Right Sector Пра́вий се́ктор | |
---|---|
Leader | Dmytro Yarosh |
Founded | March 22, 2014 |
Merger of | Tryzub ('Trident') Patriots of Ukraine UNA–UNSO |
Headquarters | Kiev, Ukraine |
Membership | 5,000-10,000 |
Ideology | Ukrainian nationalism |
Political position | Far-right |
Party flag | |
File:Right Sector.jpg | |
Website | |
pravyysektor.info |
Right Sector (Ukrainian: Пра́вий се́ктор, Pravyi Sektor) is a Ukrainian nationalist political party[1] and paramilitary collective of several organizations, described by some major publications as having far right,[2][3][4] nationalist,[5][6][7] or ultranationalist[8][9] views. The group claims to have at least 5,000 to 10,000 members.[10][11] It first emerged at the end of November 2013 at the Euromaidan protests in Kiev, as an alliance of far-right Ukrainian nationalist groups and the Ukrainian National Assembly – Ukrainian National Self Defence (UNA-UNSO).[12][13]
History
Origins
Right Sector views itself within the tradition of Ukrainian partisans, such as the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which fought in the Second World War against the Soviet Union and both for and against the Axis.[14][15] Dmytro Yarosh, Right Sector's leader, has trained armed nationalists in military exercises since the collapse of the Soviet Union.[16]
Die Welt reports that Right Sector formed from an association of right-wing and neo-fascist Ukrainian political factions.[14] According to Yarosh and some other members, the organization formed in affiliation with or comprised several smaller far-right and nationalist groups, including Trident of Stepan Bandera (Yarosh), Patriots of Ukraine (Andriy Belitsky), White Hammer (Kyiv Organization),[17][18] the Social-National Assembly,[18] and UNA-UNSO (Yuriy Shukhevych).[12] Andriy Tarasenko, leader of Right Sector's Kiev branch, dates the establishment of the organization to late November 2013 and states that "most participants are just ordinary citizens having no relation to any organizations".[12]
On 6 March 2014 Right Sector announced its intention to dissociate itself from White Hammer, citing the group's presence as defaming, and an inability to discipline it.[19]
Yarosh has stated that Right Sector has received some financing from the Ukrainian diaspora.[11]
Entry into Maidan
Right Sector became one of the main actors in the January 2014 Hrushevskoho Street riots, a part of the Euromaidan protests, in their later and more violent stages.[20][18] On 19 January 2014 Right Sector encouraged its members to bring bottles to the protests in order to produce Molotov cocktails and bombs.[12] Journalist Alec Luhn for The Nation wrote that "ultranationalists and neo-Nazis" from Right Sector and other groups took control of Maidan's defense forces.[21] The Yanukovich government classified Right Sector as an extremist movement, threatening its members with imprisonment.[22]
According to Volodymyr Ishchenko, in an op-ed piece in The Guardian, Right Sector was responsible for the violent 1 December 2013 attack on the Ukrainian administration and also led another violent provocation against the police.[23] Ishchenko wrote that "previously marginal neofascists from the militant Pravy Sektor" entered into negotiations with Ukraine's police forces at this time.[24] Right Sector's leader, Dmytro Yarosh, has stated that it has amassed a lethal arsenal of weapons.[25]
Right Sector has been described as the most organized and most effective of the Maidan forces. Following the collapse of the Yanukovych government in February 2014, with police having largely abandoned the streets of Kiev, groups of young men, including members of Right Sector, have been patrolling the streets armed mostly with baseball bats.[26][27]
Le Monde Diplomatique's Emmanuel Dreyfus writes that the presence of "neo-fascist groups such as Pravy Sector" in Maidan point to a crisis of unity in Ukrainian society, splitting Eastern and Western populations.[28] Haaretz has written that members of Right Sector used neo-Nazi symbols during Maidan demonstrations, and that there were "reports, from reliable sources" that Right Sector and Svoboda members distributed copies of Main Kampf.[29]
After Yanukovych
Yarosh was proposed as a deputy to the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council[30] but was not appointed.[31] He was then offered the position of deputy head of the National Security Council but rejected it as being beneath him.[32]
