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Vol. 39, Nº 70 (2021), 784-799
IEPDP-Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Políticas - LUZ
Recibido el 14/07/2021 Aceptado el 03/09/2021
Stratagems of political and legal
development of Ukraine: problems of
actualization and scientic comprehension
DOI: https://doi.org/10.46398/cuestpol.3970.47
Volodymyr Tarasyuk *
Elina Morhunova **
Dmytro Drobotun ***
Olena Stoyko ****
Olena Chyzhova *****
Abstract
The aim of the article is to consider the priority areas of state
policy and outline initiatives that are of strategic importance
to Ukraine. The research topic is state programs (strategic
initiatives) in the eld of education and science, security and
defense, information that will provide the opportunity to lay the
foundation for positive changes in society. The study applies methods of
scientic knowledge such as the dialectical method, the monographic
method, the methods of analysis and synthesis, the system and structural
method, the grouping and classication method, the abstract and logical
method. The reasons, factors and processes that led to Ukraine’s prolonged
stay under the inuence of oligarchic capital are investigated. In addition,
they consider the prerequisites for the preservation of elites that hinder
the democratic development of the Ukrainian state. It is concluded that
the introduction of democratic institutions in post-totalitarian countries
requires, rst of all, a concentration of eorts in the elds of education and
science, information policy, national security and defense.
* Candidate of Political Sciences, Researcher at Volodymyr Koretskyi Institute of State and Law of the
National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8915-2443.
Email: volodymyr.tarasyuk@yahoo.com
** Post-graduate student of Volodymyr Koretskyi Institute of State and Law of the National Academy
of Sciences of Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0552-0630. Email: esmorhunova@
gmail.com
*** Post-graduate student of Volodymyr Koretskyi Institute of State and Law of the National Academy
of Sciences of Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1058-9333. Email: dmitry.icpress@
gmail.com
**** Doctor of Political Sciences, Leading Researcher at Volodymyr Koretskyi Institute of State and Law of
the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1021-5270.
Email: ol.stoyko@gmail.com
***** Candidate of Political Sciences, Professor of the Department of Public Management and International
Relations of the National Pedagogical Dragomanov University. ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-
0003-2029-9815. Email: elena1945@i.ua
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Vol. 39 Nº 70 (2021): 784-799
Keywords: deoligarquization; civil society; political and legal
development strategy; formation of the State; political
development.
Estrategias de desarrollo político y jurídico de Ucrania:
problemas de actualización y comprensión cientíca
Resumen
El objetivo del artículo es considerar las áreas prioritarias de la política
estatal y esbozar las iniciativas que son de importancia estratégica para
Ucrania. El tema de investigación son los programas estatales (iniciativas
estratégicas) en el campo de la educación y la ciencia, la seguridad y la
defensa, información que brindará la oportunidad de sentar las bases para
cambios positivos en la sociedad. El estudio aplica métodos de conocimiento
cientíco como el método dialéctico, el método monográco, los métodos
de análisis y síntesis, el método de sistema y estructural, el método de
agrupación y clasicación, el método abstracto y lógico. Se investigan
las razones, factores y procesos que llevaron a la estancia prolongada de
Ucrania bajo la inuencia del capital oligárquico. Además, se consideran
los requisitos previos para la conservación de las élites que obstaculizan
el desarrollo democrático del estado ucraniano. Se concluye que, la
introducción de instituciones democráticas en los países post-totalitarios
requiere, en primer lugar, una concentración de esfuerzos en los campos
de la educación y la ciencia, la política de la información, la seguridad y
defensa nacional.
Palabras clave: desoligarquización; sociedad civil; estrategia de
desarrollo político y legal; formación del Estado;
desarrollo político.
Introduction
Globalization and crisis challenges have been particularly acute for
Ukraine in recent years and coincided with a turning point in the formation
of national Statehood and its main political institutions. Today, our country
is being tested for strength, and its leading political forces, government
and citizens must show the will to independence, the ability to overcome
internal divisions and contradictions, the desire and ability to actively and
creatively integrate into a dynamically developing world.
