Today may be the concept of “its” and “alien” on the basis of origin, passport or language

Singer, leader of the group “Okean Elzy” Svyatoslav Vakarchuk will deliver a lecture at the IV Liberty Media Forum Lviv during the Award named after Alexander Krivenko “For the way in journalism,” May 27, 2016.

Here is the full text of the lecture with the Media Forum website.

I’m not very good, but personally knew Alexander, and I remember what it was bright and intelligent wide man. Personally, I now do not have enough such people.

I would appeal through you, journalists, to a wider audience of policy-makers and all citizens. We have 25 years of building a state, but this time arguing what Ukraine is and who is Ukrainian. As in the XXI century to define these concepts?

Someone might say that the one who identifies himself a Ukrainian, and he has the right to call themselves so. Okay, but if others do not want you to identify this? If you were not born here, you have another passport, or speak with an accent? Who determines which of us is a Ukrainian, and some not?

If you were not born here, you have another passport, who determines which of us is a Ukrainian or not? Fatalities on Independence Armenian Sergey Nigoyan or Belarusian Mikhail Zhiznevsky – they were Ukrainians? And who is more Ukrainian-they, or those who voted in the referendum in Donetsk, while keeping one hundred percent Ukrainian blood?

To answer these questions easily and without controversy, we really need to fundamentally rethink the paradigm of relationship to what is a our state and for the first time to respond to itself for 25 years, what kind of state we want to get who and for whom it was built.

We need to stop building a state based on blood patriotism, and we should start to build a state based on constitutional patriotism. Not a common past, the origin of the blood or external similarity must unite us and common values, lifestyle, game rules, the constitution, which make our life comfortable in this area, in this society, at this time. Here, in my opinion, the key to success.

We still live in a paradigm about which dreamed, perhaps our ancestors or the people who want to build a Ukrainian state in the end of XIX- beginning of the XX century, at the turn of epochs, when the empire collapsed long and when all the small nations feel their identity, uniting only about language, culture and common history. So it was easier to oppose itself to a large cosmopolitan empires. Then it worked, because the world was closed, it was the only way to unite against the great enemy.

I think that in the XXI century, this idea does not work, especially in a country like Ukraine. We are often compared with Poland, but Ukraine is not far away Poland. We have never had a uniform national picture across the area, we never spoke only one language. Yes, we are the rightful heirs to a remarkable history, from Kievan Rus. But we must be aware of the fact that the state, which was formed in 1991, was created under the influence is not our subjective and specific historical, objective circumstances, and it is absolutely natural formation. It was made of different pieces from different countries, people with different stories, different views about the past and future, in the end, with a different language and sometimes they went to different churches.

To say today that as a nation, we need to stop thinking about the things that divide. Not only because they become a cause for speculation, but also because such a system is unstable. If there is no specific supports, it will always be loosened.

When Moses led out of the Jews from slavery in Egypt and led them to 40 years in the desert, he did this in order to finally arrive at Mount Sinai, and there receive from God the Ten Commandments. In fact, it was the constitution of the Jewish people to the new rules of the game, not just the past. Going only forward, not remembering about the thing of the past slavery, they began to build a new story.

Let us recall the history of the United States of America. When in the XVIII century, the founding fathers built the country, they do not rely on anything else other than principles. They read Locke, Montesquieu, Hobbes, Aristotle and Plato, and wanted to build an ideal state in which all people could live comfortably. Yes, it was easier, because they create it from scratch, but they created a dream state and the future of the state, not looking at the things that were kept from the past.

After the Second World War, the German Reich was fortunately defeated. But what Germany- a country which for so many years had been accustomed to the fact that they are the best and the most powerful on Earth. The country was divided into two parts, and the Germans had suffered a crisis of identity. They could not figure out who they now are.

Then Prime Minister Adenauer proposed the idea: “Yes, we are talking in German, we have a common culture, but it unites us today. We must unite around the principles of a free society, a free market, freedom and democracy. ” They are the principles of constitutional patriotism built West Germany, which then successfully merged with the East.

After the death of Franco in Spain it was also an identity crisis, because Spain was not a mono-ethnic country. There are so many cultures, peoples, languages, and that if they again began to say Castile Spain, today it would have been much worse.

Constitutional patriotism works where there is inhomogeneous medium, different history and where you need to bring people together around certain fundamental principles, which seem banal, but unite the nation more than anything else.

Agree, it is easy to divide us any policy grounds, what language we speak, or what church we go. But it is easy to divide the nation on the principle of “one for the fair trial” or “who is against fair trial.” Or “who is for or against freedom of the press and freedom of speech.” It is very difficult to divide society, which is built on idealistic, but in fact is very pragmatic and efficient, comfortable principles for life.

My idea is that the Ukrainian politicians and in general all of us should think that in the XXI century, we can build a unique state, with its roots, Ukrainian, Slavic identity. But it must be based on a very clear, understandable principles, rules of the game that are absolutely essential to all Ukrainians, no matter what language we speak, which church we go to, what part of Ukraine we are.

When a resident of the village in Kharkiv region bude feel mental, intellectual and social proximity to a resident of the village of Lviv on the Polish border, this will mean that we have created a political nation.

At the same time we do not negate history, past and identity. Constitutional patriotism and kosmopolitizm- are two completely different things. I believe that the Ukrainian nation has its own identity and should cherish it, cultivate and maintain. But before this identity must be indicated on the agenda, we must turn to the more fundamental things.

In what kind of society we live in, how to ensure that justice is done so that each of us was comfortable in this society? How to make sure that we were proud of our way of life and to our children did not want to go from here?

These things can not be achieved simply by the fact that every day you will raise the flag and sing the national anthem, and the constant and hard work, the struggle for a simple but very important principles: the law for all, honest courts, lack of corruption, freedom of expression, absolute freedom of economic action , precise performance of each citizen his duties.

These things we take responsibility and create the country dropped themselves. Recently, we have seen how harshly the identity and patriotism are handy when external aggression begins, the events in the East showed who is who. When the armed aggression precisely those people who are in the blood of national patriotism, the first to go up in arms to defend the country, because they have at least some guidelines. Those about which I am speaking, does not exist yet.

However, if people were going to protect not only their own language, culture and identity, but also a way of life, morality and the constitution, which they are proud, military offices in the queue would have been three times as much.

I am absolutely sure that our zadanie- finally start building a country based on the principles of justice and a comfortable life. Let’s not be in the paradigm of the XIX century. Today can not be understood “his” and “alien” on the principle of origin, passport or language. “Own” – if he professes the same principles, ready to build the future and stands by and protects the future. All other divisions make us only weaker.

If we do not change the agenda and are not going to think about Ukraine as about a country where we have to create some ideal world for ourselves and our children, and we in the old provincial to think about our achievements, we can not live long.

Everyone probably remembers from his childhood, in the dining room stood a sideboard with dishes under glass. This dish is always exposed only when guests came, and none of it is not eaten. It was definitely a character that can not be touched. Let us stop to look at our country as in the dining room with sideboard, where necessary utensils. Let’s change the furniture practical, we’ll get the dishes out of cupboards and will eat from it every day.

We deserve it. And let’s think about that a house that we are building, not like about the house, in which we are afraid to get extra thing just because it reminds us of something. The most important memory, we still can not throw, it is protected by our genetic code and the instinct of self-preservation.

The future today is much more important for us. Protect your kids or created with their own hands, you will be much faster and more efficiently than anything that left you an inheritance. Created their rukami- is the greatest happiness for which we stand, and never did want to give. Here are the rules, the constitution, a way of life – it is something that should unite us, and bricks of our national identity should remain.

Sourse, 30/05/2016