Open Letter to the President of the United States of America George W. Bush

 

 The Honorable George W. Bush
President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500

  

Dear Mr. President:

We, a group of American and Ukrainian scholars, civic activists and students are writing to urge you to support the Ukrainian people in their determination to defend their rights and freedoms, endangered by the country's current regime. We hope that your Administration will make it clear to President Leonid Kuchma and other top Ukrainian officials that there can be no progress in U.S.-Ukrainian relations, or in Ukraine's relations with NATO, unless they allow freedom and democracy to flourish in their country. Ukraine can contribute to peace and stability on the European continent only if its government respects basic democratic values. Therefore, actively promoting the emergence of a truly democratic Ukraine is in U.S. vital national interests. 

 

Today, on September 16, 2002, Ukraine commemorates two years since the disappearance of the independent journalist Georgiy Gongadze. He vanished without a trace after a series of his articles had exposed far-reaching corruption at the highest levels of Ukrainian leadership. Several months later, a former presidential security officer provided the recordings, which implicate President Kuchma and other top officials in planning the journalist's murder. The government's investigation of the crime instantly turned into a farce, since the primary suspects were also the ones overseeing the investigation.

 

Gongadze's brutal murder and its aftermath touched every Ukrainian in the same profound way that the terrorist attacks of September 11 affected Americans. However, while the organizers of last year's terror against the U.S. were uncovered and relentlessly pursued, the assault on the rights of freethinking Ukrainians remains unpunished. After two years of empty promises, cover-up attempts and pure inaction by the Ukrainian authorities, we come to only one conclusion – the perpetrators of Gongadze's murder, as well as of numerous other "accidental" deaths of opposition journalists and politicians, will never be found as long as Ukraine is ruled by a few unaccountable individuals bent on keeping power at all costs. The regime, which denies the people of the second largest country in Europe basic rights and human dignity, is incapable of providing justice. Therefore, we call on you to insist on its fundamental transformation, which would give way to the genuine representatives of the people’s choice.    

 

Mr. President, in your speech in Warsaw last year you pledged to reward Ukraine's aspiration to become a European nation. The Ukrainian people all share this goal and resolutely strive to achieve it. However, they still remain separated from the rest of Europe by a wall of brutal, unchecked power exercised for the benefit of the privileged few. This wall of oppression is certainly doomed to fall for, as President Ronald Reagan affirmed while speaking at the Brandenburg Gate, “it cannot withstand faith, it cannot withstand truth, and it cannot withstand freedom.” Now is the time for America to act decisively and extend its hand to the people of Ukraine so that we together can tear down this wall!  

 

Sincerely,

 

Anders Aslund Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Harley Balzer Associate Professor, Department of Government, Georgetown University
David Clinton Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Tulane University
Keith Darden Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science, Yale University
Steven Fish Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley
Yoshiko Herrera Assistant Professor, Department of Government, Harvard University
Fiona Hill Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, Brookings Institution, USA
Robert De Lossa Research Affiliate, Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Harvard University
Francis Fukuyama Professor of International Political Economy, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University
James Goldgeier Associate Professor, Director of the Institute of European, Russian and Eurasian Studies, George Washington University
Paul Kubicek Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Oakland University
Andrew Kuchins Director, Russian and Eurasian program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
George Liber Professor of History, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Michael McFaul Associate Professor, Stanford University
Sarah E. Mendelson Senior Fellow, Russia and Eurasia Program, Center for Strategic and International Studies, USA
Alexandra Hrycak Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Reed College, USA
Alexander Motyl Associate Professor, Department of Political Science, Rutgers University
Bruce Parrott Professor and Director of Russian and Eurasian Studies program, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University 
Rodger Potocki Adjunct Professor, Georgetown University
Dr. Stan Radchenko Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, University of North Carolina at Charlotte, USA
Peter Reddaway Professor, George Washington University
David Satter Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute
Pavlo Sheremeta Dean, Kyiv Mohyla Business School (Ukraine)
Alumnus, Goizueta Business School, Emory University (USA)
Ronald Grigor Suny Professor, Department of Political Science, University of Chicago
Andrjei Sulima Kaminski Georgetown University, USA
George Weigel Senior Fellow, Chair in Religion and American Democracy, Ethics and Public Policy Center
Dr. Tymish Ohulchanskyy State University of New York at Buffalo, USA
 