In February 2014 Yarosh and the Israeli ambassador to Ukraine agreed to establish a "hotline" to prevent provocations and coordinate actions when issues arise.[33][34] The group assists in the protection of Jewish sites in Odessa.[35] Russia has cited attacks by Right Sector on Russian speakers and Jews as the main reason it sent troops into Crimea. The Associated Press reports that it has found no evidence of hate crimes by the group.[8]
In a poll conducted by the SOTSIS research center (25 February–4 March 2014), Yarosh's possible candidacy in the upcoming presidential elections (planned for 25 May) received the support of 1.6% of the respondents.[36] On 7 March 2014, Kiev chairman Andriy Tarasenko told Interfax-Ukraine that the "informal movement" would be transforming itself into a political party at a congress on 15 March.[1]
On 11 March 2014, in Russia's State Duma, opposition leader Valery Rashkin called on Russian special services to "liquidate" Yarosh and Oleksandr Muzychko, the group's West Ukrainian leader.[37] Right Sector member Oleksandr Muzychko[nb 1] was shot to death in Rivne, West Ukraine, on 24 March 2014. Ukraine's Interior Ministry stated that he was shot after opening fire on police and Sokil special forces. He was captured alive and arrested but died from his wounds before paramedics arrived.[38] Police said he was being detained on suspicion of organized crime links, hooliganism and threatening public officials.[39][40][41] Right Sector representatives said that Muzychko's hands had been cuffed, so he could not have shot at police. They held Interior Minister Arsen Avakov accountable for his death and vowed to avenge him.[42] On 31 March 2014 a Right Sector activist started shooting in the Ukrainian capital's center near the "Mafia" restaurant. Three people, including deputy head of the Kiev city state administration Bogdan Dubas, were wounded in the incident.[43] The shooter was later arrested and found to be inebriated.[44][45]
Right Sector continues to occupy buildings in Kiev.[46] Pro-Russian insurgents in eastern Ukraine, explaining their April 2014 hostage taking of VICE reporter Simon Ostrovsky, claimed he was working for Right Sector.[46]
Ideology
As a paramilitary organization created from a number of different Ukrainian right-wing and nationalist organizations,[14] Right Sector's ideology has been variously described as right-wing, far-right, or ultra-nationalist.[14][47][25]
According to TIME magazine, Right Sector's ideology borders on fascism, and the group is supported only by Ukraine's staunchest nationalists.[48] Columnist Conn Hallinan has written that the United States press has "downplayed the role" of Right Sector and other far-right groups, which some media and scholars label as "fascist."[49][50][51] Political Scientist Cas Mudde writes that Right Sector's constituent groups include "various neo-fascists and neo-Nazis" who formed alliances during Maidan.[52]
Political science professor Alexander Motyl by contrast writes that Right Sector is right-wing and nationalist, but not fascist.[53] Political Scientist Anton Shekhovstov writes that while "Right Sector has indeed a neo-Nazi fringe – constituted by the representatives from the ‘White Hammer’ group, ‘Patriot of Ukraine’, Social-National Assembly – the main group behind the Right Sector is ‘Tryzub’ (Trident) which is far from neo-Nazism, racism and anti-Semitism."[54]
Other Ukrainians and political parties
In an interview, Yarosh stated that Right Sector and Svoboda "have a lot of common positions when it comes to ideological questions," but that Right Sector “absolutely do[es]n’t accept certain racist things they [Svoboda members] share.”[55] He distinguished the two group's attitudes toward non-Ukrainian nationalities, citing Stepan Bandera's philosophy: those who "oppose" the national liberation struggle should be dealt with "in a hostile way," but those living on the land who "do not oppose" the struggle should be treated "in a tolerant way" and those fighting with his group "for Ukraine" should be treated "as comrades."[55]
Tarasenko likewise cited Bandera, stating: "We are enemies to those saying that there [is] no Ukraine, or Ukrainians, or … Ukrainian language."[56]
