas trader is owned by Russian state gas monopoly Gazprom. Tymoshenko has long described such intermediary companies as “parasites” that collect profits that should belong to state gas companies – Russia’s Gazprom and Ukraine’s Naftogaz.

The $5 billion in natural gas up for grabs – the approximate worth of the disputed 11 billion cubic meters – was supplied by Gazprom and accumulated

by RosUkrEnergo in recent years for underground storage.

Gazprom reportedly agreed to resell it to Naftogaz as part of the 2009 Putin-Tymoshenko agreement.

Along with partners, Firtash claimed the Tymoshenko government illegally expropriated the gas. He filed a lawsuit against Ukraine. Tymoshenko defended the transaction as legal, citing contracts that gave Ukraine a purchase option for gas that RosUkrEnergo failed to pay Gazprom for upon import.

Since no one is showing all documents involved, it’s not clear where the truth lies.

What is certain is that a Stockholm arbitration court ordered Ukraine earlier this year to return the gas to RosUkrEnergo.

One investment banker said such a loss could double Naftogaz’s deficit and increase the national budget deficit by at least one percent – to 7.5 percent of gross domestic product, expected to reach $140 billion this year.

Tymoshenko claims that associates of Yanukovych, who beat her in the Feb. 7 runoff presidential election, did everything in their power for Ukraine to purposely lose the Stockholm arbitration case. If so, that means associates of Yanukovych’s inner circle could profit handsomely at the nation’s expense.

Paying three times Tymoshenko elaborated: “Having paid twice for natural gas – once to RosUkrEnergo, which never passed the funds to Gazprom, and some $1.7 billion a second time directly to Gazprom – now, according to the Stockholm Court’s decision, we have to pay a third time for the 11 billion cubic meters of gas to RosUkrEnergo. Moreover, we will have to pay for the gas at double the price. Then the gas cost $1.68 billion; today the nation faces a $5.4 billion bill.”

Silence is golden The individuals whom Tymoshenko implicated in the alleged scam have

repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

With the exception of Lyovochkin, they have never responded to requests by the Kyiv Post for interviews.

But a trail of documents and recent comments show that the owners of RosUkrEnergo and Yanukovych’s top officials are, in fact, tight-knit associates, if not business partners. These conflicts of interests – and Tymoshenko’s charges – fuel suspicions that national interests may be sacrificed for personal enrichment in the RosUkrEnergo case.

During a Sept. 8 briefing with journalists, Lyovochkin admitted to being close friends with Firtash and Fursin. But Lyovochkin, who served as a top assistant to ex- President Leonid Kuchma when RosUkrEnergo was introduced as the supplier of natural gas to Ukraine, denied allegations that he has ever been a business partner in the deal.

Lyovochkin also denied a conflict of interest, while describing Fursin as a longtime friend. But he could not explain what Fursin was doing in the presidential administration that very day. “I have not seen him,” Lyovochkin said. Fursin declined to speak with journalists about his visit.

Lyovochkin’s close friend, energy minister Boyko, has repeatedly denied having a vested interest in RosUkrEnergo.

However, Boyko served as head of Naftogaz and energy minister in the early-to-mid 2000s. During this period, two Firtash-owned companies were appointed suppliers of gas to Ukraine: RosUkrEnergo and its predecessor, Hungarian-registered Eural Trans Gas. They generated billion-dollar revenues and profits.

Roman Zvarych, head of a parliamentary investigatory committee into RosUkrEnergo, said evidence exists to show possible wrongdoing by Boyko in these decisions. According to Zvarych, while serving as a public official with the power to approve of the gas traders’ privileged position in the lucrative trade, Boyko also served as a board member of RosUkrEnergo.

This alone, according to Zvarych, is a clear-cut violation of the law and evidence of collusion and conflicts of interest.

But there is more.

Documents obtained by the Kyiv Post show that Boyko served as the legal representative of Firtash in his recent divorce with Maryna Kalynovska-Firtash, whose maiden name is Moskal.

As for Ukraine’s top spy chief, Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) head Khoroshkovsky, he is described by the political opposition as Firtash’s enforcer.

Despite being a partner of Firtash in Ukraine’s largest television group, U.A. Inter Media Group (which owns the Inter TV channel), Khoroshkovsky has overseen investigations that aimed to reverse the Putin-Tymoshenko agreement and return the disputed 11 billion cubic meters of gas to RosUkrEnergo.

Russian motives Tymoshenko isn’t the only one raising questions about RosUkrEnergo.

During the January 2009 gas crisis, in which Moscow shut off supplies to Ukraine for nearly three weeks because of non-payment, Putin described RosUkrEnergo’s role as a sign of massive corruption within Ukraine’s highest echelons of political power. Putin told reporters that Ukrainian authorities were fighting “not for the price of gas but for the possibility to maintain one or other intermediaries so that they can use the proceeds for their personal gain and also get resources for future political campaigns.’’

However, Putin’s associates have served on RosUkrEnergo’s board of directors. Political analysts have said that the intermediary served Russian interests by ensuring slush-fund money went to pro-Russian political parties in Ukraine.

Russia’s end game appears to be control of Ukraine’s vast natural gas pipeline, which carries 80 percent of Russian-bound blue fuel to Europe.

At a Sept. 6 press conference, Tymoshenko said: “If Ukraine compensates RosUkrEnergo for this gas, it will lead to the bankruptcy of Naftogaz.”

If the Ukrainian people are the losers, the winners are also clear, according to Tymoshenko.

“I want to name these people. This is SBU chief Khoroshkovsky, presidential administration chief Lyovochkin.

This is energy minister Boyko. And this is Yanukovych’s shadow financier – Firtash. In my opinion, a sizable share of the money will go directly to Yanukovych.”

When asked about such accusations

by Tymoshenko, Lyovochkin said: “She says an awful lot, and as life shows, not everything she says corresponds to reality.”

Anybody listening?

For now, nobody is rushing to support Tymoshenko’s call for an investigation into what she calls the biggest scam in Ukraine. Some dismiss her relevance.

Others note how she acquired her own fortune.

As the nation’s gas princess in the 1990s, she reputedly made a fortune from price markup schemes as a monopoly trader. Tymoshenko has explained her past by saying she played by the rules of the game under Kuchma.

After being squeezed out of the business, she turned against the regime and started to battle corruption.

Today, the truth is that Tymoshenko is one of the few top politicians speaking out against RosUkrEnergo and the web of conflicts surrounding the gas trade.

“Tymoshenko is the only nationalscale opposition leader,” said Oleh Rybachuk, who served as presidential administration chief under ex-President Viktor Yushchenko. “If not for her, nobody else would speak up about the issue at all.”

However, “although Tymoshenko is right about RosUkrEnergo,” Rybachuk said, “she has low credibility to speak up about gas corruption.”

12 News

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Participants of the protest “No to a police state” near the building of Shevchenkivky police departament in Kyiv on June 10. (Ukrinform)

A victim of alleged police brutality displays cuts and bruises on June 14.

(Courtesy)

Are police edging out of control?

BY OLESIA OLESHKO OLESHKO@KYIVPOST.COM

Most have heard about how corrupt and brutal Ukraine’s police officers can be. But Kyiv resident Bohdan Khmelnytsky, 36, says he has lived it.

Khmelnytsky tried to commit suicide rather than endure 10 days of torture inflicted, he said, after police arrested him and tried to get him to confess to a crime he didn’t commit. After his release, police dismissed his complaints of brutality. So now he’s going to become a lawyer – partly to fight such alleged abuse in the future.

Ukraine’s 300,000-member police force is well-known for two characteristics -- their incompetence and their brutality. One feeds the other.

Their inability to solve crimes through brilliant detective work and modern evidence-gathering prompts many law enforcers to beat confessions out of hapless subjects.

Now, human rights activists are warning, the stage is being set by new Interior Minister Anatoliy Mohyliov for even more excessive police lawlessness and impunity.

Oleg Levytsky, a human rights advocate for the Ukraine Helsinki Group, said that the Interior Ministry has closed down public monitoring oversight programs that helped curb the problem during the tenures of two previous ministers.

“The police became more unbridled, you can even tell it by the way they used to drive patrol cars a year ago and how they do it now,” Levytsky said. “I am sure they were given a clear signal from the top – do whatever you want to do, there will be no punishment, just give us good figures [on solved crimes].”

However, Eduard Bagirov, a human rights adviser to Mohyliov, disputes the notion that his boss is unconcerned with police abuses. Bagirov said Ukrainian police have always tortured

people, so eliminating such practices entirely can’t be done.

“Minister Mohyliov is totally aware about such a problem as police brutality,” Bagirov said. “And I can assure you, he doesn’t ignore the violation alerts and in a month or so I’ll be able to collect enough cases to illustrate improvement in this area.” According to Bagirov, improved management has meant that police can no longer hide violations and wrongdoers are being punished.

Levytsky, however is not that optimistic. He says that occasional public criticism is not enough, especially when major police crimes remain unsolved. “I am not in a position to tell the ministry how to improve their work,” Levytsky said. “But we have good examples like Georgia. Georgian policemen are paid good salaries, they improved their efficiency – they would come to the crime scene within minutes. Plus they have strict internal controls.”

In Ukraine, however, even if a person has enough evidence, it’s not easy to prove police brutality.

Crime, no punishment Khmelnytsky said his claims of violations were dismissed with a formal reply: “The police officers mentioned by you deny use of illegal interrogation methods.”

Khmelnytsky said he was tortured.

“They brought me into this small cell, there were five policemen,” he said.

“They grabbed me by hands and feet.

One of them squeezed my genitals so hard, the pain was so bad that I almost fainted.”

The police officers, whom Khmelnytsky called “the butchers,” tried all kinds of brutal techniques, including putting a plastic bag on his head repeatedly and tightening it around the neck to nearly asphyxiate him. He attempted suicide on the 10th day of his detention, which led to his release. But criminal charges against

The Shevchenkivsky district prosecutor’s office in Kyiv instituted legal proceedings on power abuse charges against the police of the same district.

But Indylo’s attorneys and friends did not think the case would be properly investigated.

Now the Kyiv city prosecutor’s office overtook the case and ordered additional expertise. President Viktor Yanukovych recently asked Prosecutor General Oleksandr Medvedko to take this case under his personal control.

Success stories

Interior Minister Anatoliy Mohyliov

him still haven’t been lifted.

Volodymyr Polishchuk, a spokesman for Kyiv Police Department, said Khmelnytsky’s accusations are not credible. “This guy you are talking about has criminal records,” Polishchuk said, including suspicion of alleged car theft, the reason for his arrest. “He is trying to make people think that this case against him was fabricated.”

Bringing a police officer to court is not easy. Attorney Oleh Veremiyenko, who’s been defending the rights of police violence victims, says that the prosecutors’ staffers usually have good relations with the police so they usually cover each other. “They work in a bundle – often times prosecutors would ask policemen ‘hey guys, catch us this or another suspect’,” Veremiyenko said.

The case of 20-year-old student, Ihor Indylo, who died in police custody on May 18, is a good example of police brutality left unpunished. At first the police insisted that Indylo fell out of the bed and damaged his head.

Later they started insisting that he had received a lethal injury before he was sent to the precinct and deny responsibility for his death.

Still some people have succeeded in pressing their cases of police abuse.

A Kyiv resident, who did not want to be identified, said police on June 14 simply grabbed her and pushed her into their car. She was brought to precinct station on Prorizna Street and thrown to the floor. “One police officer asked me if I had any drugs or a gun on me. Of course I said I didn’t,” she said, to which he replied: “Well, that’s easy to fix.”

Then she described the assault that happened next: “They twisted my arms, one guy grasped me by the hair and banged my head against a metal safe. Of course I was screaming and they were filming me on their mobile phone cameras.

Then one of them said they would rape me if I didn’t calm down.”

Later, she was brought to the Shevchenkivsky district police station on Gertsena Street (the same place where Indylo had died), where doctors were called to attend to her – but not ask any questions about how she sustained the injuries.

She said police filed official charges of disobedience and, within hours, obtained a conviction from a judge who sentenced her to five days in jail. However, a medical examination showed her injuries were too severe for her to serve the

prison time – she suffered a brain concussion, multiple injuries and bruises.

The account of the same events recorded by the police is somewhat different, however. Officers saw a couple arguing on the street, the drunk woman behaved aggressively, so they decided to detain her.

“At the station, the woman continued behaving inappropriately. She was cursing and spitting at police officers.

All that was filmed with mobile phone cameras. According to the law on police, they had to handcuff her. She was falling on the floor, banging with her head against a metal safe and was imitating fainting.”

“After she had refused to take an alcohol intoxication test, she was brought to the Shevchenkivsky district police department and put in a cell where she continued cursing and beating her head, arms and legs against the wall,” Polishchuk said, citing the police statement. “At 8 p.m., she imitated fainting and the duty officer called an ambulance. The doctor examined her and said there was no reason for hospitalization.”

Kyiv police department say they have video of the woman yelling at police officers, but not injuring herself deliberately.

The woman’s lawyer, however, insisted the police acted illegally and that the court agreed.

“We won the first case at the court of appeals, whose ruling says the police had no reasons to detain her,” Oleksandr Nahorny said. “A few days later, another court ordered the prosecutor general’s office to investigate the case of the police abusing their powers and applying violent actions against her. If the investigation is done properly, the guilty policemen will be brought to court and face criminal charges.”

Kyiv Post staff writer Olesia Oleshko can be reached at oleshko@kyivpost.com

www.kyivpost.com

Leonardo da Vinci dream lives on in Zhovkva, near Lviv

BY N ATA L I A A . F E D US C HAK FEDUSCHAK@KYIVPOST.COM

ZHOVKVA, Ukraine – A mere 30 kilometers from Lviv, the architectural brainchild of Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci is in full view.

