2014-02-22

Rise of the Right: Ukraine's Pro-Western Faction is Anti-Left, Pro-Free Trade, Pro-Family

This is a surprising development: the men fighting in the streets for the pro-Western faction in Ukraine are politically more like Vladimir Putin than they are like Barack Obama. That doesn't mean they are pro-Russian—they are Ukranian nationalists and their leader fought Russians in Chechnya. What it does mean is that Ukraine is yet another example of the rising tide of Rightist movements in Europe and across the globe. The Leftist wave crested in 2000 after a 300-year upsurge and now history is swinging back to the right.

'I'll be fighting Jews and Russians till I die': Ukrainian right-wing militants aiming for power
leksandr Muzychko is a notorious nationalist leader. Back in 2007 he pledged to fight against "communists, Jews and Russians for as long as blood flows in his veins," openly saying that leading the fight against all of the above mentioned groups is his "credo."

Back in 1994, Muzychko, aka Sashko Bilyi, arrived in Chechnya to join separatist forces. He took part in numerous battles with federal troops, mainly in the capital Grozny, and personally knocked out three tanks, six armored personnel carriers and a SP vehicle.

According to media reports, he led an entire federal forces unit (presumably the marines) into an ambush. As a result, it was destroyed by the Chechen separatists. For his military merits, the notorious Chechen militant leader, general Dzhokhar Dudayev, presented Muzychko with a "Hero of the Nation" award.

Muzychko later served a term in a Ukrainian prison for racketeering and gangsterism, but he claims it was only for political reasons.







If Ukraine splits or even if it remains united, it is very possible the right-wing party will ascend because they played a role with their violent attacks.

Violent far-right group drives agenda on Kiev streets
Whether either side likes it or not, it is the violent tactics of a determined, far-right group called "Right Sector" that is setting the agenda on the streets of Kiev.

Insiders say the group has its origins among nationalist-minded soccer fans - the word 'sector' in Russian denotes the spectator terraces of a stadium - and includes individuals from far-right organizations from across the country.

They attack the police, sometimes in pairs, usually wearing masks or helmets and armed with sticks, iron bars and 'trophy' shields seized from riot police.

They have no allegiance to any established political party and operate under no banner, flag or standard, not even that of recognized nationalist groups.
Given that these groups are anti-Russian (although this appears to be anti-Russian government, not anti-Russian ethnics) and also espouse a social/cultural message than is the opposite of that pushed by the United States, this coalition of groups are indeed pushing for truly independent Ukraine that would look a lot like Russian culturally (religious, pro-family, anti-homosexual) yet be tied with the West economically. The Russians would hate their political/economic ties with the West and the EU/US would endlessly criticize their social policies.

Growing Support, and Tea From Young Women, Embolden Kiev Street Fighters
The objects of this outpouring of admiration are men like Dmitry Iliuk, 29, a classical violinist who teaches music in a high school in the town of Verkhovyna, in western Ukraine.

Thursday morning found Mr. Iliuk crouching behind a plywood shield, preparing for a dramatic and risky offensive to reverse an effort by the police to press into the square two days earlier. Protesters opened a breach in their barricades shortly after dawn, then ran a hundred yards or so across a scorched buffer zone to confront — and quickly push back — the riot police, who were firing shotguns at them. It was an action that turned the tide, but also cost the lives of at least 70 people.

“I was not afraid, not one drop,” Mr. Iliuk said. “There was just one idea in my head: ‘Run forward.’ ”

He was wearing a red ski helmet and ski goggles, and carrying a baseball bat attached to a cord looped around his wrist, lest it be knocked out of his hands, which are more accustomed to delicate musical instruments. “All around me, people were wounded because the police had nothing left to do but shoot, and they shot.”

Roman Tokar, 31, a lawyer from Zolochiv in western Ukraine who wore an ill-fitting vest of bulbous plastic plates originally intended for dirt-bike riding, said he was continually scared but overcame his fear because of the support he felt from residents of the capital.

“I can’t drink any more tea, but they keep bringing me tea,” he said. “We are even joking now, telling the women, ‘Stop, you are making the defenders of Maidan fat.’ It’s really pleasant, and we really love these brave girls and even grandmothers who offer us tea.”

Ukrainian opposition group Right Sector says keep up protests

Ukraine: far-right extremists at core of 'democracy' protest

In December US senator John McCain travelled to Ukraine to offer his support to the opposition, appearing on stage with leaders of the three opposition parties leading the protests - including the far-right Svoboda party.

Svoboda is currently Ukraine's fourth biggest party and holds 36 seats in parliament. It is also part of the Alliance of European National Movements, along with the BNP and Hungary's Jobbik.

Svoboda leader Oleh Tyahnybok is one of the faces of the protests, appearing regularly along with opposition leader and former boxer Vitali Klitschko (see picture right) voicing opposition to Putin's influence over the region.

......Sergey Kirichuk, a member of the group Borotba, which publishes and anti-fascist magazine in Ukraine, told Channel 4 News that these neo-Nazis are the most violent elements on the streets.

"These people are separate from Svoboda, though they will have many links through activists - but they are not controlled by any one group," he explained.

"They are the ones throwing molotovs and trying to kill policemen, the most violent element fight at European Square.

"When left-wing groups tried to join the protests they were attacked and beaten by fascists. Svoboda are leading ideologically now. Fascism is like a fashion now, with more and more people getting involved."
The Right, in all its forms in various nations, benefits from the decline in social mood.

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