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of a deliberate struggle to achieve the national idea. The Ukrainian populace came to life. They should be admired for their determination to protect their national interest and for their readiness to sacrifice. In effect, the process of the national and political crystallization, the process of the changeover of a people into a nation is gaining ground. In this process the Ukrainian women’s role is not any less than the men’s. However, before we define what is the place of women in our society and their role within the scope of the national struggle, we should examine the position of the Ukrainian people in the context of international politics and relationships. It is difficult to describe in a few sentences what is happening in the world and how it affects us in a few sentences. We seem to be caught in the pincers of a great historical process during which all previously accepted dogmas and values are subject to a process of revision. We are in the vortex of chaos in which new forms of life, new human being are created, amid pain and meandering. Crisis — political and governmental, social and economic, cultural and spiritual — has enve loped the entire world, barring any knowledge where it will lead. Does this crisis herald the end of our culture or is it only a tremor of one epoch in the history of mankind. No one knows, but that is not of major importance to us. What is though, that in these processes which sweep through the world, and into which we are pulled either by our will or forcibly, we do not become the object, but the subject of history. The idea is not to stand on the fringes of events, but to be the co-initiators of them, to fight for a better tomorrow, and not to be dissuaded by defeat or victory. What route the international developments will take no one can foresee. Concerning the world situation, only one thing can be stated with certainty, and that is that nothing is certain. Relations are of short duration and shallow. They seem to change month by month. In a time span of 24 hours new political orientations and organizations are formed. It is even difficult to guess which of the changes are structural in nature and which are generated by expedience and will soon falter. However, these changes are not of primary impor tance to us. The most vital issue for us is the course of their development. Do these changes have the tenden cies to follow the paths of our interests, or are they going in the opposite direction? We could reiterate a long list of facts which make it plain that on the international arena the horoscope for 2 2 Ukrainian affairs is bleak. The overwhelming dynamics of our two major neighbors, the petrification of the national organisms which absorbed the western Ukrain ian lands, the opposition of factors whose interest is to retain the status quo of the contemporary map of Europe that has attached us to four countries — all these facts are detrimental and dangerous. But, aside from these, there are indications, show ing that time works for us and not against us. All signs point to an upcoming major military confrontation in the world. This is evident not only by the nervous atmos phere in Europe where the weapons race is on, but by increasingly menacing rumblings from the Far East. The problem of Eastern Europe is a consideration in world politics and tied to the hopes of the breakup of the Soviet Empire, which points to the fact that our affairs are becoming more topical on the global scale. Year by year the world is becoming more informed and inter ested in Ukrainian affairs. Never has there been so much written about Ukrainian matters as during the last year. And although everyone’s approach to this is from the point of self interest, for we are still a valuable object to various governments and the so called influen tial circles, nevertheless more and more is heard through out the world about the necessity of creating a Ukrain ian state as a factor in global stabilization. In order for the concept of an independent Ukrain ian state to become a reality in world opinion, in order for this idea to be accepted by statesmen and the upper echelon of the European community, and be realized in the context of the political and economic requirements of Europe, we need to input a tremendous amount of hard propaganda. Above all we have to provide the world with numerous examples which show our deter mination and maturity for independence. Let us not place too high a value on the implica tions of international propaganda. Let us not fool our selves into thinking that someone either in friendship, sympathy or due to any other sense of fairness would help us. We are aware that in the final decree the realization of our national idea depends only on us. On the other hand, however, we should appreciate the value of good contacts which are based on mutual interests. End of part one of the address. (Liberal translation from Ukrainian) by Marta Baczynsky “НАШЕ ЖИТТЯ”, ЛИСТОПАД 1992 Видання C оюзу Українок A мерики - перевидано в електронному форматі в 2012 році . A рхів C У A - Ню Йорк , Н . Й . C Ш A.
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