With its sweeping central square, streets partially covered in Italian arches, sizeable churches and a dominant palazzo, the little town of Zhovkva – with 13,000 inhabitants – is as close as one will get in Ukraine to seeing what da Vinci dreamed would be his “ideal city.”

Conceptualized in 1488 when the plague was ravaging Europe – Milan, the city where the artist lived, had lost nearly a third of its population to the Black Death – da Vinci believed a better designed city could ward off illness and mortality. Many European cities in da Vinci’s era were densely populated; garbage was routinely deposited into narrow and dark streets and poor sanitation was constant, allowing germs and disease to quickly spread.

Da Vinci envisioned a city that would be more spacious and was split into two levels: Lower levels would be used by carts and animals, while upper levels, which had wider streets, would be used for foot traffic. Canals were dedicated to commercial purposes, as well as a sewage system. Of his style of urban planning, da Vinci said “only

Zhovkva, planned as an “ideal city,” is 30 kilometers north of Lviv.

let that which is good looking be seen on the surface of the city.”

Because the ideal city was so grand in scale and required entire cities being rebuilt, it never came to fruition as da Vinci – who was considered a polymath because of his expertise in so many areas, including architecture, engineering and invention – envisioned it. Yet he introduced a concept that became appealing to European urban planners, including those who inhabited the territory of modern-day Ukraine.

Conception In the 17th century, Italian architects and sculptors Paolo de Ducato Klemenci and Paolo Dominici applied da Vinci’s ideal city concept to Zhovkva and its existing structures. Both were well-known in the region.

Paul the Lucky built Lviv’s Golden Rose Synagogue (destroyed by the Nazis in 1941), while Paul of Rome, also active in Lviv, erected that city’s Bernadine and Uspenskiy (Dormition) churches, as well as several buildings on the Ploscha Rynok, or Market Square.

The result of their planning is a town impressive in scope. One half of Zhovkva’s center is lined with streets covered by Italian arches – no other city in Ukraine has them – while the other half is dominated by Paul of

Luck Rivne

Kyiv

Zhovkva Lviv

News 13

September 10, 2010

Rome’s St. Lawrence Church, which boasts friezes of military scenes.

Other churches and buildings are scattered about, positioned on streets reminiscent of those found in Italy. Holding the complex together is the massive Zhovkva Castle, which has words in Latin inscribed beneath the roof on its backside.

“The city complex in Zhovkva is unique not only because it is the only well-preserved realization of the ideal city in Ukraine, but is also an extremely rare type of planning among the nearly 200 preserved ideal cities in Europe,” said Mykhailo Kubai, assistant head of restoration at the State Historical Architectural Preserve in Zhovkva. “As a whole, it is an important phenomenon in the historical stage of the active addition to eastern Slavic traditions, with high achievements of the Renaissance. Its historic academic meaning is hard to overestimate.”

Western Ukraine’s Brody was also built as an ideal city, but the privatization boom in the 1990s changed the city’s architectural design. “The city was rebuilt, with structures added to and torn down,” said Luda Baibula, Kubai’s colleague and who is an expert on Zhovkva’s Jewish heritage. “Because it had less commerce, Zhovkva was preserved.”

History Zhovkva was first inhabited in the 14th century. In 1594, the Polish military commander Stanislaw Zolkiewski, who gave the city his name, fortified the settlement and built Zhovkva castle. The town did not, however, reach its peak in the latter half of the 17th century, after King Jan III Sobieski made Zhovkva his royal residence.

As leader of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth for 22 years, Sobieski brought it much-needed stability after a turbulent period of war, which included the 1648 Bohdan Khmelnitsky-led Kozak (Cossack) uprising.

Zhovkva’s famed castle dominates the town’s central square. A renovated statue of Mary is in the foreground.

(Natalia A. Feduschak)

Along with the two Paolos, some of the region’s finest architects worked in Zhovkva, with Sibieski’s blessing. The names of many remain unknown to modern scholars, although those who are boast impressive resumes.

Petro Beber, Sobieski’s architect, for instance, rebuilt the Zhovkva castle, constructed several buildings, including the town’s famed Renaissancestyle synagogue, erected in 1687, and its town hall, which no longer exists. Eventually, the little town that boasted a population of 1,500 people became one of Europe’s most beautiful so-called city-residences and was home to five monasteries, four Roman Catholic Churches and two synagogues.

Modernity Today, Zhovkva has 51 architectural monuments, 49 of which have national significance. Zhovkva’s Jewish community, however, was particularly renowned; the town became a center of philosophical thought and bookmaking.

The first Hebrew printing press was opened in 1692 by Uri Phoebus haLevi from Amsterdam. As one of the first printers of Judaica books in what is modern-day Ukraine and Poland, for the next eight decades Uri Phoebus, his sons, grandsons and relatives dominated Hebrew book-making in the region.

In 2001, the Ukrainian government supported a local initiative to preserve and restore Zhovkva. The 20-year program envisions not only restoration

works, but renewing destroyed architecture, as well as conducting historic and academic studies.

As a result, buildings in the center are slowly being renovated. Zhovkva’s castle, which needs some $8 million in refurbishments, has been saved from ruination. Eventually, it will house a stage for open air concerts in its impressive courtyard, a museum, conference center and small hotel.

Zhovkva’s one remaining synagogue, the one built during the Renaissance, was included on a list of 100 threatened world monuments in 1999. Located just steps from the city center, it recently got a new roof. Plans are in the works to convert it into a museum of Jewish culture and history.

City officials had hoped some renovations would be completed by the 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, which would have helped boost tourism, but that is now unlikely to happen.

Under former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, Zhovkva received money for restoration as part of those allocated for the games’ preparation. The current government, however, has cut restoration funding completely.

Still, Kubai said Zhovkva’s officials are dedicated to restoring the city to its previous grandeur so visitors and residents can continue enjoying Ukraine’s one example of da Vinci’s ideal city.“That will happen, no matter how long it takes,” he said.

Kyiv Post staff writer Natalia A. Feduschak can be reached at feduschak@ kyivpost.com

14 Opinion

Yanukovych lets Russia reassert control over nation, Moldova A referendum to hold direct presidential elections in Moldova failed to attract the necessary voter turnout to be binding. The referendum’s defeat is a victory for the opposition Communists, who called for a boycott of the vote. It also illustrates how Russia’s influence in Moldova is growing. Russia’s progress in consolidating its influence in Moldova was made possible by the speed with which Moscow was able to bring Ukraine back into its fold.

Analysis A constitutional referendum in Moldova on Sept. 5 that called for the direct election of the president failed to garner the necessary 33 percent voter turnout to be binding (turnout was less than 30 percent). This is a defeat for the ruling pro-European coalition that initiated the referendum and a victory for the opposition Communists, who called for a boycott of the referendum. It also puts Moldova back into the deadlock that has dominated the political scene in Chisinau for 18 months. According to the Moldovan Constitution, parliament must now be dissolved. The ruling coalition proposed Sept. 8 to hold snap parliamentary elections Nov. 21.

The importance of the Moldova referendum goes beyond the tiny country’s internal politics; it is representative of Moldova’s importance as a bat-

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September 10, 2010

tleground country between the West and Russia. The referendum’s defeat shows Moscow’s growing influence in the country and is directly tied to Russia’s consolidation of another nearby former Soviet country: Ukraine.

Russia reshapes Ukraine Russia has made a priority of securing its southwestern flank in Europe ever since the pro-Western Orange Revolution swept Ukraine in 2004. Of all the former Soviet countries, Ukraine is the most strategic to Russia: Its industrial and agricultural sectors are virtually integrated into Russia’s own economic heartland, and 80 percent of the energy supplies Russia sends to Europe transit through Ukraine.

The Orange Revolution and the proWestern movement’s consideration of membership in Western blocs like NATO were a threat to Russia’s very survival. Pro-Western forces’ takeover in Kiev marked a turning point for Russia that would lead Moscow to focus all its efforts on expunging Western influence in its periphery and re-establishing its own.

A little more than five years later, Russia has both turned Ukraine back toward Moscow and solidified its presence in the country relatively quickly. Under the Orange Coalition,

Ukraine had a dysfunctional government perennially stuck between the competing interests and ambitions of then-President Viktor Yushchenko and then-Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko.

However, under current pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych (who lost the election in the 2004 Orange Revolution), this deadlock has been all but broken. Yanukovych appointed a loyalist and fellow pro-Russian, Mykola Azarov, as prime minister and created a majority in parliament for his Party of Regions through some crafty constitutional maneuvers. With an ally who has no grand political ambitions of his own as prime minister and a non-contentious parliament, Yanukovych has been able to consolidate much of the rest of Ukraine’s political apparatus, ranging from regional heads to Cabinet ministries.

The level of political control that Yanukovych has gained has translated into consolidations in other areas — particularly the military and security services. Russia has been the primary beneficiary of this change. Months after his inauguration, Yanukovych signed a landmark deal that extended Russia’s lease for its Black Sea Fleet in Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula by 25 years in exchange for lower gas prices from Russia. This was a significant reversal from

“Well, Roosevelt ran his country for four terms. I can do it even longer – I have the right to do it!”

NEWS ITEM: Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin hinted on Sept.

7 that he may run for president in 2012, when President Dmitry Medvedev’s term runs out. But Putin said he will be guided by the moods of the Russians in 2011. Putin also said he will act according to the Constitution, which allows any president to stay for two consecutive terms only, but does not put a cap on how many times a person can run for president in his lifetime. “U.S. President (Franklin) Roosevelt was voted in four times in a row because this did not contradict the American Constitution,” Putin said. “Neither I nor President (Dmitry) Medvedev will do anything which contradicts current Russian legislation or the country’s fundamental law.”

Russia’s southwestern flank

Kyiv

The U.S.-based STRATFOR global intelligence firm published an analytical piece on its website asserting that Russia has consolidated control over Ukraine since President Viktor Yanukovych took power. The Kyiv Post is a local partner of the firm, run by George Friedman, which operates a website at www.stratfor.com.

Source: Stratfor

the approach taken by Yushchenko, who not only did not support an extension of the lease on the fleet’s base in Sevastopol but also periodically called for its removal. For the population in Crimea, which has historical and cultural ties to Russia and sees the Black Sea Fleet as a symbol of Moscow’s protection of the region from Kyiv, Yanukovych’s approach is much more favorable and realistic than Yushchenko’s.

In terms of the security services, Yanukovych has dismissed many of the pro-Western Yushchenko appointees and, according to STRATFOR sources in Kyiv, has enacted a full reconciliation between Ukraine’s intelligence service, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), and Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB). In a meeting between SBU head Valery Khoroshkovsky and FSB chief Alexander Bortnikov in May, an agreement was reached that will allow FSB officers to work in Sevastopol to protect the Black Sea Fleet from Western operations. Under the agreement, the SBU’s top counterespionage department has made the United States, rather than Russia, its principal target (along with the United Kingdom’s MI6). Essentially, Ukraine has realigned its military and security apparatus so that it is similar to what it was during the Soviet era.

Attention on Moldova Because Russia consolidated Ukraine relatively quickly, it has been able to move on to the next state on its southwestern flank: Moldova. While Ukraine is critical for Russia’s survival, Moldova — situated just between the Carpathian Mountains and the Black Sea — represents the last piece of territory (historically known as the Bessarabian Gap) that Russia needs to control in order to secure itself from the southwest. Russia already has de facto control over Transdniestria, the breakaway sliver of territory in eastern Moldova, but this does not offer the protection from encroaching Southeastern European powers that Moldova proper does. Threats from

Southeastern Europe historically were embodied by such foes as the Ottoman Empire; today, the main threat is from Romania, which has strong cultural and historic links to Moldova.

Although Romania certainly cannot rival Russia’s military or economic power, its membership in the Western blocs like the European Union and NATO — particularly its alliance with the United States — poses the true threat to Russia through the Moldovan corridor. Romania has actively supported Moldova’s pro-European parties and the country’s NATO membership bid, and acting Moldovan President Mihai Ghimpu has called for Russia to remove all its troops from Transdniestria. Ghimpu also passed a controversial decree establishing June 28 as “Soviet Occupation Day,” though this has since been overturned.

Russia has created its own pressure on the Western elements in Chisinau by banning Moldova’s wine exports and backing the opposition Communists.

Russia has also enlisted Ukraine’s help in tackling the Transdniestria issue; the two countries formed a strategic partnership to find a solution, and Ukraine has used its own ethnic ties in Moldova to support Russia’s overtures. This shows that Ukraine is back in Russia’s camp and that Moscow has enlisted Kiev to help reach the Kremlin’s foreign policy goals.

The failed constitutional referendum, which had been put forth by pro-European elements in Chisinau to entrench their rule, is a clear signal that Russia’s approach is working thus far. Moldova has by no means definitively shifted back toward Russia as a result of the referendum, but Russia has proven that it has enough influence to block the pro-Europeans and their backers.

And if Ukraine is a telling example, Russia could have the blueprint to pull another strategic former Soviet country on its southwestern flank away from the West and toward Moscow.

STRATFOR is a global intelligence company with its headquarters in Austin, Texas.

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‘Secrets’ case launched against museum head (Reuters) Ukraine’s state security service opened a criminal probe on Sept. 9 against a museum director on suspicion of preparing to divulge secrets in what appeared to be a toughening of policy on declassifying historical documents.

Under former President Viktor Yushchenko, old KGB archives in the exSoviet republic were opened up in 2009 and thousands of documents spanning the Soviet period were declassified.

But a new state security (SBU) chief, appointed when President Viktor Yanukovych came to power in February, has come out against free public access to KGB-era files and said the job of Ukraine’s SBU service is to guard secrets, not leak them.

On Sept. 9, the SBU said it had opened an investigation against Ruslan Zabily, director of a museum in Ukraine’s western city of Lviv, for preparing to divulge state secrets.