According to journalist Oleg Shynkarenko, Yarosh has indicated that Right Sector opposes homosexuality and has also implied that the right of the nation trumps human rights.[18] Vesna Popovski, a researcher at the London School of Economic's European Institute, states that Right Sector is "anti-Semitic, anti-gay and anti-Russian."[57] The New York Times has written that "Right Sector, a coalition of ultranationalist and in some cases neo-Nazi organizations," has attempted to distance itself from anti-Semitism, citing Yarosh's pledge to fight racism in Ukraine.[58]
In an interview with a major Polish newspaper, Tarasenko stated that territories of Poland like Przemysl should be "returned" to Ukraine and that it should regain nuclear weapons. When asked whether Bandera was responsible for the 100,000 Poles murdered in Volhynia, Tarasenko argued that this is "nonsense."[59]
According to international-relations consultant Emmanuel Dreyfus, Right Sector defines itself as neither xenophobic nor anti-Semitic but "nationalist, defending the values of white, Christian Europe against the loss of the nation."[47]
Tarasenko has stated that the group has no "phobias", that it respects every other nation, and that it supports the nation state model. On this basis Tarasenko argued that there is no chauvinism or fascism in Ukrainian nationalism.[56]
Attitude towards Europe
Right Sector's website says that its members distrust the "imperial ambitions" of both Russia and the West.[60] Popovski states that Right Sector is pro-European and supports Ukraine's entry into the European Union.[57]
Policy
Domestic policy
Right Sector has the position that the population should keep or bear arms, as in Switzerland.[61]
Military force
Right Sector seized military weaponry from an Interior Ministry arsenal in western Ukraine, near Lviv, towards the end of the Maidan revolution.[62] Those weapons reached Kiev in February, but according to protest leaders and analysts played little role in overthrowing the Ukrainian government.[62] Right Sector delivered some weapons to Ukrainian authorities in the aftermath of the revolution, and kept others.[62]
According to Yarosh, Right Sector has recruited retired officers of the interior ministry and the security agencies. He told Newsweek that the group coordinates its actions with the army and the National Security and Defense council and that "as in any army" it has specialists who are trained to use S-300 antiaircraft missiles.[11]
Notes
References
- ^ a b "'Right Sector' has become a party". Українська правда. Kiev. March 22, 2014.
Combining radical parties and organizations of Ukrainian patriots, 'Right Sector' has decided to become a political party.… 'It happened on the legal and human-resource base of [the] Ukrainian National Assembly,' … [Denisenko] said.
Cite error: The named reference "party" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page). - ^ Whalen, Jeanne (25 March 2014). "Prominent Ukraine nationalist killed during police operation". Wall Street Journal.
Russia's state-controlled media outlets have focused particular attention on Mr. Muzychko and one other activist from a far-right group called Pravy Sektor.
- ^ Polityuk, Pavel (8 March 2014). "Far-right leader to run for president in Ukraine". Reuters.
Ukrainian far-right leader Dmytro Yarosh said on Saturday he would run for president and launched a scathing attack on the new government, two weeks after he helped bring it to power through street protests.
- ^ "Ukraine paramilitary group forms political party". Agence France Presse. 22 March 2014.
A Ukrainian far-right paramilitary group … said Saturday it had formed a political party.… The Pravy Sektor party will absorb other already registered Ukrainian nationalist formations including UNA-UNSO and Trizub (Trident).
- ^ Higgins, Andrew (12 April 2014). "Mystery surrounds death of Ukrainian activist". New York Times.
Shot in the heart, Mr. Muzychko — a militant activist in the nationalist group Right Sector — died fleeing the reach of a Ukrainian government he had helped bring to power just a month earlier.
- ^ "Ukraine unrest: Russian outrage at fatal Sloviansk shooting". BBC News. 20 April 2014.
Russia has expressed outrage at a fatal shooting in eastern Ukraine which it blamed on Ukrainian nationalists.… The Russian foreign ministry accuses the Ukrainian nationalist group, Right Sector, of carrying out the raid.
