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
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
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
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
Igor Andrusenko programmer, Percombank, Kyiv, Ukraine
Eric Asquith Fairfield University, USA
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
Nadiya Boiko University of Pennsylvania, USA
Natalia Bokalo Northwood University, USA
Natalka Bonakorsa Art Institute of Portland, USA
Sergij Brun independent journalist, 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
Yurii Demkovych American University Alumnus, Ukraine
Oleksandr Demyanets Georgetown University, USA
Tom Deters AHWCS-ETD Program Manager, USA
Ruslan Deynychenko Duquesne University, USA
Yuri Dorofeyev Assiduo Solutions Inc., Toronto, Canada
Roman Doshchak IT Engineer, Malta
Sergiy Dvoryak, PhD, MD Johns Hopkins University Alumnus, Ukraine
Ivan Dyvnyi Ukrainian Biographical Center for Necropology Studies, Kyiv, Ukraine
Maksym Ferenets Ivan Franko National University, Lviv, Ukraine
Kateryna Fonkych Rand Graduate School, USA
Tatyana Galkina International Christian University Alumnus, Ukraine
Myroslava Gongadze George Washington University, USA
Yevgenii Goryakin University of Colorado, USA
Olesya Govorun Ohio State University, USA
Tetyana Grekh Harvard University, USA
Mykhailo Grygoriv Catholic University alumnus, USA
Valeriy Gusak public organization "Ratusha", Rivne, Ukraine
Ola Harasymiv Georgetown University, USA
Hakob Hakobian Ivan Franko Lviv National University, Ukraine
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
Sergiy Kasyanov National Aerospace University, Kharkiv, Ukraine
Justine Kasznica Yale University, USA
Ivan Katchanovskiy, PhD Kluge Post-Doctoral Fellow, Library of Congress
Olya Kesarchuk National University Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Ukraine
Olya Khomenko Harvard Business School, USA
Oleh Kirienko European Commission, Brussels, Belgium
Alexander Kirilkin Duke University, USA
Nadya Klos National University Kyiv Mohyla Academy, Ukraine
Oleksandr Kobzev Ohio State University alumnus, USA
Dmytro Kolchinsky Ohio University, USA
Iryna Kolohina Manager, Ukraine
Yurii Konkevych journalist, Lutsk, Ukraine
Volodymyr Korolyov teacher of lyceum, Kyiv, Ukraine
Svitlana Koryak University of Colorado, USA
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
Oles' Kovtunets' Web-programmer, Ukraine
Marianna Kozintseva Johns Hopkins University, USA
Olesya Kravchuk journalist, "Ternopil's'ka Hazeta," Ternopil', Ukraine
Anatoliy Krysan IT Engineer, Malta
Olga Kryzhanovska University of Missouri at Columbia, USA
Natalia Kubay Harvard University, USA
Serhiy Kudelia Johns Hopkins University, USA
Vladyslav Kyrychenko York University, Canada
Leonid Lishchyna Toronto, Canada
Viktor Luhovyk Ivestment Bank "Dragon Capital," Kyiv, Ukraine
Andriy Lyashkevich Kyiv, Ukraine
Volodymyr Lyal'ko Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Anna Makhorkina Old Dominion University, USA
Roman Makukha Electronic Data Systems, USA
Serhiy Malynych Research Associate/Assistant Professor, Clemson University, USA
Yaroslava Marusyk University of Southern California, USA
Mykhaylo Maryniy Old Dominion University, USA
Alexander Mihelson journalist, Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National University, Ukraine
Jurii Mojsiak Potomac, Maryland
Deirdre Itzin-Munroe University of St. Thomas, USA
Matthew Murphy Georgetown University, USA
Anna Noel Center for Citizen Initiatives, USA
Andriy Mykytiv Kiel Institute of World Economics, Germany
Oksana Nagayets Princeton University, USA
Yuri Navruzov Kyiv-Mohyla Business School, Ukraine
Roman Nikitov Ernst&Young, Kyiv, Ukraine
Oksana Nyshta University of Southern California, USA
Yurii Obriza Lviv Polytechnic University, Ukraine
Mikhail Onipchenko International Christian University, Kyiv, Ukraine
Evgenii Orel National University "Kyiv-Mohyla Academy", Ukraine
Andrei Ostapenko University of South Florida, USA
Oleksiy Panych JFDP Alumnus, Donetsk National University, Ukraine
Natalia Pavlenko Technical University of Munich, Germany
Natalia Pavluniuk Alumnus of the USGSP FSA Undergraduate Program, Ukraine
Bohdan Pechenyak Yale University, USA
Aleksey Pilipenko software consultant, California, USA
Yuriy Piskalyuk Syracuse University, USA
Andrey Pivovarsky Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, USA
Gennady Poberezny Rutgers University, USA
Oleh Polishchuk George Washington University, USA
Svyatoslav Polyakov Toronto, Canada
Dmytro Potyekhin Kyiv, Ukraine
Olga Prokopovych University of Missouri at St. Louis, USA
Oleksiy Pryrodnyi School of Music, University of Maryland, USA
Yurko Pylyp Fairfield University Alumnus, USA
Nataliya Riabokon Stanford University Alumnus, USA
John Riszko State University of New York at Buffalo, USA
Olenka Rojowsky Ukrainian American Youth Association, USA
Oleksandra Romanovska FSA/FLEX Alumnus '00
Kyiv National Economic University, Ukraine
Nataliya Rumyantseva Vanderbilt University, USA
Roman Sapruka coordinator, civic movement "Za Pravdu", Volyn', Ukraine
Taras Sarapin Lviv Polytechnical University, Lviv, Ukraine
Alexander Savelyev Duke University, USA
Misha Savinov "Agrochim," Kyiv, Ukraine
Dr. Igor Shevchenko Institute of Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Bremen, Germany
Oxana Shevel