Zabily – whose museum is dedicated to the tens of thousands who died in western Ukraine under Soviet and Nazi rule – had illegally gathered material containing state secrets, and intended to pass this on to other people, an SBU statement said.

He denied any state secrets were being compromised and said the historical documents on his laptop, which was seized by SBU agents on Wednesday, were publicly available.

Zabily, speaking at a Kyiv news conference on Sept. 9, said the move was part of a drive by the Yanukovych leadership to play down the role of the Ukrainian nationalist movement in the nation’s history and cover up Soviet-era abuses.

“I demand my computer back quickly. There were only copies on it of historical documents, my own research and personal information,” he said in a statement.

Dark Stalin years Public access to KGB-era files was relaxed under Yushchenko, allowing many Ukrainians to find out what had happened to relatives who disappeared during the dark years under Soviet dictator Josef Stalin.

Yanukovych’s power base is in the

News 15

September 10, 2010

Russia strengthens control over nation’s nuclear power industry

BY JOH N MA RONE MARONE@KYIVPOST.COM

Ruslan Zabily

Russian-speaking east where many Ukrainians view history through a Soviet prism and share Russia’s unease at overt criticism of the Soviet past.

Critics say restricting access to old KGB files reflects the strong pro-Moscow slant in Yanukovych’s policies.

“Playing games with the memory of whole generations is fairly dangerous,” Zabily later told Reuters.

“Politicians should not get involved in these questions. That is the prerogative of historians.”

New SBU chiefValeryKhoroshkovsky reversed Yushchenko’s policy on the KGB archives after taking over earlier this year and said: “The job of the secret service is primarily to guard its secrets, guard the laws that created these secrets.”

Volodymyr Vyatrovych, a former SBU archives chief who played an energetic role in opening up historical files until he was sacked when Yanukovych took over, said the action against Zabily seemed like a “witchhunt against historians.”

“SBU agents not only are trying to cover up the crimes of the Stalin regime, but use his methods today as if it is not 2010 but 1937,” Vyatrovych said in a statement.

The SBU said compromising material had been found on Zabily when he arrived in Kyiv from Lviv on Sept. 8.

Its statement said action was under way “to identify the circle of people to whom the secret information had been intended.”

Russia is likely to continue monopolizing the supply of fuel to the nation’s nuclear power plants, after the Ukrainian government – in typical nontransparent fashion – picked a Russian state company to build Ukraine’s first producer of nuclear fuel.

Not only was U.S. Westinghouse unfairly passed over during the selection process, critics say, but the Russian state looks set to control the fuel producer after it’s built.

Just months after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called for a merger of the two countries’ nuclear industries, the Kremlin policy of global energy diplomacy is becoming one of energy hegemony in its own backyard.

“We are already dependent on Russia for gas and oil; now we will be dependent on them for nuclear energy, too,” Serhiy Pashinsky, an opposition lawmaker and member of the parliament’s fuel and energy committee, said.

The Ukrainian Energy Ministry, which announced on Sept. 7 that Russian state-owned TVEL had won a competitive evaluation to build the nuclear fuel plant, denied that politics had been involved in the process.

“The only politics involved here was that we are finally going to get the plant built,” said Petro Chernov, director of the department for atomic energy and the nuclear industry at the ministry.

Although Ukraine has its own uranium, used to make the fuel, and zirconium, used to make the fuel assemblies, it lacks the technology to build its own maker of nuclear fuel.

TVEL, the fuel arm of Russian nuclear energy giant Rosatom, has traditionally filled the gap, exporting nuclear fuel across the border to run Ukraine’s 15 reactors at four separate power stations.

But after Ukraine declared independence in 1991, Westinghouse began challenging this relationship, and a tender was held in 1996 to decide who would build Ukraine’s own fuel maker.

TVEL won the tender, but the plant was never built. So a decade later, under the watch of pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko, Westinghouse and TVEL were invited to take part in a competitive evaluation to decide who would build the fuel plant.

“A competitive evaluation was said to be simpler and faster than a proper tender,” said Svitlana Merkulova, Westinghouse’s spokesperson in Ukraine. But the selection process dragged on until this year, when Russiaborn Mykola Azarov took charge of the government as prime minister.

The composition of the inter-agency committee that selected Russian TVEL as the winner of the evaluation has yet to be revealed, according to Merkulova.

Moreover, during the drawn-out selection process, articles periodically appeared in the Ukrainian media characterizing the U.S. company’s fuel design as unsafe for Ukrainian reactors.

Merkulova told the Kyiv Post that Ukrainian authorities had freely admitted that the 1996 decision in favor of TVEL was politically motivated. And Volodymyr Saprykin, an energy specialist at Kyiv-based think tank Razumkov Center, said that at least one version of the evaluation criteria that he had seen was tailored to TVEL. “Nobody was excluded from making an offer,” the Energy Ministry’s Chernov said. The government held extensive talks with both Westinghouse and TVEL for two years, he said.

“These were the only two companies to express an interest in the project,” he added.

Westinghouse’s Merkulova points out, however, that her company not only made a competitive offer to the Ukrainian government but attempted to get the country low-cost financing for the project from international lenders.

“The Ukrainians knew that these banking institutions would positively consider a request for a loan for such a project. However, our discussions with the ministry have never progressed to the stage that the ministry would be

prepared to apply to these banks for funding.”

The head of Rosatom, Sergey Kirienko, also gave assurances that TVEL was selected fair and square: “We are confident that the proposal we made to our Ukrainian partners on the basis of technology and economics was without a doubt the best,” he said on Sept. 6.

Kirienko said Russian technicians are already ready to start work on the new plant, which is scheduled to be launched in 2013. An agreement should be signed in a month, TVEL’s press service announced.

Under former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, the Ukrainian government drafted an energy strategy that called for diversification of the country's sources of nuclear fuel.

The cabinet of ministers now must endorse the inter-agency committee’s decision, then a Ukrainian-Russian joint venture will be formed. But clarity as to which side will own the controlling stake in the new plant isn’t expected any time soon.

“It’s currently the subject of negotiations. A final decision is expected by the end of the year,” Chernov said.

In the mean time, Russian advances to take over Ukraine’s gas pipelines and storage facilities continue afoot.

Gazprom chief Alexei Miller reiterated calls this week for “a merger” between his company and its Ukrainian counterpart Naftogaz.

Putin voiced similar designs for Ukraine’s state-owned nuclear company Energoatom, which the government continues forcing to sell its electricity at below-market rates.

According to Pashinsky, a lawmaker in opposition leader Tymoshenko’s faction, the Russians are already too close for comfort.

“I don’t want to describe some kind of nightmare situation here, but suffice it to say that we will be using Russian technology and Russian technicians and we will be dependent on both,” he warned.

Kyiv Post staff writer John Marone can be reached at marone@kyivpost.com

16 Opinion

Peleschuk: Sevastopol residents believe disputes are exaggerated Æ5 most prominent advocate of Russia’s claim to Sevastopol, repeatedly claiming that it is a “Russian city,” comments that provoked former President Viktor Yushchenko to ban him from Ukraine in 2007. In the past few years, Luzhkov has flooded Sevastopol with cash for several projects to ensure Russian influence remains in the city.

Language has also proven a difficult issue, one that residents said Yushchenko only helped exacerbate.

His strong advocacy of the Ukrainian language, even in traditionally Russianspeaking territories such as Crimea, helped alienate swathes of Russianspeaking Ukrainian citizens.

“If you speak Russian all of your life and aren’t forced to speak Ukrainian, then everything is fine,” said Yulia Gladenko, a 26-year-old teacher and translator in Sevastopol. “But if you’re forced to study in Ukrainian, watch films in Ukrainian, then it leads to negative attitudes to the language and the general policy.”

But Gladenko, whose ethnic background is half-Russian, half-Armenian and who speaks both Russian and Ukrainian, said she has never experienced overt tensions between Russian and Ukrainian speakers.

“On a human level, we do not have such problems,” she said. “I’ve never seen any serious confrontations. It’s all extremely politicized.”

Perhaps the most telling moment came on Aug. 24, Ukrainian Independence Day, when the city’s Nakhimov Square hosted a concert in commemoration of the holiday.

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September 10, 2010

Coynash: UT-1 cheerleads for government Æ5 issues regarding observance of

Sevastopol residents celebrate Russia Day in Sevastopol on June 12.

(UNIAN)

Hundreds appeared, some waving Ukrainian flags, to watch a modern mash-up of popular Ukrainian songs.

Some artists sang in Ukrainian, others in Russian.

At one point, one of the few men dressed in a traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirt appeared involved in a verbal scuffle with a Russian naval officer watching the show. The two argued – the man in Ukrainian and the officer in Russian – about

Russia’s apparent creeping incursion into the region.

After awhile, however, the two seemed to make up, laughing off their differences before shaking hands and strolling off together toward the waterfront.

“Is everything okay?” the Ukrainian speaker asked. “Of course,” the officer replied. “Everything is fine.”

Dan Peleschuk is a freelance journalist in Kyiv.

democratic norms and human rights.

Then, when on Aug. 30 the Verkhovna Rad finally gave in to criticism and changed an undemocratic election law for the better, UT-1 protrayed the reversal as proof of a responsive government versus the mean and ungrateful opposition.

One can even argue that UT-1 even thought about presenting a balance of views, since in the first of the two features on this theme we even hear two sentences from a disgruntled deputy from YuliaTymoshenko’s Bloc (BYuT). And after all, it’s not their fault that the viewers will understand nothing of this comment.

All of this is like in soap operas – binary, simplistic and false. The wellfounded concerns and voices of both Ukrainian and international specialists warning of the threat to democratic elections and democracy are left out of the camera’s focus and unheard.

The authorities can forget their facile assurances regarding the number of critical websites, newspapers, etc. Most people in any country receive their information from television. Those in power are well aware of that, just as they are of the state of the First National TV Channel under the management appointed by the coalition’s cabinet of ministers back in March.

When asked about Germany’s response to the case involving

Valery Khoroshkovsky

Channel 5 and TVi, Lange predicted that “Germany’s reaction will depend, among other things, on the processes and reaction to the frequencies issue of the Ukrainian public themselves.”

Developments over recent months make it likely that the same can be said of any encroachments on democracy – that their success will depend on the reaction of the Ukrainian public. In this case, when confronted by the flagrant manipulation of public opinion by the mass media, silence will be fatal.

Halya Coynash is a member of the Kharkiv Human Rights Group.

Mac: Freedom, prosperity will blunt Russian imperialism Æ4 count on natural gas imports.

How right was Charles de Gaulle when he said that politics is too serious to be left to politicians?

This year especially, politicians in Moscow, Kyiv and Washington talked and acted in ways adversely affecting the interests of ordinary citizens. On the prime time news, we have seen American political leaders at the highest level reading politically correct words from their teleprompters and shaking hands with Kremlin leaders, even though those hands are tainted with the blood of recently murdered defenders of human rights in Russia.

Beyond traditional public niceties, we were not told what was discussed between Yanukovych and U.S. President Barack Obama behind closed doors. But we do know that upon Yanukovych’s return home, the Ukrainian State Security Service, or SBU, was transformed almost overnight to its former Soviet KGB role of curtailing freedom of speech and trying to force Ukrainian academic leaders to become its stool pigeons Citizens of Ukraine were forbidden to voice their disapproval of government in public demonstrations. Nightly secret knocks on the door, reminiscent of Communist era, informed the mass media to tone down their criticism of the government.

U.S. Secretary Of State Hillary Clinton visited Ukraine last July and hinted to Yanukovych to adhere to

the principles of democracy. He let her words pass by. But, encouraged by her visit, the president issued more orders depriving the Ukrainian public of free expression. He allowed Russian Patriarch Kirill to roam Ukraine freely and to badmouth Ukrainian churches on every city square he stopped by.

Meanwhile, a direct presidential order forbade public to stage any demonstration or voice criticism of the Kremlinallied religious leader.

Sooner rather than later, I think the Ukrainian president will realize he is losing his status as a leader of an independent nation. Eagerly or reluctantly, he will start cutting off ties with Moscow. And he will realize that Russia never wanted an independent Ukraine and has been working there around the clock to transform its neighbor state to the status of obedient servant.

The world will not be surprised when Moscow soon starts haranguing Yanukovych as much as it did his predecessor, ex-President Viktor Yushchenko. The Kremlin leaders may be using their stronghold over gas supplies as their most powerful political weapon, cutting off Europe in previous years and blaming Ukrainian leadership for it.

Some of the old, evil shadows still cast darkness over Ukraine. Some of its citizens still live in fear of the communist past. But Ukrainians have grown stronger over nearly two decades of independence. Many now understand that their fate lies in their own hands.

Æ Although a divided nation narrowly elected Viktor Yanukovych its president, the government he leads is not, in President Abraham Lincoln’s words, “by the people for the people.”

Open communication with the world and the opportunity to travel around has helped it create a new breed of educated, informed and motivated Ukrainian citizens to work responsibly for the good of all.

Their work has not yet had time to make a big impact on jobs, better salaries and better living standards. But it was their political resolve that influenced the Ukrainian parliament not to grant Yanukovych more arbitrary political power.

When push comes to shove, in his inevitable struggle with Kremlin leaders, Yanukovych will have to rely

heavily on the support of these new Ukrainian citizens. They know exactly what is going on. They understand that the new lease for stationing Russian naval forces in Crimea, the gobbling up of key Ukrainian industrial centers

by Kremlin-friendly business interests and the Russian patriarch preaching Russian Orthodoxy in Ukraine is an attempt to revive the old Russian Empire.

It is sad that, while privileged Russian officials gladly indulge in Western goods and material abundance, they shy away from the roots of Western freedom and prosperity. The men in

the Kremlin are very much afraid that implanting Western roots in Russia’s soil would bring destruction to their inhumane policies and their own political monopoly. Russian workers and the Russian intelligentsia would demand the democratic changes in their own country.

