Oleh Tyahnybok
Encyclopedia
Oleh Yaroslavovych Tyahnybok is a Ukrainian
right-wing politician and former parliamentary of Verkhovna Rada
. He also is the leader of All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom", a former candidate to the President of Ukraine
, and a deputy of the Lviv Regional Council.
, in the family of doctors, he also is a former doctor. His great grandfather was a brother of Lonhyn Tsehelsky
, a politician in the West Ukrainian People's Republic. Tyahnybok claims he remembers from when he was younger the searches that were conducted by the agents of the KGB
in the apartment of his family. According to Tyahnybok, an amazing story happened to his grand-father, Artemiy Tsehelsky, as he was sent to Siberia
by KGB
for seven years for refusing to switch his religious affiliation to the Russian Orthodox, even though the atheist KGB
was notoriously against all religions, including the Russian Orthodox Church. Years later, Oleh will say that subconsciously he made his choice already then - when during those searches disappeared priceless family memorabilia - old photos, letters.
After the school he enrolled into the Lviv Med Institute, but after the second year was drafted to the army. After the return went back to school where he initiated the creation of the Med institute Student Brotherhood. That was the first step in his political life as civil activist. In 1994 25 year old Tyahnybok was elected to the Lviv Regional Council and in 1998 to the Verkhovna Rada
.
to the Ukrainian Parliament as a member of Social-National Party of Ukraine, in the parliament he became a member of the People's Movement of Ukraine
fraction. In 2002, Tyahnybok was reelected
to the Ukrainian parliament as a member of Victor Yushchenko’s Our Ukraine bloc.
On July 20, 2004, Tyahnybok was expelled from the Our Ukraine parliamentary faction after he made a speech in the Carpathian Mountains
at the gravesite of a commander of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. In the speech, which was aired on television in the summer of 2004, he made comments like:
and
In his defence Tyahnybok said he had not offended Russians
by calling them an occupying force as this was based on historical fact. He also denied that he was anti-Semitic, saying he was rather pro-Ukrainian. The head of the State Committee of National Migration (Derzhkomnatsmihratsia) Hennadiy Moskal published an open letter with insulting content towards the head of the AU Freedom. The Prosecutor's office filed criminal charges of inciting ethnic hatred, but later closed the case for lack of offense. Since that time Mr. Tyahnybok has won nine court cases in that regard. By the decisions of courts it was recognized that the criminal case was raised unlawfully, and the actions of TV-channel "Inter" that showed the footage of the Tyanybok's speech as well as the Head of the Derzhkomnatsmihratsia H. Moskal were recognized as ones that insult the honor and dignity Oleh Tyahnybok and caused him a moral damage. The actions around that issue led to creation of the "Program in defense of Ukrainians".
Since February 2004 Tiahnybok has headed the All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom".
In April 2005, Tyahnybok co-signed an open letter to President Yushchenko calling for a parliamentary investigation into the "criminal activities of organized Jewry in Ukraine."
Tyahnybok stood as a candidate for the post of Mayor of Kiev
during the Kiev local election
in 2008. Incumbent
mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi
was reelected with 38% of the vote, while Tyahnybok received 1.37% of the vote. Currently Tyahnybok is the deputy of the Lviv Regional Council.
Tyahnybok was a candidate for President of Ukraine
in the 2010 presidential election
for the All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom". He received 352,282 votes, or 1.43% of the total. Most of his votes he received in the historic Halychyna oblasts - Lviv oblast
, Ternopil oblast
and Ivano-Frankivsk oblast
accounted to 5% of the vote. In the second round, Tyahnybok did not endorse a candidate. He did presente a list of some 20 demands second round candidate Yulia Tymoshenko
had to fulfil first before gaining his endorsement - which included publicizing alleged secret deals Tymoshenko had with Vladimir Putin
and ridding herself of what he called Ukraine-haters in her close circles.
During the 2010 Ukrainian local elections his party won between twenty and thirty percent of the votes in Eastern Galicia where it became one of the main forces in local government.
as Ukraine's biggest threat. He has accused the Medvedev presidency of "waging virtual war on Ukraine along many fronts – in the information sphere and the diplomatic sector, within the energy trade
and throughout the world of international PR
spin.". He is pro-NATO and critical of the European Union
, but supports a Europe of free nations. According to polls both stances put him at odds with the majority of Ukrainians. Tyahnybok also wants to deprive Crimea
of its autonomous status
and Sevastopol
of its special status.
Tyahnybok wants to introduce a “nationality” section into Ukrainian passport
, a visa regime
with Russia, and for Ukrainians to pass a Ukrainian language
test to work in the civil service.
Tyahnybok wants to re-establish Ukraine as a nuclear power. He believes this would stop the "Russian virtual war on Ukraine" (mentioned above).
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
right-wing politician and former parliamentary of Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
. He also is the leader of All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom", a former candidate to the President of Ukraine
President of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
, and a deputy of the Lviv Regional Council.
