Section 1. Monitoring of recommendations on the reform priorities for 2020– May 2021
1. To complete the reconstruction of the premises of the Sectoral State Archive of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory (SSA UINM).
Partially done
Despite the government's constant assurances that the reconstruction of the SSA UINM is among the priorities, the National Memory Archive has not yet received funding to start such work.
Thus, in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, UAH 57.6 million were sequestered from the Archive budget out of the allocated UAH 58 millions. In 2021, the situation was promised to be rectified: the Cabinet of Ministers even included this issue in two decrees. Thereby, paragraph 43 of the decree of The Cabinet of Ministers of February 3 № 84-r "On approval of the action plan to support the sphere of culture, protection of cultural heritage, development of creative industries and tourism" provides for the reconstruction of SSA UINM by December 2022.
Step 657 of the Government's Priority Action Plan for 2021, approved by decree of Government of March 24, 2021 № 276-r, determines the start of construction work for the reconstruction of the building of the National Memory Archives. According to the plan, the works are scheduled to begin by the end of December 2021.
However, as of June 2021, the Archive has not received funding for capital expenditures, namely for reconstruction. Even if funding will be received in the second half of 2021, due to the length of tender procedures, the SSA UINM will not have time to start construction work by the end of the year, because in addition to the tender itself it is necessary to conclude an agreement with the general contractor.
In response to citizens' appeals, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy replied that "the issue is under the constant control of the MCIP." According to the budget program CPCEC 3809020 ("Measures to implement state policy in the field of restoration and preservation of national memory, ensuring the activities of the National Memorial Complex of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes - the Museum of the Revolution of Dignity and the Sectoral State Archive of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory") and appeals from citizens and public organizations, in 2021 the Archive received UAH 5.2 million - these funds are provided for the continuation of the development of project documentation, but they are not enough to complete the project work. According to the Archive, this requires an additional UAH 2 million.
In total, SSA UINM needs UAH 686 million for the reconstruction of the premises - this amount will allow to complete the construction works and install the appropriate archival equipment in two or three years. After that, the institution will finally be able to begin the process of receiving and transferring the archives of the communist secret services from other institutions - in compliance with the relevant provisions of the Law of Ukraine "On Access to the Archives of the Repressive Bodies of the Communist Totalitarian Regime 1917-1991."
Threats
The lack of the necessary budget funding makes it impossible to reconstruct the premises of the National Memory Archive and fully implement the provisions defined by law.
2. To develop a concept and create a Museum of Monumental Propaganda of the USSR.
Not done
Since 2017, the issue of creating a museum has been on hold. Back then, the launch of the project was announced, the work on the concept started and the future location - National Complex "Expocenter of Ukraine" – was selected. However, the work did not continue. The Kyiv City State Administration, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy and the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory are responsible for the project implementation.
3. To update the social part of the legislation on the rehabilitation of victims of the communist totalitarian regime of 1917–1991 and to harmonize the compensation mechanism with the current legislation.
Not done
By Resolution of 19.05.2021 № 535, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the Regulations on the payment of compensation, return of property or reimbursement of its value to rehabilitated persons, as well as a sample certificate of a rehabilitated person.
However, certain provisions of this Regulation contradict the current legislation, and the new procedure for payment and compensation of lost property is ineffective.
For example, paragraph 11 of the Regulation obliges the National Rehabilitation Commission to make decisions on the return of buildings and other property seized during repression (or reimbursement of their value) to rehabilitated persons. But the Law of Ukraine "On Rehabilitation of Victims of Repression of the Communist Totalitarian Regime of 1917-1991" (Articles 7 and 7-1) defines an exhaustive list of powers of the National Commission, which cannot be extended by any bylaws. According to the Law, as well as the Regulations on the National Rehabilitation Commission, approved by the order of the Ministry of Culture dated 25.10.2018 № 926, the National Commission does not have the authority to make decisions on compensation for lost property or return of buildings.
Moreover, as of today, such property (if preserved) may be owned (public, communal or private) by others, and therefore the National Commission will in fact violate the rights of the owner of such property in disposing of such property. This would be contrary to Art. 41 of the Constitution of Ukraine, which, in particular, provides that the forcible alienation of private property is possible only by court decision.
In view of this, any decision of the National Commission to return the property or reimburse its value can be challenged in court.
The National Commission is a body established at the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory in accordance with the Law of Ukraine № 2325-VIII "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine to Improve the Procedure for Rehabilitation of Victims of Repression of the Communist Totalitarian Regime of 1917-1991". It considers substantiated proposals of regional rehabilitation commissions and decides on the recognition of persons as rehabilitated or as victims of repression.
Threats
Visibility of the solution of the problem. Despite the fact that the procedure for returning property seized during the repression or reimbursing its value is in fact non-operational, it was communicated to the media as a solution to the issue. Such communication removes the problem from the public agenda and minimizes public debate on the restoration of justice for victims of repression. At the same time, the rehabilitated will not receive adequate compensation.