If American foreign policy begins to practice what it has so long preached, the pendulum of change can swing in a positive direction. An American foreign policy based not on the political expediency of the moment, but on ideals of our founding fathers, will serve our country well and benefit freedomloving people everywhere.

For several generations, our taxpayers’ money has been used to broadcast our ideals around the world. The more our words – and our actions – match those values, the more they will take root in the fertile ground around the globe and the more the United States will reassert itself as a moral leader for all those who cherish freedom.

Ukraine needs American involvement and is waiting for it.

Roman D. Mac, a U.S. citizen and retired businessman residing in Pennsylvania, is a veteran of Ukraine’s Insurgent Army (UPA), which fought against both Soviet and Nazi armies during World War II to achieve national independence. He authored a book about his experience during those years called “The Winding Path to Freedom.” Mac can be reached at rdmviolin2000@msn. com

Lifestyle

September 10, 2010

Play | Food | Entertainment | Sports | Culture | Music | Movies | Art | Community Events

Jewish New Year celebration begins

Watch an ostrich race or even ride a bird this September! Æ24 www.kyivpost.com

Food Critic WITH KATYA GORCHINSKAYA SKAYA A AND YULIYA POPOVA GORCHINSKAYA@KYIVPOST.COM COM CO COM AND POPOVA@KYIVPOST.COM

Editor’s note: Eating out in Ukraine is a gamble. To bring you honest food reviews, Kyiv Post writers go to restaurants unannounced, pay for their own meals and never accept favors from restaurateurs.

Despite its scary name, Mafia does not always rule

Hasidic Jews celebrate New Year in Uman, Cherkasy Oblast, on Sept. 8. (UNIAN)

BY A L E X A N D R A R O MAN OVS KAYA ROMANOVSKAYA@KYIVPOST.COM

Pomegranate is one of the holiest foods in the Judaism. According to Jewish tradition, the number of seeds in one fruit matches 613 commandments in the

Torah, the religion's core book, making it a popular fruit to eat during the Jewish New Year. These and other traditions are coming alive in September during the two most important Jewish holidays of the year: Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

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The Hebrew calendar has four newyear dates, but Rosh Hashanah is considered the most important one.

It fell on Sept. 8 on the Gregorian calendar this year and lasted for two days. Believers are expected to spend the following 10 days in prayer and

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repentance. The New Year marks the creation of the world, which took place 5,771 years ago, based on the lunar calculations. “It is the day when God decides the fate of all the creatures for the year to come: If they get sick or healthy, make money or grow Æ25

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It might seem a little weird to call a restaurant “Mafia,” but it has certainly worked in Kyiv. A network of five such establishments has sprung up in the last year or so, the latest one opening just days ago.

These pleasant, moderately priced restaurants seem to be growing in popularity with young, middleclass residents.

Despite the dubious name, first impressions are good. The interiors are stylish and modern, with little classical and kitsch elements, as well as modern art. They’re roomy and airy – a rarity in Kyiv, where many restaurants are squeezed into spaces that had not originally been intended for that purpose.

The restaurants boasti Italian and Japanese cuisines, but the Japanese element is hard to find in the interior. There are quite a few Japanese dishes on the menu, however.

You’re greeted with smiles rather than guns, and both reviewers had pleasant and fast, but not overwhelming, service in the Podil restaurant of the chain on three different occasions. There are four restaurants in the chain altogether, scattered around Kyiv, and two more in Kharkiv.

The chain’s motto is “family values,” implying not just the way mafia clans are constructed, but that children are welcome in the restaurants. However, the eateries are obviously targeted at large companies – possibly adult groups, more than families. For example, their special meter-long pizzas that start at Hr 99 come with a complimentary half-liter carafe of wine.

The pizzas will impress children, but the wine indicates they’re not the target audience.

A children’s menu is available.

So are special offers. On weekends, for example, kids can make their own pizza and sushi rolls, then treat their parents to the result of the cooking experiment. It’s called “the club of young cooks,” running from 11 a.m. to 13 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday.

The food in the restaurants can be hit and miss, however, and so can the drinks. On one occasion, everything that came to the table was fresh, delicious and well-presented – except the warm white wine. Leek, rucola and Parma ham soup (Hr 45) was silky and smooth, and thankfully arrived soon Æ25

18 Seven Days

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(AP)

Klitschko fights

Heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko will put his three title belts on the line against challenger and former champion Samuel Peter in Frankfurt, Germany’s 50,000-seat CommerzbankArena.

Their rematch pits “The Nigerian Nightmare” against “Dr. Steelhammer” five years after Peter lost a 12-round decision in Atlantic City, New Jersey, despite putting down the younger Klitschko brother three times in the fight. Klitschko won 9 out of the 12 rounds on scorecards.

Peter has been training in secluded Big Bear, California for the fight and is down to 235 pounds, his lowest weight since 2001. He weighed 250 pounds when he was outclassed in a fight against the elder Klitschko brother, Vitaliy, in late 2008. But Wladimir has become an almost unstoppable boxer under trainer Emanuel Steward. In nine title fights since 2005, he has rarely lost a round, never been decked and has stopped every opponent. Both are strong punchers, with strong KO power.

Watch the direct broadcast of the fight on Inter TV Channel at 11:10 p.m.

(Courtesy photo)

September 10, 2010

Pierre Richard tours

(Courtesy photo)

Sept. 11

Sept. 15

Jazz with Al Foster Quartet Kyiv is ringing with jazz again. On Sept. 15, legendary drummer Al Foster, whose career dates back to the ’60s, will entertain Ukrainian jazz music lovers at Kyiv’s Culture and Education Center “Master Klass.” Foster played with jazz great Miles Davis. Foster began playing drums at the age of 13 and made his recording debut at 16. Since 1996, he has been touring with his own band, Al Foster Quartet, playing musical styles ranging from bebop to free form to jazz and rock. The Al Foster Quartet has already played more than 1,000 concerts worldwide.

The 76-year old “tall blond man with one black shoe” comes to Kyiv to play at Ivan Franko National Academic Drama Theatre. For three days, starting Sept. 15, Richard will stage his autobiography play “Pierre Richard. Poste Restante” together with his son, Christophe Dafeys, playing double bass.

According to the script, Richard receives hundreds of letters from all over the world. Answering all these letters creates a truthful and cute self-portrait of the actor.

Director Christophe Duthuron has staged three plays starring Richard: “Pierre Richard in the Soviet Country” (2001), “Detournement de Memoire” (2003), and “Franchise Postale” (2008).

With his play “Pierre Richard. Poste Restante,” Richard will also visit Odesa on Sept. 18. In May, the celebrity and his wife visited Kharkiv for the second international film festival “Kharkovskaya Siren” (Kharkiv Lilac).

Kyiv’s Ivan Franko National Academic Drama Theatre (Ivan Franko Ploshcha, 3, exit from Khreshchatyk metro station to Gorodetskogo Street), Sept. 15-17. Tickets: Hr 500-3,000. For details, see: http://ft.org.ua, or call (044) 279 - 59 - 21

Kyiv’s Culture and Education Center “Master Klass” (Lavrska Street, 34, near Arsenalna metro), Sept. 15 at 8 p.m. Tickets: Hr 150. For more details, see: www.jazzinkiev.com

(Courtesy photo)

Sept. 15-17

September concerts Outdoor music concerts are moving inside. On Sept. 11, Kyiv’s Crystal Hall welcomes Zemfira, the Russian rock singer since 1998. An ethnic Bashkir, Zemfira Ramazonova has released six studio albums. Though the celebrity has never discussed her private life, some Russian media has speculated on her relationship with popular Russian actress Renata Litvinova. Zemfira's clean and strong vocals paired with often controversial lyrics can court anyone though, tune in!

Zemfira at Kyiv’s Crystal hall (Dniprovsky Spusk (Dnieper Descent), 1, near Arsenalna metro station), Sept. 11 at 8 p.m. For details, call: 067- 442-92-67, (044)-288 -50-69 or see: http://crystalhall. com.ua/

On Sept. 18, Zhanna Friske, popular Russian pop singer, socialite and film actress will be performing in Kyiv’s Decadence House. Rising up the celebrity ladder with Blestyashchie (Sparkling) girls band in 1990's, Friske went solo in 2003. She gained some international acclaim after a part in Russian fantasy horror films “The day watch” and “The night watch” by cult film director Timur Bekmambetov.

Often voted Russia's female sex symbol by glossy magazines, she causes furor wherever she goes.

Zhanna Friske at Kyiv’s Decadence House (Shota Rustaveli Street, 16), Sept. 18 at 11 p.m. For details, call: (044) 206-49-20.

Main Stage 2010 music festival starts up on Sept. 11 at International Exhibition Centre in Kyiv. Groove Armada, legendary British electronic and progressive house music duo since 1996, is among the headliners of the festival. In 2001, the band was Grammy nominated for their single “Superstylin.” The single Groove Armada is most famous for is “At the river” (1997), which sample was featured in the movie “Die Hard 2.”

Groove Armada at Kyiv’s International Exhibition Centre (Brovarsky Prospekt, 15, near Livoberezhna metro station), Sept. 11 at 9 p.m. Tickets: Hr190-500. For details, see: http:// music.open.ua/groove_armada.html or call: (044) 453 2246.

Classical music lovers would surely enjoy Antonio Salieri’s 26th birthday anniversary with National chamber ensemble ‘Kyiv soloists’ On Sept. 16, the National Philharmonic of Ukraine will resound with famous Salieri’s symphonies and operas and Rimsky-Korsakov’s opera “Mozart and Salieri.” The music of classical Italian composer disappeared from repertoires in 1800's, until a major comeback in the late 20th century. Peter Shaffer screened Salieri's biography in the film ‘Amadeus,’ which in 1984 won an Academy Award for Best Picture National chamber ensemble Kyiv Soloists at the National Philharmonic of Ukraine (Volodymyrsky Uzviz,2), Sept. 16 at 7 p.m. For details, call (044) 234-50-31, or see in English: www.filarmonia.com.ua/en.afisha

The new comic season by Real Comedy Club is ready to open at Arena’s dance club.

Each Saturday, starting Sept. 11, some 10 comedians will laugh it all off live in front of a celebrity and regular club audience. The shows can also be watched on ICTV channel each Friday. Singers Tina Karol, Alyosha, Lama, Gaitana, and fashion designer Andre Tan will help to kick-start the season.

Real Comedy at Arena dance club (Baseyna Street, 2A, near Khreshchatyk metro station), each Saturday starting from Sept.11 at 10 p.m. For details, see: http://arena-kiev.com or call: (044) 592-91-11.

Sept. 18

British Placebo in Kyiv Ukrainian alternative rock fans have already started buying tickets for Placebo, a popular London rock band. On Sept. 18, Kyiv’s International Exhibition Centre will welcome Placebo for the second time in Ukraine.

In 16 years, the British band has released six studio albums and 21 singles. In 2009, Placebo won the MTV Europe Music Awards as the best alternative band. The guys have gained wide international recognition, selling more than 10 million albums worldwide. Placebo is best known for hit songs “Nancy boy,” “Pure morning,” “Every you every me,” and “Infra-red.”

Kyiv’s International Exhibition Centre (Brovarsky Prospekt, 15, near Livoberezhna metro station), Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. Tickets: Hr 350 – 600.

American Football It’s American football Sunday again as the National Football League season kicks off Sept. 12 Arizona BBQ, the longtime expatriate hangout in Kyiv’s Podil neighborhood. Three different games will be shown simultaneiously in the backroom, with the earliest ones kicking off at 8 p.m. Sept. 11 will feature college football, while three games start at 8 p.m. on Sept. 12: New England Patriots vs. Cincinnati Bengals; Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions; and Houston Texans vs. Indianapolis Colts.

The 10:30 p.m. games are: Arizona Cardinals vs.

St. Louis Rams; Green Bay Packers vs. Philadelphia Eagles; and San Francisco 49ers vs.

Seattle Seahawks.

Arizona BBQ 25 Naberezhno-Khreschatytska (Metro: Kontraktova Ploshcha) 425-2438

Compiled by Iryna Prymachyk and Mark Rachkevyck

www.kyivpost.com

Movies

Live Music

“Eastern plays” (http://www.europeanfilmacademy.org) MODERN BULGARIAN FILM FESTIVAL With people returning from holidays, autumn is a great time to hold a movie festival. Both restful and restless for a familiar pastime like cinema, they long for quiet nights inside. The third annual Festival of Modern Bulgarian Cinema will be a great opportunity to see how new EU member is doing in feature and documentary films. The program will run in Kyiv cinema from Sept 13 to 19. Bulgarian Ambassador Dimitar Vladimirov will open the festival on Sept 13. Film directors Vladimir Kraev, Iglika Trifonova and Vasil Barkov will present their works and conduct master classes in movie-making. The program is short, so don’t procrastinate and get tickets fast. “Eastern plays” by Kamen Kalev, which won him a top prize at Tokyo International Film Festival last year, will open the program.

• “Eastern plays”, 2009, 83 min., directed

by Kamen Kalev • “World is large but rescue lurks around corner”, 2008, 119 min, directed by Stephan Komandarev • “Investigation”, 2006, 95 min, directed by IglikaTrifonova • “Crawfish”, 2009, 110 min, directed by Ivan Cherkelov • “The Last Journey”, 2008, 60 min, directed by Vasil Barkov • “Senseless conversations”, 2007, 90 min, directed by Vladimir Kraev • “Abduction”, 2010, 90 min, directed by Plamen Maslarov MR. NOBODY Language: English Fantasy Drama/Canada/Belgium/France (2009) Directed by Jaco Van Dormael Starring Jared Leto, Diane Kruger, Sarah Polley and others These days American actor Jared Leto is more often seen recording songs, shooting music

Lifestyle 19

September 10, 2010

videos and performing with his alternativerock band 30 Seconds to Mars, than acting in films. However, he made an exception for Belgian director Jaco Van Dormael to star in this weird tale of a man with a very suggestive name – Nemo Nobody. Nobody leads an ordinary life with his wife, Elise (Polley) and their three children, until one day he wakes up as an old man living in the year 2092. Moreover, he turns out to be both the oldest living human and the only mortal still remaining– since in this future society nobody dies anymore. But what Nobody himself cares about is to know whether he has lived the right life, loved the woman he was meant to love and had the children he was meant to have.