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Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
The course of reforms performed in all spheres of life of the State and
society is the adequate and the only possible response to the challenges
of today. The new modernization strategy as a priority of political reform
envisages rst of all the creation of a modern, competitive Ukrainian State,
the dening characteristics of which are the rule of law and developed
legal culture, balanced representative democracy, strong self-government,
disciplined and mobile state management.
Modernization of political institutions and changes in the political
consciousness of citizens are necessary to optimize management processes
in the country, improve economic life, attract investment and transition to
an innovative model of social development.
Sadly, the change of elites is one of the most pressing problems on
our way to positive changes. Domestic elites are closely associated with
oligarchs, some of who have very serious inuence on the Verkhovna
Rada of Ukraine, state agencies, ministries, political parties. The main
shortcomings of our country – corruption, lack of rules, monopolization
of specic sectors of the economy – are all ideal conditions for oligarchic
business, which is associated with political power.
Thus, the purpose of the article is to outline the spheres that are of
strategic importance for Ukraine, and propose several generalized initiatives
to overcome the crisis, which aects our country nowadays.
1. Methodology
In order to achieve the goal of the Article, the following general and
special methods of scientic knowledge are used.
Dialectical method is applied for the comprehensive examination of the
problem under consideration and its main aspects.
Monographic method helps in the study of scientic works of scholars,
who examined the features of the elite, including political one.
The methods of analysis and synthesis, as well as system and structural
method make it possible to identify the factors that hinder the democratic
development of the Ukraine.
The method of grouping and classication is applied for the denition of
the key areas that need to be developed in order to ensure the sovereignty
and subjectivity of our State. The same method is used for identifying the
main problems in these areas.
Abstract and logical method is helpful in formulating the relevant
conclusions and suggestions.
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2. Literature Review
Considering the processes of elite change, it is worth noting that this
problem was studied by a number of scientists. For example Pareto (Welty,
2016: 53-54) stressed on the structural heterogeneity of the elite itself.
Thus, he highlighted those “who directly or indirectly play a prominent
role in the management of society and constitute the ruling elite and the
rest of this class, which forms the non-governing elite”. He considers the
latter counter-elite – a group of people with elite features but a number of
restrictions on access to governance, including social (innate) status and
a number of other barriers in society to its lower classes. At the same time
this group has a great desire to replace the existing elite.
Mosca (1995) reveals this category as a number of people occupying high
positions in accordance with the level of their inuence and socio-political
power. In his scientic work he was trying to comprehensively study the
issue of social inequality, stressing on the common feature for all social
systems – the existence of a separate layer that realizes the inuence and
control of others; “the emergence of people causes society. The existence of
society requires the creation of a State. Accordingly, the State will have a
minority governing and majority governed by the minority”.
According to Michels (1994: 91), “there can be no political class in
any developed and civilized society. The social majority will be forced to
recognize its power and accept the idea of the emergence and inuence of
the oligarchy”. Michels is the author of one of the laws of political life – the
“iron law of the oligarchy”. It is that any democratic system for the formation
of stability is forced to create a bureaucratic structure or elect leaders who
acquire signicant powers. The result is the usurpation of power by leaders
or the bureaucracy, leading to the transformation of democracy into an
oligarchy.
Lasswell (2005) provides rather wide interpretation of leading elite:
these are people who occupy key positions in government; persons who
previously occupied them and remained loyal to the regime; individuals who
do not belong to formalized government institutions, but have a signicant
inuence on decision-making in them; oppositionists with political weight;
family members of government ocials.
