PROBLEMS OF UKRAINIANS’ POLITICAL CONSOLIDATION IN PROGRAM DOCUMENTS AND ACTIVITIES OF UKRAINIAN POLITICAL PARTIES

Abstract

The article analyzes the political programs of a number of Ukrainian parties toward the political consolidation of Ukrainians, whose activities toke place in the XX century. before the proclamation of Ukraine's independence. It is shown that each party regards the problem of Ukrainians’ consolidation through the prism of its ideological stream taking into account those conditions in which its activity is being expanded. It is substantiated the theoretical significance and practical necessity of consolidation in the conditions of separation of Ukrainians between neighboring States, as well as in the context of revolutionary transformations in Ukraine. In this context the programmatic thesis of the National Revolutionary Ukrainian Party (RUP), which contains, for the first time in Ukrainian party construction, an appeal to party members and intellectuals to consolidate, abandon cultural and apolitical and actively engage in the struggle for national independence is analyzed. This program thesis of the RUP was developed and supported by other Ukrainian political parties, both those who followed the national-state and socialist orientations. The Ukrainian Social-Democratic Labors’ Party (USDLP), the Ukrainian Social-Democratic Union (USSU) and some other parties of socialist orientation declared the solution of the consolidation problem of Ukrainians on the class principles; the Ukrainian People's Party (UPR) suggested to solve the problem the of Ukrainians’ consolidation on a national basis with considering that the working-class movement had entered the national phase and ceased to be cosmopolitan; The Ukrainian Democratic Party (UDP), the Ukrainian Radical Party (UPR), and the Ukrainian Democratic-Radical Party (UDRP) believed that solving the problem of Ukrainians ‘ consolidation is possible only on the way of decentralizing the state system of Russia, providing a broad autonomy to every nation in its territory, the Ukrainian Socialist-Revolutionary Party (USRP) proposed to solve the problem of Ukrainians’ consolidating on the basis of integral socialism, whose main task was to overcome the split in the labor movement and to refuse from Marxist and from the social-democratic views. Political parties, mostly active in Western Ukrainian region, consolidated around the Ukrainian National Council (UNRada), the International Council, the Contact Committee, and began a qualitatively new stage in the struggle for the unification of all ethnic Ukrainian lands in a single State. During the Ukrainian War of Independence of 1917-1920, the Ukrainian Central Rada (URC) and the parties that joined were carrying out consolidation work with Ukrainians. However, this work cannot be considered sufficient in terms of Ukrainians’ consolidation not only during the period of conquest of power, but especially in its maintenance.

Keywords: political party, program of political party, Ukrainians’ consolidation, national-State direction, independent direction, socialist orientation, nationalism.