OM SARA Language: Swedish Drama (2005) Directed by Othman Karim Starring Linda Zilliacus Sara is in her early 20s and lives in Malmo, in the south of Sweden. Her father is dead, and Sara has to put her mother into a hospital. Her boyfriend Kalle is a celebrated soccer player and likes the high life fame brings. Sara, however, wants to study and work.

Despite clearly different life goals, they marry, only to split up later. The job is also in the way of her next big relationship. Failing to get a proper man in her life, Sara decides to have a baby, not necessarily being married. At this stage, she falls for a carpenter working on her old house. Is she getting desperate or love conquers it all?

The film won an award at the Moscow International Film Festival.

THE VANISHING POINT (CE QUE MES YEUX ONT VU) Language: French Fantasy Drama/Mystery/France(2007) Directed by Laurent de Bartillat

Starring Sylvie Testud, Jean-Pierre Marielle, James Thierree and others Coming out just a year after “The Da Vinci Code,” “The Vanishing Point” offered a European take on the mystery involving a famous artist and hidden messages in his paintings. Made by a French director with a French actor, “The Vanishing Point” is a lot more humane and subtle than the “Code,” though there are plenty of logical holes here as well. But if you stay away from analyzing the film much, you may still enjoy it. A history student, Lucy (Testud) is trying to trace the identity of a female, whose behind is pictured in a painting by French artist Antoine Watteau (1684-1721).

At the same time she develops an awkward relationship with mute street mime Vincent (Thierree). Soon after, however, Vincent falls into a coma. But just before he does, he shows Lucie a picture of himself as a child in an institution for children with disabilities.

Coincidentally (or not?) the photograph provides Lucie with another lead to her Watteau mystery. On the picture she sees a work by another French artist, Gilles-Marie Oppenord, which, she believes, holds the key to Watteau’s life and career.

KYIV CINEMA 19 Chervonoarmiyska, 234-7381 http://www.kievkino.com.ua/ Eastern plays, Sept. 13 at 7:00 p.m.

Senseless conversations, Sept. 14 at 7:00 p.m., Sept. 15 at 5:00 p.m.

Investigation, Sept. 15 at 7:00 p.m., Sept. 16 at 5:00 p.m.

The last journey, Sept. 16 at 7:00 p.m., Sept. 17 at 5:00 p.m.

Crawfish, Sept. 17 at 7:00 p.m., Sept.

18 at 5:00 p.m.

Abduction, Sept. 18 at 7:00 p.m., Sept. 19 at 5:00 p.m.

World is large but rescue lurks around the corner, Sept. 19 at 7:00 p.m., Sept. 20 at 5:00 p.m.

ZHOVTEN 26 Konstyantynivska, 205-5951, www.zhovten-kino.kiev.ua Mr.Nobody September 9-14 at 11.30 a.m., 1:50 p.m., 4:10 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 8:50 p.m., 11:00 p.m. (call to arrange a viewing) Om Sara Sept. 9 – 15 at 6:05 p.m., Sept. 10-15 at 1:40 p.m., Sept. 11-12 at 12.55 p.m.

The Vanishing Point Sept. 9-10 and 13-15 at 1:20 p.m., Sept. 11-12 at 3.55 p.m.

Mad Heads XL

ART CLUB 44 44B Khreshchatyk, 279-4137, www.club44. com.ua Concerts traditionally start 8 – 10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Crazy Friday: Fishki Monroe, Hr 50 Sept. 11 Raving Saturday: Carte Blanche, Hr 50 Sept. 12 Jazz: Soiuz 44 Jam Session, free admission Sept. 13 Seni Bekirov Jazz Quintette, free admission Sept. 14 Panika Trio, free admission Sept. 15 Dan Rothary (Canada), Hr 30 Sept. 16 Balkan Party, Hr 20 DOCKER’S ABC 15Khreshchatyk, 278-1717, www.docker. com.ua Concerts traditionally start 9:30-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Mad Heads XL, Bangladesh Orchestra, Hr. 70 Sept. 11 Chilibombers, Angie Nears, Hr 70 Sept. 12 Mr. Och and His Root Boys, free admission Sept. 13 Mojo Jo Jo, free admission Sept. 14 More Huana, Hr 20 Sept. 15 The Magma, Hr 30 DOCKER PUB 25 Bohatyrska (Heroyiv Dnipra metro), www.docker.com.ua Concerts traditionally start 9:30-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Lampasy (Russia), Red Rocks, Hr 70 Sept. 11 UkrayinSKA Group, Mr. Och and His Root Boys, Hr 70 Sept. 12 Vostochny Express, free admission Sept. 13 Lemmons, free admission Sept. 14 Tres Deseos, free admission Sept. 15 Rockin’ Wolves, free admission

BOCHKA PYVNA ON KHMELNYTSKOHO 4B-1 Khmelnytskoho (Teatralna metro), 390-6106, www.bochka.com.ua Concerts traditionally start 9-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Point, Post Sence, Chill Out, Hr 30 Sept. 11 Zemfira After Party, Tres Deseos, Hr 30 Sept. 16 Inshyi Den, Hot Guys, Hr 40 BOCHKA PYVNA ON KHRESCHATYK 19A Khreschatyk St., 459-0551, www.bochka.com.ua Concerts traditionally start 9-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 True Colors Sept. 11 Red Rocks Sept. 16 Juke Box PORTER PUB 3 Sichnevoho Povstannya, 280-1996, www. porter.com.ua Concerts traditionally start 9-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Bikfordov Sept. 11 Dikie Liudi Sept. 15 Ivan Bliuz Sept. 16 Maks Tavricheski JAZZ DO IT 76A Velyka Vasylkivska (Chervonoarmiyska), 599-7617, http://jazz-doit.com.ua/ Concerts traditionally start 9-10 p.m.

Sept. 10 Maria Zubkova Duo Sept. 11 Mikhail Chuyev One-Man Band Sept. 14 Alexander Saratskyi, Alexei Tuzov Sept. 15 Majestic Duo Other live music clubs: DRAFT (1/2 Khoryva (Kontraktova Ploshcha metro), 463-7330).

KHLIB CLUB (12 Frunze, www.myspace. com/xlibclub ).

CHESHIRE CAT (9 Sklyarenko, 428-2717).

O’BRIEN’S (17A Mykhaylivska, 279-1584).

DAKOTA (14G Heroyiv Stalinhradu, 4687410).

U KRUZHKI (12/37 Dekabrystiv, 562-6262).

Compiled by Alexandra Romanovskaya and Svitlana Kolisnyk

20 Lifestyle

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Mohammad Zahoor (L), Kamaliya (center) and piano legend George Duke (fourth from left)

Viva, Las Vegas!

(And a showbiz career) K A MA L I YA

America is daunting and competitive, but – determined to take my singing and acting talents to this land of opportunity – I took a two-week trip to the United States. The payoff came.

The highlights of the journey included a show in Las Vegas, a new movie contract and a new album. But let’s take things one thing at a time.

To record a new album, we had to attend a gazillion of meetings together with my husband, [ISTIL Group owner and Kyiv Post publisher] Mohammad

Mrs World 2008 Kamaliya (L) and Caliente, Miss Miami USA

ÆAmerica is competitive and daunting, but still the best place to make a breakthrough as a singer and movie actress Zahoor. The pinnacle was a concert and a grand party at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas for film producers, musicians and actors on Aug 22. I entertained some 150 guests of various levels of star caliber. But meeting jazz legend George Duke, actor Peter Dobson, producer Gregory Gonaway (who worked with superstars Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.)

There were also Chester Bennington, the lead singer of Linkin Park, Rolling Stone magazine publisher William Cory

Tuchscher and rapper Baby Bash.

Just across the road, the Miss Universe contest was taking place at the same time as my show, but I managed to catch a glimpse of the beauty pageant nonetheless.

Glamorous fun was followed by business meetings again. What can I say?

American show business is very different from ours. Music gurus said I was like Shakira with Christina Aguilera’s vocals. I am flattered by the comparison. A few lucrative offers followed, but

Mohammad Zahoor (L) and producer Gigi Gonaway. (Courtesy photo)

it will obviously take time before negotiations evolve into cooperation.

After the Vegas gig, we headed for Los Angeles and New York. I was overwhelmed with offers: WMA, E1 (Koch), Capitol, Brooklyn, Atlantic, Give and many other recording companies came knocking on my door.

In L.A., I met with jazz legend Duke, also known as Big Piano. We met at a party awhile back, so when he learned I was in his part of the world, he invited me over. He’s currently working on a new album with Russian diva Larisa Dolina. After that, he promised to work with me.

I have also met with Bruce Lowe, a multiple Grammy winner and American music producer, knows for his work with Madonna, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Quincy Jones, Paul McCartney and Jimmy Hendrix among others.

Having listened to my songs, he vowed to create several hits for my new album.

Then, we met with Tricky Stewart, producer of the famous “Umbrella” song, which won Rihanna a Grammy.

Stewart is ready to help with my first English-language album. Moreover, my representatives in the United States are negotiating with Dr. Luke, who worked with fabulous Katy Perry on her new album.

From Los Angeles, I flew to New York together with my husband, where we met with Fabrizio Sotti, Sade’s music producer. Sotti offered us his specialty - ballads and club hits.

To proceed, I will have to hire an entertainment attorney. So aside from songs and image, we’re negotiating with two prominent law firms in New York and Toronto.

As soon we settle with lawyers, we can start promoting my new album in the U.S., Europe and Japan. Then a hurricane of live performances, video releases and interviews will suck me in for a few months.

Aside from music, I received a tempting offer from American moviemakers.

While in Las Vegas I met with Jeff Best, producer of the future Hollywood movie “The Fight Town.” He offered me a female lead role alongside American wrestling star Steve Austin, nicknamed Stone Cold. The story is about the adventurous and daredevil life of an ultimate fighter.

So while the contracts are in the works, I’m learning new songs and thinking over a new image. Phew, and all of this in only two weeks!

Conquering America isn’t easy, but I love every second of it.

Kamaliya’s website is at www.kamaliya.net

www.kyivpost.com

Lifestyle 21

September 10, 2010

BY E L E N A Z AG R E B IN A ZAGREBINA@KYIVPOST.COM

French writer Antoine de Saint Exupery once said that he flies because it releases his mind from the tyranny of petty things. The author of “Little Prince,” also a professional pilot, had a knack for flying. To feel that pure and fine air he loved, as well as lift your head up from a pile of work, Kyiv has a number of possibilities for a takeoff. Here are some of the top ways to touch the sky.

Hot air balloon festival in Vasylkiv, Kyiv Oblast, took place in August.

(Ukrainian photo)

Hot air balloons

The sky is the limit

You can enjoy hot air balloons by yourself or take your family, friends and colleagues – up to 10 - with you. No skills are needed and almost everyone can hop in the basket, except for pregnant women and the smallest children. A one-hour flight costs approximately Hr 1,500 outside of Kyiv. Checking out the city landmarks from high above will cost twice as much.

Fall and winter flights are available, but it’s summertime, of course, that offers the longest options – early in the morning and just before sunset.

Pilot club: 453-66-35, 453-66-36 www.kievballoons.com.ua, Russian only NaShare: +38(066) 274 21 81 www.nashare.com.ua , Russian only Kyiv Ballooning Society: 406-77-00, 351-66-28 www.ballooning-ua.com/english

Bungee jumping This unearthly activity will take several minutes. At Venetian bridge in Hydropark, some 40 meters above the waterline, your legs will be tied with a large elastic cord. When you jump, the cord stretches as you are falling down until the point when it snaps back sending you upward again. You’ll continue oscillating up and down with adrenaline making your blood boil.

The oldest known jumper in Kyiv was a 72-year-old woman, while the youngest was a 14-year-old girl. So for the brave and healthy at heart, this flight is a must on the flying list.

Take off for Hr 180-200 in Hydropark: +38(050)683-81-71

alp.org.ua

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Have an opinion to express about what’s going on in Kyiv?

The Kyiv Post welcomes tips and contributions.

Please e-mail your ideas to Lifestyle Editor Yuliya Popova, at popova@kyivpost.com.

Please include e-mail address and contact phone number for verification.

Parachute jumping This jump will last no longer than a bungee adventure, but this time there will be nothing fastened to your legs. A parachute is your only partner and friend in the skies. You can choose between a tandem Courtesy photo jump with an instructor and a free jump on your own. Skydiving, of course, is not for the faint of heart: your lungs, ears, blood, and kidneys should be strong.

Tandem flights cost Hr 1,150 - 1,500, and for a single jump expect to pay Hr 240-270. A briefing, parachute rental and a onetime insurance is included in the price.

DropZone “Borodyanka”: 522-92-36, +38(067) 733-58-18 www.paraskuf.com.ua , Russian only DropZone “Chaika”: 424-82-93 http://www.dropzone.kiev.ua “Progress” parachute club: +38(0462)24-32-46, +38(067)460-17-12 www.progres.org.ua, Russian only

Tennis lessons for children and adults on the most up-to date tennis courts.

Wide assortment of additional services, such as:

• sparing • individual tennis training and instruction • stringing • sales of tennis accessories • fitness • training gym • therapeutic massage • fresh-bar and cafe. • Wide parking and walking area.