Another position of scholars on the relationship between elected
democracy and the elitism of power is relevant for modern Ukrainian
realities. Thus, Dai and Ziegler (1984:154) point out that the ruling elite
have real powers in the State, but its support (or lack thereof) by citizens
determines both the results of the election process and the duration and
eectiveness of these powers. In particular, the authors point out that “It is
the political actions of the elite that mainly shape their understanding and
attitude to politics and not vice versa”.
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Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
Karabushchenko et al., (2018) prove that the elite should always
have its own idea, otherwise its existence would be meaningless. Only an
anthropological elitology can nd and dene this idea, because each elite
is a group of individuals endowed with some elite qualities, or the ones
imitating them.
3. Results and Discussion
Risks of Oligarchic Rule. Under certain circumstances, the public
demand for the deelitization of oligarchs may be transformed into another
mass protest. In Ukraine, for thirty years of independence, no conditions have
been established for professional implementation of educators, scientists,
doctors, journalists, engineers, etc. All so-called non-prot professions are
in deep decline. Market relations have gradually transformed into market
thinking – a liberal economy transforms society into a market environment.
Nevertheless, it is obvious that either health, politics, friendship, or family
relationships cannot be market-based per denition. The only criterion for
a person’s success is the size of his (her) fortune. If wealthy, then successful
(and vice versa), and besides, for most people it does not matter how
this auence is accumulated. Therefore, there is still a high tolerance for
corruption – perhaps the only way to grow rich rapidly and get recognized;
and to join the corrupt rent, one must become an ocial and / or a politician.
Such “values” have become rmly established in public consciousness and
education. Hence, oligarchic rule harms not only economic development,
but also destroys the system of value orientations of society. As a result
of the introduction of European values of democracy and commonwealth
against the background of a deep axiological crisis, it becomes a dicult
problem to solve.
The simultaneous implementation of State programs (strategic
initiatives) in the eld of education and science, security and defense,
information policy will provide an opportunity to lay the foundation for
subsequent changes, renewal of domestic elites and the formation of a
mature civil society capable of protecting national identities. Without
investments in education and science, without a targeted information policy,
it is impossible to get rid of the mutual stigmatization of the West and East,
right and left forces, the privatization of patriotism by individual political
parties and the pragmatic use of national ideas for political dividends.
Let us consider each of the directions and try to outline the initiatives
that are of strategic importance for the Ukrainian state. Education and
science, national security and defense, and information policy are directly
related to the formation of human capital, the intellectual potential of
the State. Thereby, the relevant ministries and departments cannot, by
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CUESTIONES POLÍTICAS
Vol. 39 Nº 70 (2021): 784-799
denition, work in the ‘re brigade’ mode, their every short-sighted step
can negatively aect in the future both the subjectivity of the Ukrainian
state and its size, defense capability, and sovereignty.
Problems in Education and Science. Restoration of Ukraine’s
intellectual potential is possible through the introduction of eective and
deliberate changes in the system of education and science. Educational
initiatives should be divided into three conditional levels: preschool
education, secondary education, and university programs. The academic
environment requires special attention: in addition to the restoration of
scientic schools, it is necessary, on the basis of a comprehensive expert
analysis (including the situation in the country as well as comparative studies
of foreign experience in supporting and motivating scientists and scientic
schools), to form a system of government research orders (primarily social
and humanitarian, where the eect is not always obvious, but fateful, since
it lays the foundations of sovereignty, security, and national consolidation).
Preschool education should be considered in the light of a number
of current challenges facing humanity today: growing employment rates,
digitalization of all spheres of public life, declining demographics, the
destruction of the institution of family, the loss of a culture of upbringing,
and so forth. The state should establish favorable conditions for the further
birth and education of future citizens of Ukraine (taxpayers, military
servants, law enforcement ocers, doctors, teachers, engineers). This
requires a signicant increase in the level of services and accessibility of
children’s medicine / preschool education, and a strengthening of the
role of the state in children’s upbringing. Kindergartens should become
centers of primary social life cognition, where there is a room for both
the individual and for social relations. Self-awareness and the practice of
applying a common “we”, where everyone has their own view of certain
phenomena, but is able to interact with other individuals, be a leader
and be capable to cooperate with people, to obey and persuade - the way
to a holistic civil society and a strong state formation. For this reason,
kindergarten is the rst step towards a mature citizenship, a center of civic
culture and patriotic education. Folk, religious, national holidays and the
most important dates in the history of Ukraine, state symbols, history and
geography of the country should take an honorable place in the program of
preschool education.