- ^ Harding, Luke (20 April 2014). "Ukraine unrest: Russian outrage at fatal Sloviansk shooting". Guardian.
The foreign ministry in Moscow … blamed the clash on the Right Sector, a nationalist Ukrainian group…
- ^ a b Danilova, Maria (March 14, 2014). "After Ukraine protest, radical group eyes power". Associated Press.
The radical ultranationalist group … [has been] demonized by Russian state propaganda as fascists and accused of staging attacks against Russian speakers and Jews.… The AP and other international news organizations have found no evidence of hate crimes.
- ^ Shuster, Simon (6 March 2014). "Putin says Ukraine's revolutionaries are anti-Semites. Is he right?". Time.
The uprising … involved a radical right-wing group called Pravy Sektor, a coalition of militant ultra-nationalists…. Their leader … has been offered senior posts in Ukraine's security services….
- ^ McCoy, Terrence (26 March 2014). "Ultranationalist's killing underscores Ukraine's ugly divisions". Washington Post.
Right Sector … boasts between 5,000 and 10,000 members…
- ^ a b c Nemtsova, Anna (19 March 2014). "Yarosh: Russians, Rise Up Against Putin!". Newsweek. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
- ^ a b c d "Groups at the sharp end of Ukraine unrest". BBC News. 1 February 2014.
The Right Sector is a radical nationalist opposition group…
- ^ Die Extremisten vom Majdan, FAZ vom 23. Februar 2014
- ^ a b c d "The radical Ukrainian group Right Sector". Die Welt. 22 February 2014.
Right Sector (Pravy Sektor) is an informal association of right-wing and neo-fascist factions.
- ^ Baranova, Maria (3 March 2014). "No one has done more for Ukrainian nationalism than Vladimir Putin". New Republic.
- ^ Klußmann, Uwe (3 March 2014). "Conflict with Russia". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 6 March 2014.
- ^ Official announcement of the Right Sector. Right Sector. 6 March 2014
- ^ a b c d e Shynkarenko, Oleg (March 1, 2014). "Can Ukraine control its far right ultranationalists?". Daily Beast.
Interior Minister Arsen Avakov condemned the video as 'not an exaggerated manifestation of the hunt for justice, but sabotage against people's faith in possible order.'
- ^
Right Sector Political Council (6 March 2014). "Official statement by Right Sector". PravyySektor.info (in Ukrainian).
For marginal actions that defame the Right Sector movement and failure to discipline, [White Hammer] is removed from our organization
- ^ Radicals a wild card in Ukraine’s protests, The Washington Post (2 February 2014)
- ^ Luhn, Alec (4 March 2014). "s Far-Right Groups Infiltrate Kiev's Institutions, the Student Movement Pushes Back". The Nation. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
Meanwhile, ultranationalists and neo-Nazis from groups like Svoboda and Right Sector took over Euromaidan's self-defense forces, and leaders linked to these two groups were appointed to high-ranking security positions in the new government.
- ^ Eugen Theise, "Radical 'Pravy Sektor' group shifts Kyiv protests to the right," Deutsche Welle World (11 February 2014). Retrieved 01 March 2014.
- ^ Ishchenko, Volodymyr (22 January 2014). "Ukraine protests are no longer just about Europe". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 February 2014.
- ^ Ishchenko, Volodymyr (7 February 2014). "Ukrainian protesters must make a decisive break with the far right". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
Neo-fascists have become involved in the Euromaidan protest movement and we can't turn a blind eye to the danger that presents… Previously marginal neofascists from the militant Pravy Sektor (the Right Sector) are now involved in negotiations with Ukrainian law-enforcement bodies. They will be among the undisputable leaders of the more radical part of the movement who will not be satisfied with a narrow rearrangement of powers as demanded by the opposition.
- ^ a b Shuster, Simon (4 February 2014). "Exclusive: Leader of far-right Ukrainian militant group talks revolution with TIME". TIME.