89, Zhovtneva str., PP Borschagivka. Tel.: 044 409 2452, 044 409 2461 044 409 2435, 044 409 2443 (Ring road area close to Akademmistechko and Zhytomirskaya metro stations). www.tennisschool.com.ua

Planes Airfields around Kyiv are full of small engine-free and regular planes: hang-gliders (foot-launched aircraft with framed wings), paragliders (foot-launched aircraft with unframed wings), gliders (sail planes) and helicopters. Trial flights with a pilot at the Chaika airfield costs Hr 40 per minute. In theory, you can’t fly them solo before you graduate from a pilot school first. An introductory evening pilot course will take two months and costs Hr 3,500. The full course lasts up to two years and costs some Hr 100,000. But as with everything else in Ukraine, you can “Chaika” airfield: 424-82-93 cut corners. For a bit of frolicking in Tips and winks at www.gliding.com.ua, Russian only the skies, it helps to know a pilot. www.slando.com.ua

22 Lifestyle

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Belgrade makes the grade for a weekend break The splendid Kalemegdan Fortress at the heart of Belgrade (Courtesy)

STACK@KYIVPOST.COM

Serbia’s capital Belgrade, which means the White City in Serbian, might not have it all, but it has a lot. It’s has a magnificent fortress located at the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers, with stunning sunset views over the plain. It’s got a cobblestoned Bohemian quarter, unchanged since the national awakening in the 19th century. It’s got some of Europe’s newest war ruins, dating back only to 1999. And finally, it’s got a pulsating nightlife that on balmy summer nights on the banks of the Danube and on the dance floors of the myriad river boats has no parallel in Europe.

For those not yet in the know: Belgrade – only recently a pariah capi-

tal under NATO bombardment – has metamorphosed into one of Europe’s premier summer nightlife destinations.

A legion of enthusiasts claim it’s on par with Barcelona, Berlin and Ibiza.

Locals shrug off the hyperbole, saying “it was always like this except during the bombs,� but are happy to see hip youngsters from all over the world flock to their new-found dance Mecca.

While Kyiv also has a disco boat or two on the Dnipro River, Belgrade boasts dozens of them parked end to end where the Danube glides through the city center. With revelers filing from one club to the next along the packed river banks in the warm summer night, the boats form one vast nightclub with countless dance floors, boasting some of the finest sounds in European dance, with Balkan turbo-folk thrown

in as well. And this is not twice a week, but night after night while the heat and college vacations last. A cover charge is rare, drinks are reasonable and the people are as happy as can be and looking good. So put on your red shoes and drop in on Red Shoes, H20, Freestyler and Plastic Light, to name just a few.

All the post-modern merrymaking takes place in the prominent shadow of Belgrade fortress – the ancient heart of the city dating back to the Middle Ages, and existing in its present form since the 18th century. The castle is enthroned on a promontory overlooking the junction of Europe’s longest river, the Danube, with the local tributary Sava. This is where you should come to see the sunset, stroll through the park and soak up some mellow-

In order to vote in the 2010 midterms elections, registrations must be received by October 1st in most states.

ness and history before descending to the boundless hedonism on the river banks. But there’s some light relief here as well. You will be sharing the inspiring view with a certain Victor – a war memorial consisting of a soldier on a column. Unusually for the genre, the sculpture depicts Victor stark naked.

Originally intended to be erected on a central square, Victor’s full-frontal nakedness was thought inappropriate, so in the interest of modesty he was made to tower over the fortress walls looking out across the plain with his back to the town.

While the castle bears witness to the medieval struggle against the encroaching Ottoman Empire, Belgrade’s martial history extends sadly enough right up to the present. Subject to NATO bombardment in 1999 during the Kosovo

crisis, a number of ruins – twisted masses of concrete and steel – have been left standing as a reminder, and any visitor should have a look. What impresses is not so much the scale of destruction but the precision of the strike, leaving the immediate vicinity unscathed and even avoiding a total collapse of the building. Of prominent buildings suffering direct strikes in central Belgrade, only one has been restored to pristine condition – the Chinese Embassy, one of the most controversial strikes in the war.

A visitor can also tap the positive sides of Serb pride by visiting the Bohemian quarter on the Skadarska street. A less steep version of the Saint Andrew’s descent in Kyiv, it is lined on both sides with traditional Serbian bistros, or kafanas, with all the Æ23

285 87 08 285 99 99 569 55 18

Provide this coupon to receive a 15% discount every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

BY G R A H A M S TAC K

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Lifestyle 23

Belgrade rapidly becoming premier destination for fun Æ22 trappings of the 19th-century national awakening. Everything here is wooden except the service and the food. Try “Dva Yelena” for huge portions and a Serbian folk band serenading your table, which you’ll pay to stay rather than to move on. The waiters seem as old and gnarled as the oak tables but charm with their gruff knowledge of English and twinkling eyes. Order Muchkalica, a cocktail of stewed meats, or Karadjordje steak, for the full Serb culinary experience.

Prices, as everywhere in Belgrade,

are well below the European norm, if higher than in the rest of Serbia.

The Balkans would be unimaginable without coffee and Rakia, a fruit schnaps. Belgrade’s cafe culture and street life is an Ottoman legacy, but has an Italian flair for the modern day visitor. At the same time, there are some peculiarities. Considering Serbs call themselves a nation of coffeelovers, you will be surprised to find most menus including a range of concoctions based on Cafe Nes – the Balkan euphemism for instant coffee.

Serbia sits snugly in the center of Europe, ready to be discovered.

Russia

Germany

Poland Ukraine

France

Romania Serbia Italy

Bulgaria

But you’ll never think of instant the same way after sipping a Nescafe with whipped cream under the restored art nouveau facade of Hotel Moskva.

To have the real Rakia experience, try a full-blown Rakia bar, where staff will advise you which drink to choose from the enormous selection. But men beware, no waiter will look you in the eye if you order a lady’s Rakia such as cherry. Better save face and choose a 65 percent quince Rakia that is so pure you are guaranteed no regrets the next day.

Belgrade is a big bustling city that has no metro system, meaning that traffic jams and air pollution are possibly even worse than in Kyiv. But it’s easy to get out of the bustle, once you’re finished with the main sites. Drop by the tiny colorful old houses of the sleepy Hungarian-German town Zemun on the outskirts of Belgrade. Zemun was formerly not only an independent town, but for periods separated by a border from Belgrade as part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Zemun’s main landmark is in fact the crooked Millennium tower, built in 1896 to commemorate a 1000 years of a local Hungarian settlement. After strolling the winding streets, relax in one of the local riverside fish restaurants to the sound of jazz, staring across at the forests on the far bank.

Kyiv Post staff writer Graham Stack can be reached at stack@kyivpost.com

The sleepy former Hungarian town of Zemun (top) and one of Europe’s newest war ruins in Belgrade. (Courtesy)

24 Lifestyle

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Run, ostrich, run!

Ostriches are pictured during the first Ukrainian Ostrich Festival at Yasnohorodka village on Sept.

4. The breeding of ostriches is becoming more popular in Ukraine.

(AFP)

BY I RY N A P RY MAC H YK PRYMACHYK@KYIVPOST.COM

Those who can’t fly can show their mettle by running fast. It’s not humans we’re talking about, and there is no metaphor here. Six giant, lanky, flightless birds -- four males and two females -- will provide an audience with a new kind of entertainment every weekend in September: the 50-meter bird race.

The show will take place at Yasnohorodka farm, some 30 kilometers from Kyiv.

The farm’s owner, Serhiy Radchenko, imported the idea after visiting an ostrich breeding farm in the Canary Islands and riding an ostrich himself.

“Though I fell down a couple of times, it was not really dangerous.

I was so excited that I decided to bring this unique sport to Ukraine,” Radchenko said. And so, in 2001, he ordered some 30 African baby ostriches from Belgium to Ukraine’s village of Yasnohorodka. Today, there are 300 ostriches in his backyard.

The six racing ostriches, however, are not the fastest, as it turns out. They were selected for their calm temperament. Skilled jockeys have been training the birds for over three months to make them run at their maximum speed of about 70 kilometers per hour – the top land speed of any bird.

Riding them, however, proved easier than catching them.

“An ostrich is an easily frightened bird. It takes us five to 10 minutes to

Serhiy Radchenko

put a black rag over its head to calm it down,” said jockey Roman Tsokur. “It could carry jockeys weighing no more than 75 kilograms. To ride, one must know how to balance well. If your balance is off, the ostrich will try pushing you off to avoid falling down itself.”

Raising ostriches Ostrich breeding is popular worldwide. But it’s only just catching on in Ukraine, where there are only about 10 farms. “It is basically a waste-free bird, which is good for profitability,” Radchenko said.

Every part of the ostrich can be sold for something. Its feathers and egg shells are used for interior decoration, the skin is used to make consumer goods like bags and the meat is good for eating.

Kyiv Zhytomyrska metro station Mriya village

M

Myla village

Shpytky village

Yasnohorodka village Yasnohorodka ostrich farm

Getting to the Ukrainian Ostrich Festival from Kyiv

Ten fun facts about ostriches: 1. It takes an hour to hard-boil an ostrich egg.

2. The egg shells are so hard that it takes a hammer or drill to break them.

3. The birds can’t move backwards and, thus, symbolize forward motion or progress.

4. They were popular entertainment in the arenas of ancient Rome, used to pull chariots and for fighting. A single ostrich kick is so powerful that it could be fatal for humans.

5. They run faster than any bird, 70 kilometers per hour.

6. An ostrich step can be five meters long, its brain is half the size of its eye.

7. They extract liquid from the plants they eat, so they don't have to drink.

8. Ostrich leather is the strongest available.

9. Ostriches never hide their heads in the sand; rather, they stretch out their necks and put their head to the ground to avoid predators.

10. Ostrich skeletons and fossils date back 120 million years.

You can purchase almost everything an ostrich is made of at Yasnohorodka: a raw egg for Hr 150, grease for Hr 15 per 100 grams, an egg shell for Hr 70, skin starting from Hr 2,400 and feathers go for up to Hr 100.

A bottle of vodka refined with ostrich egg white goes for Hr 200.

Farming ostriches and eating ostrich meat are yet to become popular among Ukrainians, said Radchenko. “Ostrich, unlike a pig or a calf, is not so easy to breed in our climate. Moreover, Ukrainians are used to consuming pork, fowl, veal, not ostrich.” Radchenko thinks it would take at least five years to put ostrich meat in a Ukrainian food basket.

A regular ostrich weighs from 63 to 130 kilos and eats plants and insects.

The long-legged bird can live up to 70 years, and lay larger eggs than any other living bird – some 1.5 kilos each.

“It may give some 40 eggs per

Ready, steady, run! Ostrich jockey Yuriy Batrak and his bird in the middle of a race. (Oleksiy Boyko)

season,” said Serhiy Lokhmachiov, the farm manager. “In wild nature both male and female hatch the eggs, but it takes 42 days of incubation in the farm. If eggs are fertilized, we leave them [for hatching], and if not, we sell them to restaurants.”

Ostrich fun And, of course, there’s a fun element to raising ostriches. At Yasnohorodka, you can mount an ostrich and take a slow ride yourself for a modest sum of Hr 30. For the series of September races, organizers prepared plenty of entertainment in addition to the bird run: pig races, an exotic petting zoo, beer, folk music and dancing, as well as kite-flying competitions.

Next year, Radchenko is hoping his farm will host the national ostrich races and even qualify for one of the

biggest ostrich shows in the world, the annual Chandler Ostrich Festival in Arizona, U.S.A. Kyiv Post staff writer Iryna Prymachyk can be reached at prymachyk@kyivpost.com.

Where: Yasnohorodka village, Makariv region, 30 kilometers from Kyiv. Tickets: Hr 250 on the weekend and Hr 15-25 during the week.

When: Sept. 11,12,18,19, 25, 26 at 2:30 p.m. – ostrich races; Sept. 11 at 4:30 p.m. – ethnic music festival; Sept. 18 at 4:30 p.m. – beer festival; Sept. 25 at 4:30 p.m. – dancing festival “Ostrich rhythms”; Sept. 26 at 4:30 p.m. – closing ceremony.

Details (in Russian only): http://ostrich. com.ua

www.kyivpost.com

Lifestyle 25

September 10, 2010

Hasidic Jews flock to spiritual leader’s grave Æ17 poor,” said David Milman from the Brodsky Synagogue. “Everything is decided on this day.”

Rosh Hashanah’s popularity equals that of New Year’s Eve in the secular world. “Even those people who usually don’t observe the law much during the year come to the synagogue and we struggle to fit them all in,” Milman said. Despite the belief that God rules fates on this day, it is possible to change his will through a prayer.

One of the most important traditions during Rosh Hashanah is blowing the ram’s horn, or shofar. Rabbi Jacob Dov Bleich performs this duty in the Podil Synagogue. Carefully picking up a polished, dark-brown horn, he demonstrates a deep sound, which ends abruptly. It announces the start of the 10-day holiday and alerts everyone of the coming judgment. Another tradition is clearing pockets in the nearest water reservoir for “God to take away our sins and throw them into the sea.” Bleich said Ukrainian Jewish traditions vary little from those abroad. “Maybe there were some [peculiarities,] but they all vanished during the Soviet times,” he said.

Rosh Hashanah is also a popular time to take time off work for devout Jews. “The rabbis are the only people who are supposed to work at Shabbath, although they tell everyone that working is forbidden,” said Bleich.

According to the Torah, there are 39 different kinds of work forbidden during religious holidays. It’s not allowed to light a fire or even press a light switch, carry things outside home or drive a car, among other things.

To follow the code, Milman and his family rented an apartment near the synagogue to avoid travel on this holiday. He said he leaves the light on for two days. Lighting the candles to mark the beginning of a celebration, along with blowing the horn, is also a great honor. Milman said that women usually light candles as “they are more perfect creatures,” and can purify themselves in this way, whereas men can do it only by prayer.

