Politics of Memory in Ukraine: Twist Between National and Regional Levels

Abstract

The paper deals with the features of development of politics of memory at national and local levels. The research is devoted to the study of regional peculiarities of interaction of local communities of Donetsk and Lviv with the central government on the issues of introduction of changes into the politics of memory (on the example of the Decree of the President V.Yushchenko № 250/2007 "On measures in connection with the 75th anniversary of the Great Famine of 1932-1933 in Ukraine") and the attitudes of ordinary citizens of these two cities towards these events. The article is based on the materials of two sociological polls, which were held in Lviv and Donetsk in 2008. The survey revealed the readiness of regional elites, upon the condition of support provided by the local people, to resist attempts to change the vision of the past in their region. According to the results of the survey there is a significant gap between respondents’ individual readiness for protest actions and representations regarding such readiness of the general public.