Blocking the work of the National Rehabilitation Commission. Society will demand from the Commission decisions that it does not have the authority to take. The members of the Commission will also be forced to consider a large number of appeals for compensation, thus slowing down the decision-making process on the rehabilitation of a person. All this will damage the credibility of the Commission and give rise to false expectations.
Corruption risks. The members of the Commission work on a volunteer basis. UINM covers only organizational and technical needs. The proposed new decision-making procedure for the return of buildings and reimbursement of property will create the opportunities for corruption.
4. To carry out the investigative procedures on Instytutska Street to unblock the construction of the National Memorial Complex of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes - the Museum of the Revolution of Dignity.
Partially done
As of now, most of the alleged episodes have been investigated, but the prosecutor's office still has no plans to lift the arrest from the site, which will allow the construction of the Memorial to begin. If earlier the terms of completion of investigative actions were announced, now the Office of the Prosecutor General (OPG) sets an indefinite period: "until the final court decisions are made in criminal proceedings." Given the dynamics in investigations and trials, this could mean decades. In fact, it creates a situation when the construction of the Memorial will be impossible until the verdicts are delivered and the criminal cases are closed - such a stalemate is currently taken by the Office of the Prosecutor General.
Context: the prosecutor's office announced the need to conduct investigative actions on the Alley of Heavenly Hundred Heroes in June 2018, when the process of preparation for the construction of the Memorial was already underway. In July 2018, the OPG forbade the Museum to change the landscape of the alley, setting a maximum period for investigative experiments to 3 months. In October, the Museum informed the OPG about the announcement of a tender to determine the general contractor for construction. In November, the prosecutor's office arrested the alley, and next month announced that the museum could apply to the court for its complete or partial removal - the investigation at the part of the alley would be completed soon. The museum signed a contract with the general contractor and transferred the advance for construction in accordance with the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers.
During 2019, the Museum helped the OPG to restore the circumstances of the events for investigative experiments. The general contractor provided a place for investigative actions on the territory. This allowed for more than 60 investigative experiments, which were planned by law enforcement officers.
However, this did not unblock the construction of the Memorial - so far, the works has been virtually impossible. The project for the construction of the Memorial purchased all the basic materials, in particular, white granite and trees - decorative linden trees, which should be planted in the alley. Storing these materials, especially one hundred adult 25-year-old lindens in a nursery, requires additional resources: firstly, there is no article in the project budget that can provide for the lease of linden storage space, and secondly, each tree has a separate water supply and needs special care - it requires hundreds of thousands of hryvnias per year, and currently all these costs are borne by the general contractor out of his own pocket.
But most importantly: according to the deadlines set by the Cabinet, in December 2021 the Museum must confirm the commissioning of the memorial, which houses lindens and granite, or UAH 111.5 million spent on these and other materials can be considered as material losses to the state.
On November 19, 2020, on the eve of the Day of Dignity and Freedom, the Museum's offices and the home of its director Ihor Poshyvail were searched - thus it became evident that the Kyiv Prosecutor's Office opened a criminal case for embezzling funds from the Memorial and its actual absence on the alley.
The museum found itself in a stalemate, with both the obligation to build the Memorial by November 2021 and a ban to do any works in the area designated for the Memorial.
Threats
The absence of verdicts in the cases of the murders of participants in the Revolution of Dignity and the delay in the investigation process halts the construction of the Memorial. As a result, the state may receive neither justice nor perpetuation of the memory of the Revolution of Dignity.
Criminal cases with the words "damage to the state", "embezzlement", as well as the situation when an artificial conflict between justice and memorialization is created, increase distrust in the state's ability to implement national projects and discredit the idea of honoring the Heavenly Hundred and the values of the Revolution of Dignity.
5. To complete the construction of the National Memorial Complex of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes - the Museum of the Revolution of Dignity and the second phase of the National Museum of the Holodomor-Genocide.
Not done
Due to the arrest of the land plot, the construction of the Memorial of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes has been blocked.
At the same time, the construction of the Museum of the Revolution of Dignity was partially unblocked due to the conclusion of an agreement between the Museum and German architects. In May 2021, the German architects who won the architectural competition donated the project to the Museum free of charge. This unlocked work that could not have started earlier because of "imperfection of the legislation on the practice of public procurement and underdevelopment in Ukraine of the practice of architectural competitions». General design works are currently underway, a tender has been announced.
Partially done
Construction of the second phase of the National Museum of the Holodomor-Genocide continues. Despite the changes to the 2020 budget, the Memorial stated that they succeeded to save funds in the budget program 3801280 ("Construction of objects of national importance in the field of culture"). In March 2021, the Minister of Culture and Information Policy announced that construction will be completed by Independence Day. The opening of the Museum is scheduled for 2023.
6. To develop a concept and hold public consultations on the creation of a National Pantheon of Heroes.
Not done
Decree of the Parliament № 97-VIII on the establishment of the Pantheon was adopted in January 2015. Subsequently, in August 2015, the corresponding decree was signed by the President. It was followed by the establishment of an Organizing Committee, the development of the Pantheon concept, a series of discussions and consultations with stakeholders, and the organization of an architectural competition.