There are also special meals and fasting. Rosh Hashanah is a sweet

Æ

occasion encouraging Jews to forsake sour and spicy foods. Apples with honey, cakes, fruit and round egg bread called challah are a part of a traditional meal. “Also, the head of a fish or that of a male sheep in other countries is served with a message to always be at the front of things, not in the tail in the upcoming year,” said Milman.

On Sept. 18, the Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur, is celebrated. Right on the eve, a special kaparot ritual is performed when Jews pick up an object, usually a chicken, and cross their head with it three times to transfer sins. It’s then given to the poor or cooked for a pre-Yom Kippur meal, which is followed by a 25-hour fast.

Apart from Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, there’s another important date for the Breslov Jews, a branch of the Hasidic movement.

Thousands of Jewish men come to Ukraine annually to pray at the grave of the founder and spiritual leader Rabbi Nachman. No one really knows the exact date of his death, but pilgrimages to his burial site in Uman, some 200 kilometers from Kyiv, fall some time on Rosh Hashanah. This year marks the 200th anniversary of his death, and airports throughout Ukraine have already started receiving many Jews in traditional attire. “It is important for the Jewish people to be with their rabbi during the Rosh Hashanah, so they travel around the world to be with their rabbi,” said rabbi Bleich explaining the pilgrimage. It is believed that praying at Nachman’s grave will help clearing all sins of the devout.

Anyone who wants to see the Jewish celebrations can visit synagogues but will be expected to observe all the rules. With a few hundred thousand Jews living in Ukraine, synagogues have prepared for a major convergence. The festivities, however, may vary just as the actual number of pomegranate seeds varies with individual fruits.

Kyiv Post staff writer Alexandra Romanovskaya can be reached at romanovskaya@kyivpost.com.

The interior of this Mafia restaurant in Podil is pleasant, spacious and welldesigned. But the food can be hit and miss. (Oleksiy Boyko)

Japanese, Italian food in Mafia’s cozy setting Æ17 after ordering. The other entrée, Salvatore salad (Hr 55), came mouthwateringly fresh and crisp.

Ravioli with shrimps and shallots were cooked to a lovely consistency, and the sauce was neither bland, nor overwhelming for the tender fishy stuffing (Hr 49). The pizza with four cheeses (Hr 65) had a nice little touch to it in the form of fresh green grapes.

Disappointingly, the Cianti Chardonnay Pinot Grigio (Hr 19 per 50 grams) came warm, and the ice requested later never materialized.

But the barman served complimentary glasses of fresh lemonade to both visitors, which somewhat sweetened up the wine mishap.

On a different visit to the same restaurant in Podil, Pasta Carbonara (Hr 59) arrived flavorless and dry, and no amount of shaved parmesan or cream served on request could salvage it.

Another surprise during the third visit was breakfast made of three courses. One can choose an omelet, fried eggs, oatmeal or a chicken broth. Then a choice must be made from pancakes with cottage cheese, syrniki (curd cheese cakes) and apples stewed with honey and nuts. A dairy cocktail with a huge amount of sugar rounds off the list.

ÆHaving picked ‘family values’ as its motto, Mafia offers good deals for groups and a children’s menu for families This feast comes in for just Hr 29, but the quality of it confirms that there is no such thing as a free lunch (or, indeed, breakfast). The eggs were oily and burnt at the edges. The syrniki, which Ukrainian women take pride in cooking every other morning for their loved ones, were burnt as well. And the dairy drink tasted like cheap yogurt with a ton of jam mixed in.

The menu carries all the classical items you would expect in an Italian restaurant, while the Japanese section seems to be a twin brother of another popular restaurant network, Yakitoria.

This is not necessarily a bad thing, however, as it makes the menu look more familiar.

Some of the Mafia places are lounge bars as well as restaurants, meaning that if you stay after 10 p.m. you will get DJs blasting tunes at you. The experience was quite unexpected and totally unwelcome after a pleasant meal for two.

Asked if we would go again, only one of us would say “yep,” with little hesitation.

Kyiv Post editors Katya Gorchinskaya and Yuliya Popova can be reached at gorchinskaya@kyivpost.com and popova@kyivpost.com.

Mafia restaurants and lounge bars 76 Chervonoarmiyska (+380 67) 579 1049 24 Verkhniy Val, Podil (+380 44) 377-72-89 12 Luhova Street, Karavan shopping mall (+380 44) 207-48-38 77Artema Street 21 Marshala Tymoshenko Street (+380 44) 581-31-30 (+380 97) 911-26-26 (delivery) kiev.mafia-ua.com.ua

26 Paparazzi

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Gogolfest opens in style

La Fura dels Baus, the internationally renowned Catalan theatre group, performs during the opening of Gogolfest

Æ Artists from Spanish group La Fura dels Baus form a net with Ukrainian actors from theater Dakh

For the fourth year running, Gogolfest impresses festival-goers with stunning visual, sound and film programs. A 10-meter manikin towered above Independence Square on Sept. 4 in a display that organizers said demonstrated the unity and diversity of multiple worlds.

The tens of thousands of revelers who came to watch the opening were treated to an unusual performance that combined music, video and gymnastic skills. The program of the festival, which prides itself on artistic diversity, includes plays produced by Ukrainian, Russian, Italian, Spanish, Swiss and Hungarian theatres; classical and electro-acoustic modern music; 20 dance parties and live concerts; 15 video and sound installations; and movies of all kinds. It's on until Sept 12. Details at http://www.gogolfest.org.ua/eng (AP)

If you want Kyiv Post Paparazzi to cover your event, please send details or invitations to news@kyivpost.com or contact photo editor Yaroslav Debelyi at 234-6500

Meeting classmates over coffee

Singer Nina Matvienko (center) gives a singing class

Valeriy Kharchyshyn from Druga Rika music band

Some 19,000 people decided to get off social networks on the Internet and meet each other face to face in Kyiv's Exhibition Center on Sept 4. Jacobs coffee organized a major reunion for classmates, friends and families over free coffee calling it the Odnoklassniki Day, after a popular Russian social network. Revelers enjoyed coffee-brewing, singing and dancing classes, sang karaoke and listened to Ukrainian rock and pop performed live onstage. They apparently drank over 1,500 liters of coffee. (Belushenko Veronika, Yaroslav Debelyi)

Coffee-charged revelers enjoy the concerts

Actor Bohdan Benyuk

Pikardiyska Tertsiya Band

Singer Lama

www.kyivpost.com

Lifestyle 27

September 10, 2010

Know Your Heroes

Gongadze monument an affront to those who knew him best ties of the murder and who ordered it, triggered a political scandal in the nation and international condemnation of then President Leonid Kuchma, implicated on audiotapes with subordinates threatening Gongadze. Kuchma denies any responsibility for what happened to Gongadze, but the scandal helped launch an anti-Kuchma movement that ultimately led to the Dec. 26, 2004, election of Viktor Yanukovych as president.

Editor’s Note: Have you ever walked by a park statue or an engraving of a person on a building’s facade and wondered: Who is the person being depicted and what made him or her worthy of immortality? We have too. To answer these vexing questions, the Kyiv Post started the “Know Your Heroes” feature.

BY I RY N A P RY MAC H YK PRYMACHYK@KYIVPOST.COM

WHAT

“This must be a monument to either a Komsomol member or, perhaps, a youthful Ukrainian poet,” my friend first said some years ago when passing by a statue in a park on Velyka Vasylkivska Street in downtown Kyiv.

The full-length bronze sculpture portrays a young man in a long coat and an embroidered Ukrainian shirt.

I might have agreed with her had I not been a journalist, had I been unaware that the monument is dedicated to another journalist, Georgiy Gongadze, who was kidnapped, killed and beheaded a decade ago.

He was the founder and chief editor of the popular Ukrainska Pravda internet news portal (www.pravda.com.ua).

Widespread coverage of disappearance triggered a cover up by authori-

The memorial on 115-121 Velyka Vasylkivska Street shows Gongadze encircled by a seven-meter “tree of life” dotted with notebooks and images of other journalists who suffered or were killed because of their jobs.

Gongadze’s close friends and family are not happy with the statue. Many of those who knew the late journalist complain that the resemblance to him is poor. Gongadze’s close relatives and friends were strongly against having any monument erected until his murder is solved and all those guilty are punished.

However, Kyiv Mayor Leonid Chernovetsky, so eccentric he is called “Cosmos,” ignored their preferences.

He initiated a bid for the Hr 2 million project in 2006 and unveiled it

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Monument to Georgiy Gongadze

in 2008. Officially, it is dedicated to all journalists who lost their lives for pursuing their professional activities.

None of Gongadze’s relatives came to the opening ceremony.

Lesia Gongadze, Gongadze’s mother, has consistently said she wants the monument removed. She has also said that politicians, prosecutors and other officials in charge of the murder investigation acted “immorally” by dragging out the case for a decade.

“It’s time to leave in peace Ukraine and these people, who have been living out this horror story for 10 years, release Ukraine from this game of dice, stop politicians from running PR campaigns [using this tragedy], stop them from coming to these symbolic graves, and remove the monument to Gongadze,” Lesia Gongadze told Interfax news service on June 22.

WHO Georgiy Gongadze, journalist and critic of high-level corruption, was kidnapped and murdered on Sept. 16, 2000. His headless body was found in the woods of Tarashcha district in Kyiv Oblast. His head was found last summer close to where he had been murdered in the village of Sukholisy, 200 kilometers from Kyiv. The head was found after a tipoff by Oleksiy Pukach, the former police general who allegedly conducted the kidnapping, murder, and later beheaded and reburied the body.

Pukach was arrested last summer in a secluded village in Zhytomyr Oblast after nearly six years on the run. In March 2008, three of his former subordinates – Mykola Protasov, Valeriy Kostenko and Oleksandr Popovych – all police officers at the time, were convicted and sentenced to 12-13 years in prison for their role in the murder.

According to media reports, Pukach has remained in custody for more than a year and has cooperated with the investigation. The big question on everyone’s mind is whether he

The monument to journalist Georgiy Gongadze stands on Velyka Vasylkivska Street in Kyiv. He was murdered 10 years ago, but his case has yet to be solved. (Iryna Prymachyk)

knows and is prepared to name the top officials who are suspected to have given an order to kidnap and kill the journalist. Many suspect that Kuchma and other high-ranking officials, who were the targets of investigative reports claiming they were involved in crimes, of involvement in Gongadze’s murder.

Many officials, including Kuchma, have denied involvement. Others died under suspicious circumstances, notably exInterior Minister Yuriy Kravchenko, of two gunshot wounds to the head on the day he was supposed to give testimony in the case.

While the investigation drags on endlessly, Gongadze’s relatives will not

November 6, 2010 The Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (33 Velyka Zhytomyrska Street)

Employment Fair 2010 Inspired professional – a key to your business success!

If you want to be included into the Employment Fair 2010, please contact advertising department at advertising@kyivpost.com or by phone 044 234-6503 For more information please visit: www.kyivpost.com/projects/employment Technical partner:

bury his body or skull remnants. And despite their protest, the monument to Gongadze and other journalists stands as a reminder of the incompetence and unwillingness of those in charge to bring justice in this case.

To add to the mockery, city authorities have also renamed a street and an avenue after Georgiy Gongadze.

Kyiv Post staff writer Iryna Prymachyk can be reached at prymachyk@kyivpost.com.

Where: Monument to Georgiy Gongadze, city park on 115-121 Velyka Vasylkivska Street, 5 minutes walk from ‘Palats Ukrayina’ metro station

List of participians by September 10 KPMG BC Toms UkrSibbank Imperial Tobacco Ukraine FORTIS Bank of Cyprus Intercontinental PricewaterhouseCoopers Cargil Alumniportal Deutschland Richmond Recruitment Agency

28 Paparazzi

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September 10, 2010

Trumpeter from Latvian band The Radio

Andriy Arnautov, bassist of the Kyiv Art Ensemble

Jazzing things up in Koktebel Drummer of the Duduka Da Fonseca Brazilian quintet

Saxophonist Bohdan Humeniuk from Kyiv Art Ensemble

Æ

The town of Koktebel in Crimea hosted Live in the Blue Bay jazz festival on Sept. 3-5. A picturesque setting on the Black Sea at the foot of the extinct Kara-Dag volcano has been inspiring authors and musicians for a long time now. Koktebel, a name that sounds a bit like a cocktail, played host to two jazz festivals this year. Live in the Blue Bay gathered masters and novices for three days of music, master-classes, and socializing.

Belgian, Brazilian, Russian, and Latvian musicians added the international flavor. Koktebel Jazz Festival picked up the Bay's lead on Sept. 9 and will play till Sept. 12. (Ukrainian photo)

If you want Kyiv Post Paparazzi to cover your event, please send details or invitations to news@kyivpost.com or contact photo editor Yaroslav Debelyi at 234-6500 Alyosha, Ukraine's Eurovision star in 2010

Girls band Zaklepki

Singer Eva Braun, not to be confused with Hitler's girlfriend, also Eva Braun

Dancing in Silent Noise Singer Arina Domsky

Designer Yulia Aisina

Silent Noise party rocked Ukraine's clubbing scene with a new concept on Sept. 3. Wearing headphones, clubbers could choose the music of their liking from House, Breaks, Electro and Indie Disco played by five DJs onstage. They only need to press a small button on their headphones and start showing some moves.

The Silent Noise concept was invented in Goa, India, when clubbers wanted to keep the party going all night long in a place with a sound ban. Tuning out completely in Kyiv's Arena Plaza, however, was hard since organizers played Russian pop band Uma2rman songs in the background. Partygoers, however, seemed to enjoy the concept. (Courtesy) TV host Igor Posypaiko

Singer Zhenya Fokin

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Rus (4 Hospytalna St.) Salyut (11B Sichnevogo Povstannia St.) Senator Apartments (6 Pirohova St., 62/20 Dmitrievska St.) Slavutych (1 Entuziastiv St.)