Dr. Olena K.  Vatamaniuk

 University of Pennsylvania, USA
Mykhaylo Borodii Associate Professor, National Technical University of Ukraine
Sergey Kostrikov Associate Professor of Geography, Kharkiv National University
Konstantin Abramov "NERIS Kayaking Club," Kyiv, Ukraine
Valeriy Afanasyev Bentley Graduate School of Business, USA
Yelena Amirseyidova Wisconsin International University, Ukraine
Yulia Anderson Johns Hopkins University Alumnus, USA
Andriy Andreikiv Designer, The Netherlands
Igor Andrusenko Programmer, Percombank, Kyiv, Ukraine
Eric Asquith Fairfield University, USA
Marko Bachmaha Baker & McKenzie, Kyiv, Ukraine
Denys Bakhnyuk.
Odesa, Ukraine
Andrij Baumketner University of California at Santa Barbara, USA
Zoreslav Baydyuk Voice of America, USA
Svitlana Belushkina FSA FLEX alumnus` 97
Program manager, Counterpart Creative Center, Ukraine
Yurii Berezin National Technical University of Ukraine
Natalia Biletska World Bank, USA
Inna Birchenko Purdue University, USA
V. Bogomaz Donetsk, Ukraine
Mykola Bohonok Pittsburgh, USA
Nadiya Boiko University of Pennsylvania, USA
Natalia Bokalo Northwood University, USA
Natalka Bonakorsa Art Institute of Portland, USA
Sergij Brun independent journalist, Ukraine
Yevhen Bulavka journalist, Kyiv, Ukraine
Denys Chernov Olin School of Business, Washington University, USA
Stepan Chernyakov civic movement "Za Pravdu", Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine
Lena Chervonik-Bearden Kyiv National Linguistic University, Ukraine
Lubomyr Chubko Pittsburgh, USA
Lesya Covert Johns Hopkins University, USA
Dr. Anatoli Deleniv  

project leader, Chalmers University of Technology,
Goteborg, Sweden
Rostyslav Demchuk Journalist, Belgium
Yurii Demkovych American University Alumnus, Ukraine
Oleksandr Demyanets Georgetown University, USA
Tom Deters AHWCS-ETD Program Manager, USA
Yurii Deychakiwsky North Potomac, Maryland
Ruslan Deynychenko Duquesne University, USA
Petro Dmytrenko, MBA University of Toledo, USA
Yuri Dorofeyev Assiduo Solutions Inc., Toronto, Canada
Mark Dorosh Freelance journalist, UK
Roman Doshchak IT Engineer, Malta
Sergiy Dvoryak, MD, PhD Johns Hopkins University Alumnus, Ukraine
Tetyana Dytyna James Madison University, Harrisonburg, Virginia.
Ivan Dyvnyi Ukrainian Biographical Center for Necropology Studies, Kyiv, Ukraine
Monica Eppinger Yale Law School, USA
Nataliya Felyshtyn  

Catholic University Eichstaett
Ingolstadt, student, Germany
Maksym Ferenets Ivan Franko National University, Lviv, Ukraine
Kateryna Fonkych Rand Graduate School, USA
Slava Furkal Edmonton, Canada
Andriy Gal Kiev National University of Architecture
Tatyana Galkina International Christian University Alumnus, Ukraine
Myroslava Gongadze George Washington University, USA

 

