Ukraine national football team won in
San Marino national football team with great result 9:0 in the match of
the qualification round for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil in
“Arena-Lviv” stadium on 6 September 2013. 34,100 spectators in
“Arena-Lviv” and thousands Ukrainian fans at their homes watched that
football match and celebrated the victory of Ukrainian national football
team. On 11 September 2013 the FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced
its report about some breaches of the FIFA Disciplinary Code on
“Arena-Lviv” during Ukraine-San Marino match and on 27 September 2013
the FIFA Disciplinary Committee named its sanctions for Ukraine. The
sanctions are the football match of the qualification round for the 2014
FIFA World Cup Brazil between Ukraine and Poland football teams in
Kharkiv without spectators on 11 October 2013, the fine of CHF 45,000
for the Football Federation of Ukraine and ban for all plays of
Ukrainian national football team in “Arena-Lviv” till the 2018 FIFA
World Cup Russia. So. What breaches of Ukrainian fans did the FIFA
Disciplinary Committee announce, that Ukraine got such cruel football
sanctions? Representatives of FARE, which were present at Ukraine-San
Marino match in Lviv, informed FIFA about pyrotechnical devices, some
neo-Nazi banners, Nazi salutes and racist exclamations, and FIFA decided
to make sanctions for Ukrainian team.
The truth is that pyrotechnical devices
were used by several football fans during Ukraine-San Marino match and
pyrotechnical devices are breaches, of course. Further, midfielder of
Ukrainian national football team and FC Metalist Kharkiv Brazilian Edmar
Halovskyy de Lacerda officially proclaimed on TV-program “Big football”
on Inter channel that he didn’t hear any racist exclamations of Lviv
fans to him during that Ukraine-San Marino football match in
“Arena-Lviv” and wrote the letter to FFU to refute FARE’s words about
some racist exclamations to his address at Lviv stadium.
Further. What flags were named as
neo-Nazi banners by FARE? Red-black flag of OUN (Organization of
Ukrainian Nationalists) and UPA (Ukrainian Insurgent Army), Ukrainian
nationalist organizations, the portraits of Stepan Bandera (the Head of
OUN) and Roman Shukhevych (the Head of UPA) and the flag of Halychyna
Division. Neither Nuremberg Trials, nor later scientific-historic
conferences about the Second World War didn’t proclaimed Halychyna
Division or UPA, or OUN as Nazi collaborators. OUN members and UPA
soldiers with its leaders S. Bandera and R. Shukhevych were fighters for
Ukrainian independence and state in the 1930′s years and during the
Second World War against Polish, Soviet and Nazi troops. Stepan Bandera
and Roman Shukhevych are also officially proclaimed Ukraine’s heroes on
22 January 2010 and on 12 October 2007 correspondently, and because of
great love to football game of S. Bandera and R. Shukhevych, Ukrainian
modern football fans bring portraits of Bandera and Shukhevych at the
stadiums. These politicians and public figures were Ukrainian fighters
for freedom, and if Ukrainians wouldn’t have such fighters in the XXth
century, Ukraine couldn’t be the independent state. That’s why FIFA
sanctions for Ukraine-San Marino match are very strange for Ukrainians.
Nazism and nationalism are really very different political movements.
Ukraine could be further in the USSR, if Ukrainian nationalist
organizations wouldn’t fight for Ukraine’s independence during all XXth
century.
Then, about some Nazi salutes, as FARE
representatives described them in the report about Ukraine-San Marino
football match. Everyone can see Ukrainian fans’ movements, named as
Nazi salutes by FARE, on video in the end of this post, at 1:45-2:15
minutes.
Ukrainians raise their right hands and
exclaim “Слава Україні” (“Slava Ukrayini” means “Glory to Ukraine”),
“Героям слава” (“Heroyam slava” – “Glory to heroes”), “Слава нації”
(“Slava natsiyi” – “Glory to nation”), “Смерть ворогам” (“Smert voroham”
– “Death to enemies”), “Україно!” (“Ukrayino!” – “Ukraine!”). There are
all patriotic ancient exclamations of Ukrainians, that have nothing to
do with Nazi or nazism. There are Ukrainian patriotic exclamations,
which had arisen more years before the rise of nazism.
Well, wonderful Ukrainian National
Anthem contents such words as “Згинуть наші воріженьки як роса на сонці”
(“Our enemies will die like a dew on the sun”). So what? It’ Ukraine
State Anthem, Ukrainian history.
Ukraine was hugely banned by FIFA according to the report of FARE.
But what is FARE? It’s “Football Against Racism Europe” federation. If
there wasn’t racism at Lviv stadium, as football-player Edmar told on TV
and wrote in the letter to FFU, if OUN, UPA and Halychyna Division had
nothing to do with Nazi in the past century, and the flags of these
organizatins were brought by Ukrainian football fans on 6 September 2013
in “Arena-Lviv” as flags of Ukrainian nationalists of the XXth century.
So will FIFA cancel its sanctions for Ukraine? Where were fans’
breaches in “Arena-Lviv” with the exception of pyrotechnical devices?And yes. It’s very important to know that FARE’s reports about Eastern Europe are published in Poland, and Polish FARE workers assiduously watch Ukrainian football matches. Specially created Eastern European Development Project of FARE is led by Polish “Never Again” Association and its leaders are two Poles – Rafal Pankowski and Jacek Purski. And yes. Stepan Bandera and Roman Shukhevych fought for Ukrainian independent state against Polish state power in the 1930′s years in Halychyna, against that Polish occupants of Western Ukraine. That’s why many Poles don’t like portraits of Bandera and Shukhevych in Ukrainian stadiums.
But Ukraine has its own history. Has any world organization the right to ban some state for its history?
