UKRAINE: IN FAR WESTERN ZAKARPATTYA, LOCAL LEADERS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KIEV 001111 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL SUBJECT: UKRAINE: IN FAR WESTERN ZAKARPATTYA, LOCAL LEADERS EXPECT "OUR UKRAINE" TO WIN ELECTIONS (U) Sensitive but unclassified. Please handle accordingly. Not for Internet. ¶1. (SBU) Summary. In March 9 meetings in the far western oblast capital Uzhhorod, local government, party and NGO representatives noted the relative peace between political factions in the oblast and attributed it to Zakarpattya's long history of political, cultural, and ethnic diversity. All seemed to agree that Our Ukraine would win upcoming local elections by a plurality, and that the once-dominant SPDU(o) was in decline. Local government and NGO officials outlined the challenges of border security in an oblast that borders four nations. Ambassador raised concerns about alleged abuses at the Pavchino illegal migrant detention facility with the head of the western division of the State Border Guard Service. Ambassador also toured the Journalism Department at Uzhhorod National University, participated in a press roundtable with local media, met with representatives of a refugee law clinic, and visited a local Windows on America center. End summary. Governor says democracy live and well -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Zakarpattya Oblast State Administration Head Oleh Havashi was sanguine in his expectations for democratic elections in March. He highlighted that in Zakarpattya a multitude of political parties were expressing their views in the media and attributed their fairly peaceful coexistence to Zakarpattya's history of diversity. (Note: Zakarpattya is Ukraine's westernmost oblast, bordering Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, and Poland, and has a diverse population of ethnic Ukrainians (the majority),significant minorities from bordering nations, plus small Roma and German populations. Since the 11th century, control of Zakarpattya has rested with various powers, including the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Czechoslovak Republic, Hungary, and the Soviet Union). Presidentially-appointed "Governor" Havashi expressed belief (echoed later by local political scientists and party leaders) that President Yushchenko's Our Ukraine bloc would receive the most votes in the oblast, followed by the opposition Party of Regions and the pro-government Socialists, while the SPDU(o) (note: the once-powerful party of ex-President Kravchuk) would not reach the 3% threshold to enter the oblast council. ¶3. (SBU) When asked about measures to fix technical problems with voter lists and polling station commissions, Havashi responded that problems with voter lists were caused by computer error and were not deliberate. Regarding the dearth of election commissioners, he noted that commissioners were resigning due to a lack of structure in regional political party branches in local districts (rayons). Havashi recommended political parties conduct roundtables to find solutions to solving this problem. Refugee management a problem -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Ambassador raised concerns about smuggling and corruption in the oblast and reports of abuses at the Pavchino refugee detention facility. Havashi said that combating smuggling was a central government problem, not a local problem, and that the situation had improved, partly due to coordination meetings with customs, border guards, and the security service (SBU). He expressed belief that the Pavchino facility should be closed. ¶5. (SBU) Chief of the western regional State Border Guard Service (SBGS) office Oleh Valkyv further outlined the challenges in a region bordered by several nations, answered questions regarding the refoulement of individuals fleeing Chechnya, and defended the conditions of the Pavchino detention facility, denounced by NGOs as a den of abuse and forced labor and raised as an area of concern by the European Union. Valkyv said that the SBGS has been increasing the level of cooperation with neighboring nations' border guard services. Valkyv blamed large numbers of illegal border crossings on Slovakian laws that easily granted refugee status; many illegal migrants, he said, used Slovakia as a jumping-off point to other European countries. When asked about the refoulement of Chechen refugees to Russia, Valkyv said that Chechens detained at the border who did not claim refugee status had to be returned to their country of origin pursuant to Ukrainian law, and that almost none requested refugee status. Ambassador expressed hope that the SBGS would work with UNHCR to insure Chechens were not being forcibly returned to Russia. ¶6. (SBU) Ambassador raised the issue of allegations of abuse at the Pavchino facility, including forced labor, stealing of food and packages, and granting of asylum only to those who could pay. Valkyv denied that any abuses took place at the facility, claiming that detainees were fed and received supplies from charitable organizations several times a week. He emphasized that Pavchino was technically not part of the SBGS, but of the local militia, although the SBGS managed the facility with the support of local NGOs. He claimed that information regarding the facility had been distorted during the recent filming of a documentary program, when detainees, upon discovering they were being filmed, removed their warm clothing and intentionally gave the appearance of being poorly clothed and abused. ¶7. (U) Volodymyr Navrotsky, Director of the Carpathian Agency of Human Rights "Vested," opened a mini-roundtable meeting with Ambassador noting that the legal clinic had been a leader in refugee and asylum work in Zakarpattya. The clinic is staffed by 15 law students who provide pro bono legal services to refugees and asylum seekers under the auspices of clinic lawyers. The clinic enjoys a good relationship with immigration services, which refers applicants to their center. Navrotsky mentioned an unwritten rule, prohibiting the Immigration Services from granting asylum to applicants from Chechnya under the categorical exclusion for terrorists. On average, the clinic provided services to 30 refugees a month, with summer being the busiest season. He noted that local authorities were helpful in granting access to the courts, although favorable decisions to grant asylum tended to be given to refugees from Russia, while Middle Eastern and Asian refugees were often denied asylum. Navrotsky noted that 30 percent of asylum seekers were refugees from Iran and Iraq, 20 percent were from the Russian Federation, mostly Chechnya, and the rest come from Afghanistan, Vietnam and other countries. Lunch with political observers -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Ambassador hosted a lunch attended by Pavlo Chuchka, a local businessman and head of a pro-Yushchenko local election bloc; Oleksandr Ledida, head of the Party of Regions Zakarpattya headquarters; political scientist Viktor Pashchenko; Oleksandr Prystaya, head of the local Socialist Party; and MP Serhiy Radushnyak, leader of the local Lytvyn bloc. Amid discussion of possible outcomes of the March 26 parliamentary elections and the decline of the SPDU(o),the guests backed Governor Havashi's claim that the various groups coexisted peacefully in Zakarpattya. Lunch guests all noted Zakarpattya's history of diversity as contributing to the relative peace between political factions. On possible election outcomes, Pashchenko noted that despite disappointment thus far with President Yushchenko's administration, Our Ukraine would win the March 26 vote in the oblast by plurality, followed by Party of Regions and Tymoshenko's bloc. ¶9. (SBU) Ambassador noted that the SPDU(o) had lost a great deal of ground in a region where it formerly enjoyed strong support. Pashchenko said that many of the current Our Ukraine membership had departed from the SDPU(o),which was a significant cause of its decline. He said that although the SDPU(o) had garnered 33% of the vote in the 1998 elections, the subsequent governorship of the SDPU(o)'s Ivan Rizak, who was widely seen as corrupt and having abused power, and the perception locally that the SPDU(o) leadership was solely concerned with forwarding their own business interests, had caused people to change parties. Visits to journalism school, press club, Windows on America -------------- -------------- ¶10. (U) At the Uzhhorod journalism school, Ambassador visited a studio supported by a Media Fund Grant and met with approximately 100 journalism students. He emphasized the importance of freedom of the press and U.S. efforts to support free press in Ukraine, as evidenced by the grant that made possible the school's production studio that gives students hands-on training in broadcast media. Ambassador took questions from audience members, who were particularly interested in the repeal of Jackson-Vanik and how that would effect trade relations between the U.S. and Ukraine. At the Uzhhorod Press Club, Ambassador participated in a roundtable with local media. At a local Windows on America center, Ambassador toured a U.S.-supported computer lab and library. Herbst