Wasyl Gorbachuk

 Professor, Editor-in-Chief, Ukrainian Economic Review
Leonid Goryachyy University of Manchester, UK
Yevgenii Goryakin University of Colorado, USA
Olesya Govorun Ohio State University, USA
Dr. Igor Goychuk           Institute of Physics, University of Augsburg,     
Kenneth Graves Managing Associate - Chesapeake Financial Group, USA
Tetyana Grekh Harvard University, USA
Viktor Gritsenko Semantic Estate Inc., Ottawa, Canada
Mykhailo Grygoriv Catholic University alumnus, USA
Valeriy Gusak public organization "Ratusha", Rivne, Ukraine
Solomija Hagens  University os applied sciences Bremen, Germany
Ola Harasymiv Georgetown University, USA
Hakob Hakobian Ivan Franko Lviv National University, Ukraine
Marichka Halaburda-Czyhryn journalist, Sydney, Australia
Natalie Haras University of Western Ontario, Canada
Vadym Hatsanovskyi Lutsk, Ukraine
Rev. Bohdan Hladio
 

Rector, St. Vladimir's Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral,  Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Volodymyr Holovatenko Essex University Alumnus, Department of Human Rights, Ukraine
Jaroslav Hook Ottawa, Canada
Svitlana Hurkina Weston Jesuit School of Theology, USA
Andriy Ignatov Iowa State University, USA
Serhii Ilchuk Rand Graduate School, USA
Vadim Ivanchenko Engineer, Kyiv, Ukraine
Maciej Jastrzebiec-Pyszynski Jagielonian University, Poland
Aleksandr Kalashnik Binghamton University, USA
Andriy Kalistratenko FSA FLEX alumnus, Ukraine
Yurii Kamelchuk journalist, Kyiv, Ukraine
Andriy Kapustin journalist, Kharkiv, Ukraine
Borys Karmelyuk Forum of Ukrainians in the Czech Republic
Sergiy Kasyanov National Aerospace University, Kharkiv, Ukraine
Justine Kasznica Yale University, USA
Ivan Katchanovskiy, PhD Kluge Post-Doctoral Fellow, Library of Congress
 
Irina Katolikova
 Kiev, Ukraine
Olya Kesarchuk National University Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Ukraine
Olya Khomenko Harvard Business School, USA
Pavel Kifyak Kyiv National University of Trade and Economics, Ukraine
Oleh Kirienko European Commission, Brussels, Belgium
Alexander Kirilkin Duke University, USA
Nadya Klos National University Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Ukraine
Atanas T. Kobryn Freelance correspondent, North Port, FL, USA
Oleksandr Kobzev Ohio State University alumnus, USA
Vadym Kodryan Wake Forest University, USA
Dmytro Kolchinsky Ohio University, USA
Iryna Kolohina Manager, Ukraine
Natalia Kondratenko National Technical University of Ukraine
Yurii Konkevych journalist, Lutsk, Ukraine
Volodymyr Korolyov teacher of lyceum, Kyiv, Ukraine
Svitlana Koryak University of Colorado, USA
 

Alexander Kosenko
 

 web-programmer, Kyiv, Ukraine
Petro Koshukov Indiana State University, USA
Yurko Kosmyna political observer, newspaper "Vechirni Visti," Kyiv, Ukraine
Serhiy Kostyuk Andrew Young School of Policy Studies, Georgia State University, USA
Mykola Koval Odessa National Polytechnic University, Odessa, Ukraine
Oles' Kovtunets' Web-programmer, Ukraine
Marianna Kozintseva Johns Hopkins University, USA
Mykola Kozyrev Director of the Civic Committee for the Protection of Human Rights, Luhansk, Ukraine
Olesya Kravchuk Journalist, "Ternopil's'ka Hazeta," Ternopil', Ukraine
Anatoliy Krysan IT Engineer, Malta
Dmytro Kryukov Webmaster, TV Channel "1+1", Kyiv, Ukraine
Ostap Kryvdyk National University "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy", Kyiv, Ukraine
Marta Kryvutska  

Sponsored Projects Administrator, Henry Jackson
Foundation, USA
Olga Kryzhanovska University of Missouri at Columbia, USA
Natalia Kubay Harvard University, USA
Serhiy Kudelia Johns Hopkins University, USA
Hryhoriy V. Kulyk Constructional engineer, Cherkasy, Ukraine
Sergiy Kumalagov  

President Donets'k public organization "Youth movement of
Patriots", Helsinki, Finland
Volodymyr Kurennoi