In November 2015 for the decree of the President of Ukraine established the "Organizing Committee for the preparation and holding of events to create a memorial to Ukrainian heroes." Responsibility for the work of the Organizing Committee is currently assigned to the Cabinet of Ministers (according to the presidential decree of January 14, 2020).
In addition, the draft Resolution about the Pantheon of National Heroes was submitted to Parliament. Among other things, it offers to recommend the allocation of a plot of land in the park "Askold's Grave" for the construction of the Pantheon to the Kyiv City Council.
7. To complete the implementation of the state concept of the project of the National Historical Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar.
Not done
Implementation of the state Concepts of the development (memorialization) of Babyn Yar with the expansion of the boundaries of the National Historical Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar. The state publicly supports another memorial project, a private one, which has been criticized for funding sources of Russian origin and for the unethical methods of dealing with the Holocaust. In June 2021, one of the sponsors and members of the Memorial's Supervisory Board, Pavlo Fuks, was sanctioned by the National Security and Defence Council. Because of this, he temporarily resigned from the Supervisory Board.
At the same time, declarative goals for the implementation of the state project continue to appear in official government documents. For example, the arrangement of the Memorial Museum in memory of the victims of the Babyn Yar tragedy is among the government's priorities for 2021. The museum is part of the state National Historical Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar. According to the plan, the work should be completed in July 2021. The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, as well as the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, are the bodies responsible for this.
However, funding for the aforementioned Museum was reduced last year, and for 2021 no funds were allocated at all. Moreover, there are rumors that the premises of the future museum - the building of the former office of the old Jewish cemetery on 44 Melnikova Street - are planned to be leased to a private memorial project.
The support of the private memorial project with the Russian sources of financing was proclaimed by the state top officials, including President Volodymyr Zelensky in July 2020, Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak, Prime Minister Denis Shmygal.
Over the last year, a lot of appeals from Ukrainian scholars, cultural figures, and civil society on threats to build a private memorial project in Babyn Yar have appeared, but they are all being ignored.
Threats
Public state support for a private memorial project in Babyn Yar threatens to absolve the state of Ukraine from responsibility for forming a narrative in memory of the Babyn Yar tragedy. Among the victims of the Babyn Yar massacre were Jews, Roma, Ukrainian nationalists, Red Army soldiers, patients of the Kyiv psychiatric hospital, and representatives of other groups. The question of how their memory will be represented in a private project funded by Russia during Russia's hybrid war against Ukraine remains open. Immortalization of the tragedy of Babyn Yar is one of the key tasks of the state policy of memory, which has not been properly implemented during the 30 years of independence.
Розділ 2. Основні виклики в реалізації реформи станом на зараз (час проведення моніторингу)
The reform of national memory policy, which includes, among other things, the construction of memorial institutions and archival institutions, is once again outside of the state's attention. Funding cuts are being explained by pandemic challenges, while political and public support is being received, for example, by non-governmental projects that raise questions about the ethics of collective trauma practices and have dubious sources of funding.
No budget funds have been allocated for the reconstruction of the National Memory Archive for 2 years. The construction of the Heavenly Hundred’s Memorial has been blocked due to the arrest of the site and the fact that no verdicts have yet been handed down in the cases of those who shot the participants of the Revolution of Dignity. The Museum of the Revolution of Dignity has only just been able to begin drafting the working documents in 2021.
The implementation of the state concept of the project of the National Historical and Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar is not being done at all.
Instead of developing an effective mechanism for obtaining compensation for rehabilitated persons, only declarative and incapable resolutions appear (symbolically, they appear on the eve of the Day of Remembrance of Victims of Political Repression). The creation of the National Pantheon of Heroes remained at the level of several resolutions. Ukraine as a state is once again trying to distance itself from responsibility for the memory of the past.
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Section 3. Recommendations on reform priorities for 2021-2022 (next annual period, until URC 2022)
As none of the previous recommendations have been implemented, the priorities of the reform for 2021-2022 remain the same. In some cases, threats to the recommendations have been added to the non-compliance.
Thus, the recommendations are:
To complete the reconstruction of the premises of the Sectoral State Archive of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory and begin the process of transferring the archives of the communist secret services of 1917-1991.
To start the implementation of the state Concept of integrated development (memorialization) of Babyn Yar with the expansion of the boundaries of the National Historical and Memorial Preserve Babyn Yar.
To unlock the construction of the National Memorial Complex of the Heavenly Hundred Heroes - the Museum of the Revolution of Dignity. To finalize the investigative experiments, lift the arrest from the land.
To complete the construction of the second phase of the Museum of the Holodomor-Genocide.
To develop a concept and create a Museum of Monumental Propaganda of the USSR.
To create an effective mechanism for compensating victims of the political repressions of 1917-1991. To harmonize the "social part" of the Law on Rehabilitation of Victims of Political Repressions and the proposed compensation mechanism with the current legislation.
To develop a concept and hold public consultations on the creation of a National Pantheon of Heroes.
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