Politicians, not players, carry Euro 2012 boycott burden
If Yulia Tymoshenko had set herself the goal of getting the German public interested in her fate, then she clearly would have succeeded. Reports of the former Ukrainian prime minister’s hunger strike have been in the leading reports on Germany’s main public and private television stations – topped only at times by violence in Syria and the trial of mass-killer Anders Behring Breivik in Norway, according to the media research group IFEM.
There has not been such in-depth coverage of Ukraine since the Orange Revolution of 2004. According to Eckart Stratenschulte, director of the European Academy in Berlin, there are a number of reasons for the inreased coverage. Tymoshenko maintains “effective public relations work,” he said, before adding that the upcoming soccer European Championships to be held in Poland and Ukraine were another key reason behind the jump in interest.
An athletes’ boycott of Euro 2012 is unlikely to free Tymoshenko, one expert said
Politicians like Viola von Cramon, a member of Germany’s Green Party, said Tymoshenko’s daughter Eugenia also contributed to putting her mother’s fate on the radar in Germany. Von Cramon said it made sense to discuss Tymoshenko and the state of democracy in Ukraine just ahead of the soccer championships.
“The fact that worries me is how quickly developments have taken place in Ukraine since President Viktor Yanukovych took office,” said von Cramon, who regularly travels to Ukraine to get an idea of the situation in the country.
No to boycotting sports
The word “boycott” has been ever-present in debates about Ukraine, with everyone from politicians to players being asked whether they think it makes sense to protest Tymoshenko’s imprisonment and treatment by refusing to take part in the tournament.
It’s a reaction that is misplaced, according to Cologne-based eastern Europe expert Gerhard Simon, who believes that a boycott would be the wrong step. Instead he said direct protests to the political leadership in Kyiv would make more sense. But he said politicians should not let themselves be photographed in the stadiums with Yanukovych, who leaders in western Europe have criticized for dismantling democracy and the rule of law in Ukraine.
Politicians themselves have expressed unhappiness over a potential boycott of the tournament by players.
“I do not think a boycott of the European Championships or moving matches to a different venue would have the political effect that many are hoping for,” said German parliamentarian Philipp Missfelder, who added that he doubted a boycott would lead to Tymoshenko’s release.
Merkel was in the stands for the 2011 Women’s World Cup, which was held in Germany
But Missfelder, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union, said politicians – unlike athletes – should consider not attending the tournament.
“Politicians have to decide for themselves whether they go to the European Championships,” he said, adding that he would not be traveling to Ukraine to watch any of the games and thinks it makes sense for Merkel not to visit the country during the tournament.
Turning the political screws
Social Democratic Party member Gernot Erler said scheduling difficulties would prevent him from traveling to Ukraine for the championships. He added that Merkel’s decision to wait until the last minute before deciding on whether to attend a match made sense.
“By leaving her options open she maintains pressure,” he said. “There is still a chance of positive signals coming from Kyiv.”
Merkel recently raised the pressure on Ukraine by mentioning the country alongside Belarus as examples of countries where people suffer under “dictators and repression.”
Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko is often called Europe’s last dictator
Political scientist Simon, however, called such a comparison an exaggeration, saying, “Ukraine is not Belarus.”
Stratenschulte agrees. “I think it would certainly not be correct to put the two countries on the same level,” he said, saying that while repression exists in Ukraine, the situation is considerably worse in Belarus.
But Stratenschulte said the situation in Ukraine is moving toward that of Belarus, particularly in terms of persecuting political opponents like Tymoshenko and increasing threats being made against the press. Employees at the Ukrainian news agency UNIAN protested against the sudden dismissal of their editor-in-chief and condemned it as an act of press repression.
A different bar for Ukraine
Politicians and political experts said debate over Ukraine has at times been unbalanced.
“It was certainly exaggerated at times,” von Cramon said, adding that the debate became more heated the longer Kyiv ignored German criticism. Stratenschulte said he feared the German government risked being called hypocritical in its censure of Ukraine.
Europe can’t apply the same standards to Russia as it can to Ukraine
“Criticism of China, for example, is much more moderate than other countries,” he said, pointing out that China’s economic importance for Germany limits Berlin’s ability to issue harsh criticism of Beijing.
Simon added that in comparison to Ukraine, Russia also gets little more than a slap on the wrist from Germany, though he admitted the two countries relations with Europe differ.
“Unlike Russia, Ukraine wants to become a member of the European Union,” he said, adding that such a desire means democracy in Kyiv is measured against different standards than Russia.
Author: Roman Goncharenko / sms
Editor: Ben Knight