There’s no question that technology is way ahead of the average Ukrainian voter. With an Internet penetration of well under 10%, most of the hot stuff in Ukraine is happening in what can only be called a virtual desert.
Last week half of Ukraine was reading, listening or watching the gory details of a phone conversation. There’s not much to say about a phone call where one guy is rude and aggressive and the other guy can’t get in a word edgewise.
As to the content, seems to me this is the kind of politicking that goes on in the Capitol or on Parliament Hill every day of the year, just about:
“Tom, what’s this I hear that the California caucus ain’t going with us on the McClosky-Hernia bill. You promised me those votes. Are they gonna be there or are you blowin’ me off?”
“Yes, Joe-Bob, I mean, no–”
“Don’t be a shmuck, Tom-boy, don’t try to screw on this one!”
“I-ah–”
“And besides what’s this crap I hear about your buddy Jack. What’s his problem?”
“Jack?–”
“I hear he’s whining about this deal to everybody. What is he, anyway, a baby in diapers?”
“Wait a–”
“Full of poop?!?” etc, etc, etc.
What’s the lesson here? The guy with the bigger mouthpiece wins? Nice guys finish last? Kind of reminds me why I never want to get into politics. But definitely not something to spend more than a nanosecond thinking about, either.
But this Yushchenko tape thing won’t go away. It’s even got a spot on a new website called nedovira.com.ua. Nedovira means distrust in Ukrainian. The site is supposed to be “For Fair Elections,” as Mr. Ponomarchuk put it.
This was a challenge I couldn’t refuse. So I logged on during a dull moment on a Saturday afternoon.
At first glance, the page looks technically polished. The design is professional and the organization is good. There’s a mugshot of a guy covering his face and a Christmas greeting. Oops – there’s a spelling mistake in the greeting. Oh well, nobody’s perfect.
Wait a minute. I look up at the top again and realize that it says, “The All-Ukrainian Movement for Honesty in Politics.” Didn’t these guys call themselves “For Fair Elections” at the press conference?
Further down it reads:
“Dear visitors, At the beginning of 2002, Rukh was given over the most serious material yet that proves the dishonesty of our politicians...”
If the above-mentioned conversation constitutes “the most serious material yet,” I think, this country must be cleaner than Tide.
“…At a Rukh meeting Jan. 8, it was decided to publicize these materials.”
Wait a minute. I didn’t know Rukh was involved in this. Chornovil’s Rukh is the national movement that started Ukraine on the path to independence back in 1990. And nobody else uses the name like that today. But dirty tricks are just not Rukh’s style. This is pretty confusing.
I decide that they must be referring to their own “movement.” But I’m feeling creeping nedovira about this site.
Below this is a window titled, “The 25 most dishonest politicians.”
At the top stands Viktor Yushchenko, accused of plotting to remove Viktor Medvedchuk.
Second, Oleksandr Omelchenko, accused of plotting to remove Viktor Medvedchuk.
Third, Pavlo Lazarenko, accused of being the godfather of corruption, etc.
The entire entry on Yushchenko, on another page, never goes beyond the taped conversation. It grandly accuses him, by having worked to remove Medvedchuk, of “disenchanting voters who see him as the new leader of an independent Ukraine.”
The same page contains the complete list of the most dishonest 25. Among them are such familiar names as Zviahilskiy, Brodskiy, Bakai, Surkis. Only one name is missing in this illustrious company: Medvedchuk.
Well, it’s time to get to business and fight all these creeps. I press a button at the top that says “How to fight political lies.”
A page comes up, with – a list of other sites. The list starts with lucky.net and ends with card.lucky.net, passing through libido and gold. Not a news or political site in the lot. Fight political lies with irrelevant advertising for your ISP? OK…
Another page opens with a banner saying “What to do with compromising materials.”
There’s a tedious declaration from the founders, Mr. O. Ihnatenko and Mr. V. Rubtsov. I’m curious about the two running this “movement.” I call a reporter who was at the original press briefing. Mr. Ihnatenko is a twenty-something entrepreneur who claims the tax police shut him down so he decided to go into politics.
Rubstov is another story altogether. Back in 1999, before the presidential election, there was a look-alike contest called “Don’t let yourself be fooled.” Rubtsov won as a Kuchma look-alike.
At the very bottom of this informative page, two little windows entice: “Sensation of the day.” I click on one and find myself on korrespondent.net.
There is nothing on korrespondent.net of a particularly sensational nature. It’s just a news site that belongs to an American publisher in Kyiv.
As the first page refreshes, there is a “Bigmir.net” box and three “big banner net” banners in three places. “Bigmir” and “big bn” belong to the same American publisher.
Whoever is behind this site, and Mr. Medvedchuk certainly seems the first candidate for the role, it also looks like a western publisher is very cosy with this lot. No comment.
The Committee for Journalistic Ethics is the one shining light in this entire sordid exercise. They went on the record saying about it all: “The use of illegal methods of information-gathering, tendentiousness and the absence of balance in its presentation, we consider sufficient to declare that such information has nothing in common with professional journalism.”
Someone should post this on the nedovira site. •
–from the notebooks of Pan. O
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