Biography
Tyahnybok was born in the cultural center of the Ukrainian region of Halychyna, the city of LvivLviv
Lviv is a city in western Ukraine. The city is regarded as one of the main cultural centres of today's Ukraine and historically has also been a major Polish and Jewish cultural center, as Poles and Jews were the two main ethnicities of the city until the outbreak of World War II and the following...
, in the family of doctors, he also is a former doctor. His great grandfather was a brother of Lonhyn Tsehelsky
Lonhyn Tsehelsky
Lonhyn Tsehelsky was a western Ukrainian lawyer, journalist and political leader who served in the Austrian parliament, who became Secretary of Internal Affairs and the Secretary of Foreign Affairs within the government of the Western Ukrainian People's Republic, and who was one of the founders of...
, a politician in the West Ukrainian People's Republic. Tyahnybok claims he remembers from when he was younger the searches that were conducted by the agents of the KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
in the apartment of his family. According to Tyahnybok, an amazing story happened to his grand-father, Artemiy Tsehelsky, as he was sent to Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
by KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
for seven years for refusing to switch his religious affiliation to the Russian Orthodox, even though the atheist KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
was notoriously against all religions, including the Russian Orthodox Church. Years later, Oleh will say that subconsciously he made his choice already then - when during those searches disappeared priceless family memorabilia - old photos, letters.
After the school he enrolled into the Lviv Med Institute, but after the second year was drafted to the army. After the return went back to school where he initiated the creation of the Med institute Student Brotherhood. That was the first step in his political life as civil activist. In 1994 25 year old Tyahnybok was elected to the Lviv Regional Council and in 1998 to the Verkhovna Rada
Verkhovna Rada
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine is Ukraine's parliament. The Verkhovna Rada is a unicameral parliament composed of 450 deputies, which is presided over by a chairman...
.
Political career
In October 1991 Tyahnybok became a member of the Social-National Party of Ukraine. From 1994 till 1998, Tyahnybok served as a member of the Lviv Regional Council. In 1998, Tyahnybok was first electedUkrainian parliamentary election, 1998
The second Ukrainian parliamentary election after the collapse of the Soviet Union took place on 29 March 1998. In comparison to the first parliamentary election, this time half of 450 parliament seats were filled by single-seat majority winners in 225 electoral regions , and the other half were...
to the Ukrainian Parliament as a member of Social-National Party of Ukraine, in the parliament he became a member of the People's Movement of Ukraine
People's Movement of Ukraine
The People's Movement of Ukraine is a Ukrainian center-right political party...
fraction. In 2002, Tyahnybok was reelected
Ukrainian parliamentary election, 2002
Ukrainian parliamentary election of 2002 took place on March 31. Half of the deputies to Verkhovna Rada were elected on proportional basis, while the other half were elected by popular vote in single-mandate constituencies...
to the Ukrainian parliament as a member of Victor Yushchenko’s Our Ukraine bloc.
On July 20, 2004, Tyahnybok was expelled from the Our Ukraine parliamentary faction after he made a speech in the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
at the gravesite of a commander of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. In the speech, which was aired on television in the summer of 2004, he made comments like:
"[You are the ones] that the MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
-Jewish mafiaMafiaThe Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
ruling Ukraine fears most"
and
"They were not afraid and we should not be afraid. They took their automatic guns on their necks and went into the woods, and fought against the MoskalMoskalMoskal is a historical term and present day ethnic slur referring to Russians. It is primarily used as a slur in Ukraine, and Belarus.-Ethnic slur:Moskal can be a type of ethnic slur with a mild negative connotation....
i, GermansGermansThe Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
, JewsJewsThe Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
and other enemies who wanted to take away our Ukrainian state."
In his defence Tyahnybok said he had not offended Russians
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
by calling them an occupying force as this was based on historical fact. He also denied that he was anti-Semitic, saying he was rather pro-Ukrainian. The head of the State Committee of National Migration (Derzhkomnatsmihratsia) Hennadiy Moskal published an open letter with insulting content towards the head of the AU Freedom. The Prosecutor's office filed criminal charges of inciting ethnic hatred, but later closed the case for lack of offense. Since that time Mr. Tyahnybok has won nine court cases in that regard. By the decisions of courts it was recognized that the criminal case was raised unlawfully, and the actions of TV-channel "Inter" that showed the footage of the Tyanybok's speech as well as the Head of the Derzhkomnatsmihratsia H. Moskal were recognized as ones that insult the honor and dignity Oleh Tyahnybok and caused him a moral damage. The actions around that issue led to creation of the "Program in defense of Ukrainians".
Since February 2004 Tiahnybok has headed the All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom".
In April 2005, Tyahnybok co-signed an open letter to President Yushchenko calling for a parliamentary investigation into the "criminal activities of organized Jewry in Ukraine."