%DUCATIONAL ESTABLISHMENTS Business School MIM-Kyiv (10/12B Shulyavska St.) British International School (45 Tolbukhina St.) British skylines (16 Khreshchatyk St., 10G Larysy Rudenko St.) International Institute of Business (8A Brest-Litovskyi Highway) Kyiv International School (3A Sviatoshynsky Lane) Master Klass (34 Ivan Mazepa St.) Pechersk International School (7A Viktora Zabily St.) Runov school (30 Velyka Vasylkivska St.) Speak Up (14 Kotsiubynskoho St. 25B Sahaidachnoho St., 4 Lunacharskoho St., 136 Peremohy Prosp.)

The London School of English (39 Polytehnichna St.) Valerie’s school (14 Mykhailivska St.)

"USINESS #ENTERS Arena (2A Baseina St.) Artem (4 Hlybochytska St.) Cubic Cente (3 Sholudenko St.) Diplomat Hall (59 Zhylianska St.) Eurasia Ukraine (73-79 Zhylianska St.) Evropa (4 Muzeiniy Lane) Evropa Plaza (120 Saksahanskoho St.) GOOIOORD B.V. (34/33 Ivana Franka St., 36 Ivana Franka St.,11 Mykhailivska St., 52B Bohdana Khmelnytskoho St.) Horizon Park (12 Amosova St., 4 Grinchenko St.) Illinsky (8 Illinska St.) Khreshchatyk Plaza (19A Khreshchatyk St.) Kiev-Donbass (42/4 Pushkinska St.) Podol Plaza (19 Skovorody St.)

30 Employment

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Looking for an exciting international career in Hospitality or qualified personnel for your Hotel?

As Brain Source International celebrates its 10th Anniversary in Ukraine,

Please, contact us now at:

www.richmondra.com

careers@richmondra.co.uk

on behalf of our team, I would like to thank all our partners for your contribution to our company's success in applying European standards of executive search and recruitment in Ukraine and CIS.

Đ‘Đ¸ĐˇĐ˝ĐľŃ -тронор

Đ¤ŃƒĐ˝ĐşŃ†Đ¸ĐžĐ˝Đ°ĐťŃŒĐ˝Ń‹Đľ ОйŃ?ĐˇĐ°Đ˝Đ˝ĐžŃ Ń‚Đ¸: - Đ?наНиС ĐżĐžŃ‚Ń€ĐľĐąĐ˝ĐžŃ Ń‚Đ¸ в ĐžĐąŃƒŃ‡ĐľĐ˝Đ¸Đ¸ Ń ĐžŃ‚Ń€ŃƒĐ´Đ˝Đ¸ĐşĐžĐ˛ Банка - РаСрайОтка и прОводонио ŃƒŃ‡ĐľĐąĐ˝Ń‹Ń… ПорОприŃ?тиК (Đ°ŃƒĐ´Đ¸Ń‚ĐžŃ€Đ˝Ń‹Ń… тронингОв, Ń ĐľĐźĐ¸Đ˝Đ°Ń€ĐžĐ˛, ĐźĐ°Ń Ń‚ĐľŃ€-ĐşĐťĐ°Ń Ń ĐžĐ˛ и Đ´Đ¸Ń Ń‚Đ°Đ˝Ń†Đ¸ĐžĐ˝Đ˝Ń‹Ń… ĐşŃƒŃ€Ń ĐžĐ˛ и Ń‚ĐľŃ Ń‚ĐžĐ˛) - Đ&#x;рОводонио тронингОв в Đł. Киов и пО Украино

Andrey Kryvokorytov

ТройОваниŃ? Đş ĐşĐ°Đ˝Đ´Đ¸Đ´Đ°Ń‚Ńƒ:

- Đ’Ń‹Ń ŃˆĐľĐľ ОйраСОванио - Опыт райОты ĐąĐ¸ĐˇĐ˝ĐľŃ â€“ тронорОП в ĐąĐ°Đ˝ĐşĐžĐ˛Ń ĐşĐžĐź ŃƒŃ‡Ń€ĐľĐśĐ´ĐľĐ˝Đ¸Đ¸ но Поноо 3-Ń… Нот ОйŃ?СатоНон - Đ?авыки Ń Đ°ĐźĐžĐžŃ€ĐłĐ°Đ˝Đ¸ĐˇĐ°Ń†Đ¸Đ¸ и Ń Đ°ĐźĐžĐźĐžŃ‚Đ¸Đ˛Đ°Ń†Đ¸Đ¸ - Đ“ĐžŃ‚ĐžĐ˛Đ˝ĐžŃ Ń‚ŃŒ Ń€Đ°ĐąĐžŃ‚Đ°Ń‚ŃŒ в кОПандо на одиныК Ń€ĐľĐˇŃƒĐťŃŒŃ‚Đ°Ń‚ - ĐœŃƒĐśŃ‡Đ¸Đ˝Đ° Đ´Đž 45 Нот.

РоСюПо направНŃ?Кто пО Ń?Đť. Đ°Đ´Ń€ĐľŃ Ńƒ:

andrey.bobylev@pib.ua

SIMCORP UKRAINE LLC IS LOOKING FOR A TEAM LEADER/MANAGER You will work with the following tasks Leading a group of highly specialised people Clearly communicating expectations to your team members, i.e. milestones and quality Ensuring tools and processes are effectively supporting the main process

Acquisition Assistant for USAID/Ukraine, Announcement # 16-2010, FSN-9

Your qualifications Experience as a Team leader/ Manager in IT industry Work experience in international teams and offshore projects Strong leadership skills as a coach and motivator Solid technical background (software development experience and/or database administration) Good English

Nice to have Knowledge of C#, HTML, ASP, XML, VBScript, Database Broad spectrum technical knowledge of OS - Windows, OS memory management, Citrix, VMWare, Unix database optimiser, index technology, network technology.

Who is SimCorp SimCorp is a leading provider of highly specialised software and financial knowledge for the financial services sector for more than 35 years. Its customers include international banks, insurance companies and investment managers. Headquartered and listed in Copenhagen, SimCorp employs more than 1.000 staff in international and regional financial centres across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. The office in Kiev employs more than 120 employees and is in constant development.

If you are interested in this vacancy, you are welcome to send your CV with your full career details to jobukr@simcorp.com

Đ?Đ°Ń‡Đ°ĐťŃŒĐ˝Đ¸Đş ОтдоНа кадрОв ĐšĐ¸ĐľĐ˛Ń ĐşĐžĐš дирокции

3FXBSE *OGPSNBUJPO 4FSWJDFT $POTVMUBOU The Embassy of Finland in Kyiv is looking for an Administrative Assistant for the period of 18th of October 2010 - 28th of February 2011 (maternity leave substitution) Responsibilities: - Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Mission, Administrative AttachĂŠ and Defense AttachĂŠ - Assisting in financial administration - Substituting Information Officer and Visa Assistants Requirements: - Fluency in Ukrainian, Russian and English languages - Proficiency in computer applications (MS Office, internet) For further details of requirements and how to apply, please visit www.finland. org.ua<http://www.finland.org.ua> Closing date 22nd of September 2010

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ТŃ&#x20AC;ойОваниŃ? Đş кандидаŃ&#x201A;Ń&#x192;:

- ОпŃ&#x2039;Ń&#x201A; Ń&#x20AC;айОŃ&#x201A;Ń&#x2039; ĐžŃ&#x201A; 2-Ń&#x2026; НоŃ&#x201A; на анаНОгиŃ&#x2021;нОК Đ´ĐžĐťĐśĐ˝ĐžŃ Ń&#x201A;и в Ń Đ¸Ń Ń&#x201A;оПнОП йанко; - вŃ&#x2039;Ń Ń&#x2C6;оо ОйŃ&#x20AC;аСОванио; - Снанио Ń ĐžĐ˛Ń&#x20AC;оПоннŃ&#x2039;Ń&#x2026; HR Ń&#x201A;ĐľŃ&#x2026;нОНОгиК в ĐžĐąĐťĐ°Ń Ń&#x201A;и Ń&#x192;ĐżŃ&#x20AC;авНониŃ? поŃ&#x20AC;Ń ĐžĐ˝Đ°ĐťĐžĐź; - навŃ&#x2039;ки ĐżĐžĐ¸Ń ĐşĐ° и пОдйОŃ&#x20AC;Đ° поŃ&#x20AC;Ń ĐžĐ˝Đ°ĐťĐ°, ĐżŃ&#x20AC;ОводониŃ? Ń ĐžĐąĐľŃ ĐľĐ´ĐžĐ˛Đ°Đ˝Đ¸Đš; - Снанио и ОпŃ&#x2039;Ń&#x201A; водониŃ? кадŃ&#x20AC;ОвОгО доНОпŃ&#x20AC;ĐžĐ¸ĐˇĐ˛ĐžĐ´Ń Ń&#x201A;ва; - Снанио Ń&#x201A;Ń&#x20AC;Ń&#x192;дОвОгО СакОнОдаŃ&#x201A;оНŃ&#x152;Ń Ń&#x201A;ва (Đ&#x161;Đ&#x2014;ОТ); - Ń&#x192;воŃ&#x20AC;оннŃ&#x2039;Đš пОНŃ&#x152;СОваŃ&#x201A;оНŃ&#x152; Đ&#x;Đ&#x161;.

The Acquisition Assistantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s position is located in the Regional Contracting Office, USAID Mission to Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova. The incumbent performs a wide variety of actions to support Technical Offices in acquisition and assistance administration and negotiation of new and existing awards. It includes post-award contract and agreement administration and monitoring of performance by reviewing contractor or recipient reports, attending meetings with contractor or recipient staff, and personal contacts and site visits, as necessary. Negotiates and prepares modifications to contract and assistance awards. Responds to contractor and recipient correspondence and action requests in accordance with applicable regulations, including personnel, salary and travel approvals, consent to subcontracting, source, origin and nationality or other waivers, disposition of property, etc. Negotiates price and/or individual costs and technical requirements to ensure that all USAID requirements are met and that the price of the award is fair and reasonable. Prepares a variety of documents for Contracting Officer review and signature, ensuring all relevant clauses or provisions and special instructions are included.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS a. Education: Education: Possession of a bachelor's degree. b. Prior Work Experience: Minimum three years of progressively responsible professional experience. Previous experience in the field of acquisition and assistance is a plus. c. Post Entry Training: Training in cost analysis, contract law, federal acquisition and grant administration courses, as available. d. Language Proficiency: Level IV (fluent) English proficiency is required as well as fluency in Russian and Ukrainian. e. Knowledge: A good understanding of negotiated procurement procedures. A good knowledge of international and local business practices, a detailed knowledge of local market pricing customs and practices and a good knowledge of the capability and reliability of local suppliers. Knowledge of local laws and regulations applicable to acquisition and contract or assistance administration. Working knowledge of standard software packages utilized by USAID, including Microsoft Word, Excel, and the ability to do research on the internet.

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ilona.pilipenko@pib.ua

The full version of this Announcement is accessible at http://ukraine.usaid.gov/emp.shtml CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: September 14, 2010 at 6:00 PM Kyiv time, by e-mail attachment only to kyv16-2010@usaid.gov

VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) invites applications from highly qualified, energetic, proactive and experienced professionals for the posts of

HIV/AIDS PROGRAMME OFFICER, SC (UNITED NATIONS POPULATION FUND)

Ukraine

(who will be based in Kyiv and will contribute to the national effort to combat HIV epidemic in the country. Detailed job description is available at http://jobs.undp.org/cj_view_job.cfm?job_id=18685

9OUR FUTURE STUDENTS MIGHT SEE YOUR AD

HERE

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS IS 19/09/2010

All interested candidates should complete the UN PERSONAL HISTORY FORM* (P-11) available on http://undp.org.ua/en/jobs and attach it to the on-line application.

UNDP Office in Ukraine, 1, Klovskiy uzviz, Kiev 01021

+9)6 0/34 % $ 5 # !4 )/ . 3 % # 4 )/ .

www.kyivpost.com German lessons, translations

English, Spanish, Italian, French, German languages Business trainings, corporative lessons in your office Russian language for foreigners FREE of charge speaking clubs in general & business English English language courses abroad for adults and children Tel: (044) 495-44-41, 586-53-84 e-mail: info@seanschools.com.ua www.sls.kiev.ua

Translator/Interpreter/Assistant

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32 Photo Story

www.kyivpost.com

September 10, 2010

Beauty display

1 On Sept. 4, Kyiv hosted a spectacular display of homegrown beauty – the Miss Ukraine pageant. This year’s event (3) attracted some pretty famous world celebrities. Oleksandr Onyshchenko, Ukrainian businessman and sponsor of the event, invited Pamela Anderson (2), actress Elizabeth Hurley, actor Jean-Claude Van Damme (6), model Snejana Onopka, French actress Ornella Muti and other big shots.

Kateryna Zakharchenko, 20, of Odesa, (1) took the prize as the most gorgeous lady of Ukraine. Rumor has it that the winner was a late entrant, registering only a few days before the contest, and Ukrainska Pravda’s tabloid version reported that Zakharchenko was spotted with sponsor Onyshchenko in Monaco. At any rate, Zahkarchenko will represent Ukraine in the Miss World beauty pageant on Oct. 30 in China. Singers Iryna Bilyk, Anna Sedokova (5) and Chris Norman (7) entertained the crowd during the show.

The beauties used their time in the spotlight to promote safe sex by wearing stylish T-shirts (4) sponsored

by Olena Franchuk’s Anti-AIDS Foundation. (Photos

by Yaroslav Debelyi)

2 4

3 5

6

7