Yarosh, whose militant brand of nationalism rejects all foreign influence over Ukrainian affairs, revealed for the first time that Pravy Sektor has amassed a lethal arsenal of weapons.… Pravy Sektor's ideology borders on fascism, and it enjoys support only from Ukraine's most hard-line nationalists….
- ^ Gatehouse, Gabriel (1 March 2014). "Ukraine: Far-right armed with bats patrol Kiev". BBC. Retrieved 4 March 2014.
- ^ Luhn, Alec (3 March 2014). "As Far-Right Groups Infiltrate Kiev's Institutions, the Student Movement Pushes Back". The Nation. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
Ultranationalists and neo-Nazis from groups like Svoboda and Right Sector took over Euromaidan's self-defense forces…. Right Sector, whose social network page features extensive neo-Nazi imagery, has been patrolling alongside police….
- ^ Dreyfus, Emmanuel (2 March 2014). "Ukraine Beyond Politics". Le Monde Diplomatique. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Pfeffer, Anshul (25 February 2014). "The New Dilemma for Jews in Ukraine". Haaretz. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
The greatest worry now is not the uptick in anti-Semitic incidents but the major presence of ultra-nationalist movements, especially the prominence of the Svoboda party and Pravy Sektor (right sector) members among the demonstrators. Many of them are calling their political opponents "Zhids" and flying flags with neo-Nazi symbols. There have also been reports, from reliable sources, of these movements distributing freshly translated editions of Mein Kampf and the Protocols of the Elders of Zion in Independence Square.
- ^ Olearchyk, Roman (26 February 2014). "Arseniy Yatseniuk poised to become Ukraine prime minister". Financial Times. Retrieved 27 February 2014.
In a bid to appease protesters demanding an end to government corruption, Mr Yatseniuk's cabinet will have civic activists to oversee it.… Victoria Siumar, a civil society activist, and Dmytro Yarosh, head of Right Sector, a militant protest group, were proposed as [Yatseniuk's] deputies.
- ^ "Апарат [Staff]". Рада національної безпеки і оборони України [National Security & Defense Council of Ukraine (website)]. Kiev. February 28, 2014.
- ^ Shuster, Simon (1 March 2014). "Many Ukrainians want Russia to invade". Time.
Shkiryak, a revolutionary lawmaker involved in the negotiations over Yarosh's role in the government, says the right-wing militant … was offered the role of deputy head of the National Security Council, but rejected it as beneath him.
- ^ "'Right Sector' assured the ambassador of Israel, rejecting anti-Semitism". Ukrayinska Pravda (in Ukrainian). 27 February 2014.
Leaders of the 'Right Sector' assured the Israeli ambassador Reuven El Din that its ideology rejects all manifestations of chauvinism and xenophobia.
- ^ "Meeting of Reuven Din El with Dmytro Yarosh". Embassy of Israel in Ukraine (in Ukrainian). Israeli Diplomatic Network. 27 February 2014.
The parties agreed to establish a 'hot line' to prevent provocations and for coordination on issues that arise.
- ^ "Right Sector [has] offered protection for Odessa Jews". Ukrainian Pravda (in Ukrainian). 10 April 2014.
The representative of the Right Sector offered the [chief] Rabbi [of Odessa and southern Ukraine] assistance in the protection of Jewish sites of the city.
- ^ "Порошенко лидирует в президентском рейтинге". LB.ua. 5 March 2014. Retrieved 7 March 2014.
- ^ "Российский депутат призвал спецслужбы "ликвидировать" Яроша и Белого". Lenta.ru. 11 March 2014.
- ^ "Ukraine far-right leader Muzychko dies 'in police raid'". BBC News. 25 March 2014.
Muzychko fired at police as he was trying to flee…. Police then returned fire and captured him and three others … [Deputy Interior Minister] Yevdokimov said. 'He was still alive as they were arresting him….'
- ^ Pemble, Adam; Leonard, Peter (25 March 2014). "Busloads of Ukrainian troops leave Crimea". Associated Press.