Aesthetic education should be a binding element of secondary
(school) education, along with the conventional subjects. Playing musical
instruments, visual arts, theater, chess, team sports contribute to the
harmonious development of young Ukrainians, capable of creative thinking
and beauty creation – and in life, in human relations - prevent aggressive
moods and attitudes, which, unfortunately, we observe in schoolchildren
today (bullying, suicide, etc.). Interschool debates among high school
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Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
students on topical public issues contribute to the interest of school
graduates in social processes and the preparation of future voters for the
implementation of civil rights and obligations.
Knowledge of a foreign language (preferably not one) should provide
uency and communication, the ability not only to use gadgets, but also to
write essays, read and analyze foreign literature in the original, participate
in international school competitions, make reports to foreign audiences,
and the like. Digital and media literacy have long been at the forefront of
the school curriculum. After all, modern children are becoming increasingly
vulnerable to the challenges of an Internet-based society.
Returning to a 10-year term of secondary education will allow avoiding
not only a demographic crisis in the future, but also preventing a GDP
decit in the years to come. Currently, the state has extended the stay of
children under parental care for at least 5 years (12 instead of 10 years -
school, 6 instead of 5 - university, 4 instead of 2 - postgraduate study, which
for some reason is deemed to be a level of education, not scientic activity),
which will soon respond to social imbalance, the lack of taxes and fees, the
leveling of the institution of family, retirement age increase, and so forth.
Taking into account the loss of children’s interest in the processes of
cognition, it is worth revising the concept of school education and reducing
the number of classes to 12 students, allowing teachers to work better and
assess the level of knowledge of students. Basic subjects should provide
an appropriate level of knowledge so that there is no need to re-study
history at the university, and reproach students for not knowing Ukrainian
or a foreign language. And such conditions require not a reduction in the
number of schools (as is happening now), but the construction of new,
more comfortable classrooms, theater studios, sports arenas, and the
like. If the state requires talented and motivated citizens, then now it is
necessary to attend to establishing favorable conditions for the education
of an intellectually powerful nation.
Tertiary education should also contain elements of civic education.
Participation in student and interuniversity debates, conferences, public
reports, and team competitions on professional skills will involve young
citizens in social processes and will contribute to the formation of a mature
civil society. Those disciplines of the social and humanitarian complex that do
not repeat the school curriculum should be studied in universities, - political
science, sociology, social psychology, jurisprudence, foreign language (in
connection with the future profession with relevant skills - translation of
foreign texts on the relevant subject, political and legal culture, personnel
management, management of organizations, etc.). In the meantime, the
proportion of disciplines taught in parallel and simultaneously in the state
and foreign languages should be increased.
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Involving students in research activities will ensure the selection and
continuous replenishment of scientic personnel and a highly competitive
scientic environment. In general, the transition from individual to
mass education has negatively aected the quality of the latter (Barrett
2003; Huzyk 2004; Ryzhov 1991). Therefore, it is necessary to pay more
attention not to the usual sale of seats in the classroom (training under
pricey contracts), but to select the most capable and talented applicants
capable of mastering academic disciplines. Accordingly, it is necessary to
step away from the monopoly of external independent evaluation and allow
universities to conduct competitive examinations of applicants.