Tyahnybok stood as a candidate for the post of Mayor of Kiev
Mayor of Kiev
Mayor of Kiev is the elected mayor of the municipality of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, who is also normally automatically appointed as Head of the City's State Administration and Chair of the City Council....
during the Kiev local election
Kiev local election, 2008
Early mayoral and city council elections were contested in the Ukrainian capital Kiev on May 25, 2008. The snap election was called by the Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada by a 246-5 vote on March 18 amid corruption allegations involving the incumbent Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi...
in 2008. Incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi
Leonid Chernovetskyi
Leonid Mykhaylovych Chernovetskyi is the incumbent Mayor of Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. Before his political career, he was a successful businessman, founder and controlling stakeholder of the Pravex Group and Pravex Bank, one of the largest banks in Ukraine.-Biography:Chernovetskyi quit school...
was reelected with 38% of the vote, while Tyahnybok received 1.37% of the vote. Currently Tyahnybok is the deputy of the Lviv Regional Council.
Tyahnybok was a candidate for President of Ukraine
President of Ukraine
Prior to the formation of the modern Ukrainian presidency, the previous Ukrainian head of state office was officially established in exile by Andriy Livytskyi. At first the de facto leader of nation was the president of the Central Rada at early years of the Ukrainian People's Republic, while the...
in the 2010 presidential election
Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
The Ukrainian presidential election of 2010 is Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The first round was held on January 17, 2010...
for the All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom". He received 352,282 votes, or 1.43% of the total. Most of his votes he received in the historic Halychyna oblasts - Lviv oblast
Lviv Oblast
Lviv Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Lviv.-History:The oblast was created as part of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic on December 4, 1939...
, Ternopil oblast
Ternopil Oblast
Ternopil Oblast is an oblast' of Ukraine. Its administrative center is Ternopil, through which flows the Seret River, a tributary of the Dnister.-Geography:...
and Ivano-Frankivsk oblast
Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast
Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast is an oblast in western Ukraine. Its administrative center is the city of Ivano-Frankivsk. As is the case with most other oblasts of Ukraine this region has the same name as its administrative center – which was renamed by the Soviets after the Ukrainian writer, nationalist...
accounted to 5% of the vote. In the second round, Tyahnybok did not endorse a candidate. He did presente a list of some 20 demands second round candidate Yulia Tymoshenko
Yulia Tymoshenko
Yulia Volodymyrivna Tymoshenko , née Grigyan , born 27 November 1960, is a Ukrainian politician. She was the Prime Minister of Ukraine from 24 January to 8 September 2005, and again from 18 December 2007 to 4 March 2010. She placed third in Forbes Magazine's List of The World's 100 Most Powerful...
had to fulfil first before gaining his endorsement - which included publicizing alleged secret deals Tymoshenko had with Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
and ridding herself of what he called Ukraine-haters in her close circles.
During the 2010 Ukrainian local elections his party won between twenty and thirty percent of the votes in Eastern Galicia where it became one of the main forces in local government.
Political positions
Tyahnybok regards RussiaRussia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
as Ukraine's biggest threat. He has accused the Medvedev presidency of "waging virtual war on Ukraine along many fronts – in the information sphere and the diplomatic sector, within the energy trade
Russia in the European energy sector
Russia has a significant role in the European energy sector as the largest exporter of oil and natural gas to the European Union. In 2007, the European Union imported from Russia 185 million tonnes of crude oil, which accounted for 32.6% of total oil import, and 100.7 million tonnes of...
and throughout the world of international PR
PR
PR commonly stands for* Public relations, a field concerned with maintaining public image* Puerto Rico* Proportional representation, a property of some voting systemsPR, P...
spin.". He is pro-NATO and critical of the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, but supports a Europe of free nations. According to polls both stances put him at odds with the majority of Ukrainians. Tyahnybok also wants to deprive Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
of its autonomous status
Autonomous area
An autonomous area or autonomous entity is an area of a country that has a degree of autonomy, or freedom from an external authority. Typically it is either geographically distinct from the rest of the country or populated by a national minority. Countries that include autonomous areas are often...
and Sevastopol
Sevastopol
Sevastopol is a city on rights of administrative division of Ukraine, located on the Black Sea coast of the Crimea peninsula. It has a population of 342,451 . Sevastopol is the second largest port in Ukraine, after the Port of Odessa....
of its special status.
Tyahnybok wants to introduce a “nationality” section into Ukrainian passport
Ukrainian passport
The Ukrainian passport is a document issued to the nationals of Ukraine as the main proof of Ukrainian citizenship.There are two types of passport issued by the Ukrainian government that are commonly known as internal passport and international passport. An internal passport is used as a primary...
, a visa regime
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
with Russia, and for Ukrainians to pass a Ukrainian language
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
test to work in the civil service.
Tyahnybok wants to re-establish Ukraine as a nuclear power. He believes this would stop the "Russian virtual war on Ukraine" (mentioned above).