Russian state television, which is widely viewed by Ukraine's Russian-speaking population in the east, has regularly aired lurid reports on Muzychko's antics as part of what media analysts say is a sustained effort to undermine the government…
- ^ Interior Ministry: Right Sector coordinator Muzhychko killed in shootout with police Kyiv Post Retrieved on March 25, 2014
- ^ "Notorious Ukrainian nationalist militant shot dead in police raid". RT. TV-Novosti. 26 March 2014.
A former senior official at the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) told [Russian News & Information Agency] that the objective of the operation – carried out by SBU with the help of the Interior Ministry – was to kill Muzychko, rather than to detain him.
- ^ "Nationalists threaten Ukrainian top cop with 'revenge' over far-right leader murder". RT [Russia Today]. TV-Novosti. 25 March 2014.
- ^ Top Kiev official wounded in shooting incident in city center
- ^ http://www.pravda.com.ua/news/2014/03/31/7020930/
- ^ http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/497182.html
- ^ a b Karmanau, Yuras (23 April 2014). "FM vows response if Russians attacked in Ukraine". Associated Press, reprinted by WSMV Nashville. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ a b Dreyfus, Emmanuel (2 March 2014). "Ukraine beyond politics". Le Monde Diplomatique. Cite error: The named reference "monde0302" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
- ^ Shuster, Simon (4 February 2014). "Exclusive: Leader of Far-Right Ukrainian Militant Group Talks Revolution With TIME". Time Magazine. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
Pravy Sektor's ideology borders on fascism, and it enjoys support only from Ukraine's most hard-line nationalists, a group too small to secure them a place in parliament.
- ^ Hallinan, Conn (7 March 2014). "The Dark Side of the Ukraine Revolt". The Nation. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ English, Robert (13 March 2014). "Ukraine's threat from within: Neofascists are as much a menace to Ukraine as Putin's actions in Crimea". LA Times. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Hendrickson, David (11 March 2014). "The West's Illusions About Ukraine". The National Interest. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Mudde, Cas (28 February 2014). "A new (order) Ukraine? Assessing the relevance of Ukraine's far right in an EU perspective". Open Democracy. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Motyl, Alexander (20 March 2014). "'Experts' on Ukraine". World Affairs Journal. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Shekhovstov, Anton (3 March 2014). "A response to Cas Mudde's 'A new (order) Ukraine'". Open Democracy. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ a b English translation of an interview with the leader of Right Sector by Ukrayinska Pravda's Mustafa Nayem and Oksana Kovalenko. Original published 4 February 2014.
- ^ a b "Lenta.ru: "We are not armed forces"". 13 March 2014.
- ^ a b Charles McPhedran; Luigi Serenelli (27 February 2014). "Ukraine protesters unsatisfied with presidential field". USA Today. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
Right Sector has also been labeled as neo-fascist. "Their agenda is on the one hand pro-European — they would very much join the European Union," said Vesna Popovski, researcher at the European Institute of the London School of Economics. "On the other hand, they are anti-Semitic, anti-gay and anti-Russian."
- ^ Higgins, Andrew (9 April 2014). "Among Ukraine's Jews, the Bigger Worry Is Putin, Not Pogroms". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- ^ Bielecki, Jędrzej (January 29, 2014). "The leader of the Bandera: The genocide in Volhynia is nonsense". Rzeczpospolita. Warsaw.
- ^ Petro, Nicolai (March 3, 2014). "Threat of Military Confrontation Grows in Ukraine". The Nation. N.Y.C.
Its members are critical of party politics and skeptical of the 'imperial ambitions' of both Moscow and the West.
- ^ http://maidan.charter4.org/2014/03/13/lanta-ru-we-are-not-armed-forces/ "Our lawyers are working out the law on lustration and the law on arms. We think that the population should be armed. Like in Switzerland."
- ^ a b c Kramer, Andrew (20 March 2014). "Ukraine Sets Deadline for Militias to Surrender Illegal Guns". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 March 2014.