Special attention should be paid to the professional selection and training
of special services / law enforcement ocers. In the early 2000s, as a result
of the destructive policies of the government, access to these professional
environments was granted to casual, unmotivated cadets who entered
special education institutions with the aim of further monetizing their
positions and professional powers. A signicant number of entrants were
enrolled ‘at request’, not at the call of heart. It was during this period that
specialized higher education became widely available to oligarchic capital.
Shadow entrepreneurs, traders and corrupt ocials were well-aware of the
importance of integrating ‘their people’ into the law enforcement system.
Since then, the situation in the eld of national security has only deteriorated,
the students of that time now hold the positions of heads of departments,
divisions in law enforcement agencies and courts. Consequently, such
cadres are interested in inhibiting any changes and reforms, refusal of self-
purication, and sabotage of orders of the state leadership.
The intellectual potential of human capital is the main wealth of any state.
The scientic community is called to increase it, accumulate knowledge,
and apply research results for the benet of the state. Unlike technological
means of imitating human activity, scientic knowledge should become the
basis for social processes management, information security and defense,
foreign and domestic policy, upbringing, education, and implementation of
values and guidelines.
Eective public administration requires scientic, qualied,
informational, expert, and legal support. Making important decisions
requires careful investigation of the relevant processes and possible
consequences. The value of modern science lies in the ability to foresee,
predict, and explain the causes of the occurrence of certain phenomena and
patterns.
Development of scientic potential is impossible without restoration of
illegally lost by virtue of ‘grief reforms’ (bureaucratization and corruption
of the attestation system of scientic personnel, lack of a scientist’s
academic freedom due as a result of coercion to “join” to fake expensive
publications in “certain” scientometric databases, creation of absolutely
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Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
superuous structures in the system of secondary and higher education for
‘quality assurance’, etc.) and establishment of scientic schools, revival of
traditions, without providing state orders for research institutes, without
involving the scientic community in nding ways to solve urgent social
problems, analyzing and jointly generating state-important and socially
signicant decisions.
Science is the intellectual power of the state that provides the ability
to solve the most complex problems. The level of science directly aects
the level of education, politics, economics, medicine, sports, literature,
technological progress and even language. Not everyone is able to engage in
scientic activity, just like not everyone is able to achieve signicant results
in sports or art. Therefore, for most ordinary citizens, the academic world
is something detached from reality, incomprehensible, and not valuable.
But statesmen (who consider themselves the elite) are obliged to realize the
importance and value of scientic knowledge, which ensures the strength
and sovereignty of the state, its sustainable development, and prospects in
a globalized world.
Who is Currently Shaping the Ideological Agenda in Ukraine?
The information policy of the state is now almost entirely dependent on
the media holdings owners, which in our country, with the light hand of
Boris Nemtsov, are called “oligarchs”. The Ukrainian oligarchy is not
just big capital and not business in the usual sense, it is a combination
of monopolies in strategic sectors of the economy, media, and politics.
Oligarchs are the puppeteers of the overwhelming majority of political
forces. Media resources and signicant corruption capital provide an
opportunity to inuence strategic government decisions, appoint loyal
people to key government positions, promote or discredit certain political
actors as a result of information campaigns in order to form in the public
consciousness of likes / dislikes towards certain politicians, ocials, public
gures or organizations.
Deelitization of oligarchs, or de-oligarchization of Ukrainian politics and
economy, is complicated by the inuence of the latter on the editorial policy
of the information market subjects. Oligarchic capital invests considerable
funds in media business to protect monopolized assets - the main sources
of enrichment. Media is an umbrella under which the beneciaries
of Ukrainian corruption hide from the law and public condemnation.
Wherefore, the rst step towards the de-elitization of oligarchs is to deprive
the latter of inuence on the editorial policy of the controlled media. The
implementation of these measures requires not only the political will of
the state leadership and public awareness of the pressing need for these
actions, but also the synchronous work of all relevant state institutions.
The unication and consolidation of the population, divided according
to the external historical and political vector of the development of
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Ukraine, should become an obligatory task of the state information policy.
