Never Say Never

'Never Say Never'
The Ukrainian revolution and the renaissance of democracy.
BY CLAUDIA ROSETT
Wednesday, December 15, 2004 12:01 a.m. EST

Orange, rose, yellow. These are the colors not just of sunrise, but of a few of the many "people power" revolutions that over the past generation have been by increments changing the world. Yellow was the Philippines in 1986. Rose was the former Soviet republic of Georgia last year. Now we see an exuberant orange in Ukraine, where despite election fraud, poisoning and the displeasure of the Kremlin, democratic candidate Viktor Yushchenko looks poised to win a revote Dec. 26.

I'll get to the caveats in a minute. But first, despite the perils of our time, despite the terrorists and bombs and war, despite the inevitable erosion of high ideals and disappointments of daily political practice, I will hazard the prediction that if we of the free world stick to our principles--and, where necessary, defend them with our guns--we stand on the verge of a global renaissance.

This was driven home in an interview Sunday with Mr. Yushchenko's close aide, Ukrainian legislator Oleh Rybachuk, who has just completed a whirlwind trip to the U.S. A tall, athletic-looking man, Mr. Rybachuk reportedly radiates energy at the worst of times. Right now, he is surfing a tidal wave of hope. To sit down with him over coffee in New York is to catch a whiff of the vitality with which the people of Ukraine have stood up to demand government of, by and for the people.

Fluent in English, and sporting the same kind of bright orange scarf that has become Mr. Yushchenko's trademark, Mr. Rybachuk had a great deal to say about his party's plans. He stressed such gritty basics as monetary stability, unhooking Ukraine from Big Brother in Moscow, and joining the European Union. He described the inspiration Ukraine's democratic opposition has drawn from Poland--once a Soviet vassal state, now a member of the EU.

All these matters are important, and if Mr. Yushchenko becomes president, there will no doubt be plenty of devil in the details. But what came through most clearly in Mr. Rybachuk's conversation, the point to which he returned again and again, was his pride that the people of Ukraine have stood up for their freedom. Not so long ago, there were few believers that this could happen. Ukraine achieved independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, only to be written off in short order as a basket case. The country has been run for the past 10 years by a former Soviet party boss, President Leonid Kuchma; sunk in corruption and lamed by generations of subservience to Moscow. When Mr. Yushchenko set out upon his campaign for the presidency, says Mr. Rybachuk, there were people "laughing in my face, saying we are idiotic, or romantic, or naive."

As it turned out, the voters of Ukraine thought otherwise, and when Mr. Kuchma tried to steal the election, they spoke up. With their flags and vigils and calls for fellowship from the democratic nations of the world, they have been insisting on their right to choose freely and fairly who will govern their country. "This is real independence day," Mr. Rybachuk told me, "because we have kids who will never be slaves again."

In such statements is a world of promise for the people of nations where the moment of democratic truth has not yet arrived. Ukraine is telegraphing around the globe a reminder that freedom brings with it the great gift of dignity. That is precisely why it is so stirring to watch such revolutions. They speak to the best part of the human spirit, because we are witnessing people, often against big odds and at great risk, recovering their self-respect.
And right there is the basic remedy for the miseries of the Middle East. There has been plenty of debate about the humiliations of the Muslim world, and how to redress or contain the rage and hate this breeds. There have been endless disquisitions on the complicated politics, the complex cultural and religious divides, and the--how did Mr. Rybachuk put it?--the idiocy, romanticism and naiveté of the idea, put forward as policy by President Bush, that living under the rule of some of the world's most corrupt thugs are vast silent majorities who given any room to maneuver would prefer to create free societies.

The bottom line is simple, and universal. Freedom brings with it a degree of dignity that repression can never confer. No amount of handouts from the likes of the Saudi royals, or Libya's terrorist tycoon, Moammar Gadhafi, or United Nations-sanctioned rations under a Saddam Hussein, can make up for the self-respect that comes with the self-determination of free people.

The caveats are obvious. People-power revolutions do not always succeed with a first try. In some cases--Nazi Germany, say, or Iraq--democrats stand no chance at all unless someone wages war to remove the tyrant. And democracy depends on institutions that need time to evolve. They cannot be unpacked overnight from a kit. The Philippines in 1986 got rid of Ferdinand Marcos, but has yet to live up to the full hopes that swept the country when he left. In Burma in 1988, thousands died in protests that led to the election of democratic leaders who were never allowed by the junta to take power. In China in 1989, the Tiananmen uprising ended with army gunfire. In Russia, the great moment in 1991 of Boris Yeltsin atop an armored personnel carrier, waving the red-white-and-blue Russian flag, has given way to a rough 13 years marred most recently by President Vladimir Putin's increasingly authoritarian rule. Ukraine itself is now in round two of the contest for liberty and justice, and from there may yet face round three or four.

But even with the setbacks, the general direction is progress. One heroic act encourages the next. Every time people stand up for their rights, they send the kind of message we are now hearing from Ukraine. Freedom matters. Democratic rule matters. The Philippine revolution may have fallen short of the mark, but the country is freer today than under Marcos, and that uprising 18 years ago became a shot heard round the world. Within the decade, Taiwan and South Korea went democratic. The people of Burma and China flashed the message that they desire the same. The Baltics broke free; the Berlin wall fell; Eastern Europe shook loose. Russia today may be a deeply troubled country, but it's a big step up from the Soviet Union. And I would place my bet that there are plenty of people in Russia--and in dismally repressed neighboring Belarus--watching quietly but intently right now Ukraine's second run at the democratic prize.

Likewise, in Iraq, even in a society still suffering a violent Baathist hangover, there is finally room for voters in January to choose something other than a 99.9% show for Saddam--and there begins the real recovery. Afghanistan is already embarked on the democratic trail. From Ukraine comes this latest beacon, and I promise you, it is being observed not only with applause in America, but with yearning in places such as China, Cuba and Iran.
Before saying goodbye to Mr. Rybachuk, I asked if he had any advice for people living in nations where rule of liberty and law still seems a dream beyond hope. He answered, "Never say never."

Ms. Rosett is a fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and the Hudson Institute. Her column appears here and in The Wall Street Journal Europe on alternate Wednesdays.