It is necessary to determine the factors inuencing the segmentation and
polarization of the population, to level their inuence and at the same time
to generate and actively implement new messages aimed at forming a single
national information eld in all spheres of life of the average Ukrainian.
The state at all levels should ensure the formation, direct and control
the implementation of information policy eligible to ensure the growth and
education of young elites capable of protecting national interests and the
coming to power of political actors with state ideas and values. Under such
conditions, the historical heroes of Ukrainian politics, who, by the forces
of modern domestic political elites and foreign centers of inuence, divide
the country into dierent opposing camps, will have to give way to new
historical gures and events that can become a unifying factor.
The formation and implementation of national information policy is
designed to overcome the anti-state polarization of society. Part of the
predominantly articially polarized Ukrainian society, in contrast to the
political polarization of its closest neighbors (Poland, Romania, Hungary,
Russia, etc.), does not identify itself with the sovereign Ukrainian republic
in which they live. Destructive propaganda and political agitation forms in
such a part of the Ukrainian population a desire to create their own state
formations, associate themselves with another state or nostalgic for Ukraine
as a part of the Soviet Union.
The situation in Ukraine requires a change in the perception of the
political elite of the role and objectives of information activities of the state
from pro-oligarchic to state, which provides not only protection of economic
and political interests of individual nancial and industrial groups, but
also, above all, safeguards Ukraine as an independent self-sucient subject
of foreign policy processes. This requires a transformation of the paradigm
of state information policy implementation from sacricial, defensive,
to oensive, which involves not only repelling information attacks and
responding to identied information threats, but establishing a single
mechanism for protecting and promoting national interests in external and
internal information spheres.
Since the Russian Federation’s aggression, Ukraine has begun to take
its rst active steps to counter the hybrid war, which was actually lost in
Donbass and Crimea in 2014 - accumulated resources and Ukraine, though
not systematically, began to organize broadcasting of television and radio
channels in the temporarily occupied territories. However, until now, despite
the lessons of recent history, at the state level there is no active systematic
oensive work to counter information propaganda and the inuence of
foreign states along the entire perimeter of Ukraine’s territory. Ukrainian
media should protect the minds of the population of border regions, just as
the State Border Guard Service protects our physical borders. Today there
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Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
is a disappointing picture in the western regions of Ukraine - broadcasting
of electronic media in Hungary, Poland and Romania is widespread. At
the same time, the coverage of Ukrainian terrestrial media not only does
not extend to the border regions of neighboring countries, but also has
large gaps in the territory of Ukraine, which in 2019 increased further
with the transition from terrestrial analogue to terrestrial digital television
broadcasting (Boiko, 2021). One of the main reasons for the decrease in
the coverage of the television signal is the control of the national operator
of digital broadcasting LLC “Zeonbud”, which is a monopoly, a number of
domestic oligarchs who pursue their own political goals, acting contrary
to the interests of Ukraine, sometimes taking the position of the aggressor
state (Zaxid.net, 2019).
The state of regional media deserves special attention, especially during
the crisis caused by the global pandemic of 2020. Most of the regional media,
almost the only source of local news for the population of the older age group
(by the way, the most electorally active), has undergone signicant nancial
diculties and is on the verge of survival. Some of them have already ceased
to function, creating an information vacuum in some regions, which can
potentially be lled with an information product unfriendly to Ukraine. In
such a situation, state support for the print media is needed, which will
not only protect the minds of Ukrainians from hostile messages at the local
level, but also establish favorable conditions for the viability local elites,
which are largely independent of oligarchic capital. For instance, during
2020, a number of developed countries, realizing new potential threats, in
various forms supported both journalistic activities and, in particular, the
print media (Canada, Great Britain, etc.) (Nikitushyn, 2020).
The situation with the lack of opportunities for the local population
to watch regional TV channels with pro-Ukrainian news content in the
occupied territories of Donbass requires a state reaction, which encourages
residents of these territories to look for alternatives on TV channels
controlled by the aggressor state.
Deoligarchization Roadmap. Let us consider a number of initiatives
that, in our opinion, will lead to a loss of oligarchic capital’s interest in media-
business. The political capitalization of the media is shaped by political talk
shows, political advertising / campaigning, and meanings that are laid down
by editorial oces when reporting news and journalistic investigations.
How one or another politician looks on TV determines his / her ratings
and popularity among voters. No media outlet is able to reach such a large
audience as television. Accordingly, the main tools of political inuence
are political talk shows, political advertising, and campaigning (especially
during election campaigns). By depriving private TV channels of the right
to political promotion, the state will force private media sector, which is still
controlled by oligarchs, to gradually focus on disseminating information
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and entertainment content, and the only acceptable form of political
agitation - political debate - should be conducted on public broadcasting
sites, which are still absent in Ukraine (the legal form of ownership “UA:
Public Broadcasting” indicates that the so-called Public Television is de
facto state-owned, not public - JSC “National Public Television and Radio
Company of Ukraine”, registered on February 20, 1995, form of ownership:
state; founder: the state represented by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine).
Thus, one of the preconditions for deoligarchization of the information
environment should be the establishment of a truly public broadcasting,
which would be nanced exclusively by TV viewers and advertisers, and the
state’s participation would be limited only to collecting the “television tax”
and transferring funds to public broadcaster. Concurrently, it is important
to restore independent sources of media funding: to allow print and
broadcast media to advertise alcohol and tobacco products.
Since the ban on advertising of these products, the level of tobacco and
alcohol consumption has increased several times instead of the expected
decline. Blind adherence to EU advertising regulation standards has led to
deep crisis in the media industry. The young state, trying to comply with
democratic canons, to demonstrate loyalty to Western standards, was
forced to ban advertising of these products in the media. In the meantime,
developed countries such as Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, etc.,
assessing the proportionality of the social consequences of tobacco and
alcohol advertising and the loss of the main source of media income, and
with it the independence of their editorial policy, refused to impose such
restrictions, explaining their position by the public expediency of ensuring
the independence of the media from nancial-industrial groups or political
parties.
These states not only preserved the culture of print media, but also
prevented the reduction in the number of publications by ensuring economic
freedom and equality of the media business with other market participants.
By adopting restrictive legal constructions, the Ukrainian authorities
provoked a crisis in the print media market, most of which ceased to exist,
and some were forced to join oligarchic media holdings, losing not only
independence but also the principles of professional journalistic ethics. At
the same time, there were no restrictions on the advertising of sugar and
sugar-containing foods, although the harm to the human body from their
consumption is not less. The legislator also does not limit the production of
meat with the use of killer preservatives, which have an extremely negative
eect on human health. This approach to advertising regulation is populist
and destructive. Biased adherence to EU standards puts domestic markets
in an unfair, uncompetitive position. The current state of the economy
of Ukraine does not allow the introduction of restrictions relevant to
countries with a highly developed economy, and the consequences media
oligarchization are more shocking for society than the advertising of
796
Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
tobacco and alcohol in newspapers. The experience of the economic crisis
of 1998-1999 showed that the media, which the reader trusts, are able to
cope with nancial diculties on their own, if tools for selling advertising
are not articially limited.
The next precondition for freeing the information space from the
manipulative whims of the oligarchs should be a ban on nancing the media
from abroad: no oshore companies or foreign loans, foreign owners, or
investors. Sources of media funding should be transparent and domestic,
at least for the period of external aggression / annexation / occupation of
Ukrainian territories. As long as the country is at war, neglecting information
security requirements is criminal.
Particular attention should be paid to the establishment of etheric
quotas for educational, children’s and social content by changing licensing
conditions. At the same time, the state can order the creation of appropriate
programs on broadcast channels, and media outlets will receive an
additional source of oligarchs-independent funding.
Post-revolutionary changes in legislation on cinematography, television,
and radio broadcasting in 2014-2015 pushed the oligarchs to look for new
ways to continue cooperation with economic entities of the aggressor state.
There appeared such concepts as joint (Russian-Ukrainian) production,
the Russians began to create part of the content directly in Ukraine and
also to continue to sell low-quality audiovisual products to domestic TV
channels, full of nostalgia for the Soviet period. It is necessary to revise
the regulatory regulation of economic activity with business entities of the
Russian Federation. Barter, cooperation, collaboration, sale, or purchase of
content from Russia should be strictly prohibited.
The same applies to any contacts between ocials of our state and
representatives of the Russian authorities, that are used by the latter to
strengthen the position of inuence in the domestic political and legal
system. The ban should be in eect until the complete de-occupation of
Donbass and the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Therefore, appropriate
changes should be made to the Art. 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine
(Law Ukraine 2001). As noted in the National Security Strategy of Ukraine
(President of Ukraine. 2020), State sovereignty, territorial integrity,
democratic constitutional order and other vital national interests should
also be protected from non-military threats from the Russian Federation
and other states, including attempts to provoke internal conicts.
National security and defense agencies have been the target of
the Kremlin’s intelligence operations for many years. The reformatting of
the apparatus, the formation of information transparency of the authorities
and the elimination of complete corruption require the restoration of the
eciency of the special services and the law enforcement system. Public
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condence in law enforcement institutions is measured by the level of
protection of citizens and general security in the country. “Do not steal,
do not lie and ensure equal opportunities for all” - the implementation of
these demands of Ukrainian citizens to the government requires immediate
removal of obstacles on the way to restoring the eectiveness of domestic
intelligence services.
It is the Security Service of Ukraine that should become the institution
that will launch an attack on the subjects of political corruption, detect and
disclose the facts of betrayal of national interests, and contribute to the
formation of the principles of integrity of public authorities.
With regards to law enforcement agencies: there is a need to establish local
municipal police and introduce democratic procedures for appointment to
senior positions in law enforcement and judicial bodies. The election of the
local police chief, prosecutor and judges will help restore public condence
in the state, strengthen the accountability of ocials to electorate and lay
the foundation for the formation of a competent, eective government.
The aforementioned initiatives will contribute to the renewal of
government institutions, eective protection of the population, values,
interests, resources, and sovereignty of the Ukrainian state.
Conclusion
The introduction of democratic institutions in post-totalitarian countries
requires, rst of all, a concentration of eorts in the elds of education and
science, information policy and national security and defense. Without the
introduction of transparent and eective mechanisms for the functioning
of these institutions, one should not hope for the inclusiveness of politics
and the economy, democratization, and the spread of European values of
equality and freedom. The latter are directly dependent on the quality of the
state and the maturity of civil society, capable of forming an eective state
apparatus and democratic control of government.
For almost 30 years of independence, the Ukrainian republic has
managed to overcome a number of obstacles on the way to independence,
freedom, and self-determination, but these steps are critically insucient
to become a full-edged member of the European community.
Hence, today, it is extremely important for the ruling elites to realize
the need to restore and develop the intellectual potential of Ukraine, its
human capital, to implement a state information policy designed to unite
Ukrainians around the achievement of the common good and to restore the
viability of special services and law enforcement agencies. These are the
levers on which the government and society can rely to achieve strategic
798
Volodymyr Tarasyuk, Elina Morhunova, Dmytro Drobotun, Olena Stoyko y Olena Chyzhova
Stratagems of political and legal development of Ukraine: problems of actualization and scientic
goals in overcoming the consequences of the shameful communist past and
the complete de-oligarchization of domestic politics and economy.
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Esta revista fue editada en formato digital y publicada
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Universidad del Zulia. Maracaibo-Venezuela
Vol.39 Nº 70
