East Ukraine Conflict as a Reflection of Reforms in the Ukrainian Society.

Abstract

To represent changes in modern Ukrainian society the article deals with the theory of social organism. It focuses on the systematic and comprehensive study of society as a whole, thus identifying the main factors contributing to the strengthening or weakening of the integrity. Unfortunately, the developments of Ukrainian scientists studying our society with the help of this theory turned out to be unrequired by the government. Even before the conflict in the east of Ukraine basic reproductive processes restoring the integrity of Ukraine’s social organism were apt to discourage social integration. In fact this threat was ignored by the country’s government and ruling circles. East Ukraine conflict revealed a number of trends and contradictions connected with transformation processes which weakened the integrity of the country’s social body. Firstly, it exposed not only violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, but also the problem of preserving the integrity of the social body of the country. The ruling circles did not realize that conducting neoliberal reforms would destroy social ties uniting the society as an entity. Secondly, East Ukraine conflict reflected the negative social impact of transformation processes taken place during 1991-2013. The economy model that emerged in the post-Soviet Ukraine is destructive to the social body of the country. Market reforms, privatization and de-industrialization caused a deep social stratification. The existing social property structure reveals a great split in the Ukrainian social-class structure. Thirdly, the conflict proved a radical change in the state’s social role. The state power in Ukraine turned out to be unable to maintain public interests. It loses the ability to perform such functions as law enforcement, regulation of social relations, ensuring social security, keeping the state power sovereignty over the whole territory of Ukraine. Fourthly, East Ukraine conflict clearly disclosed a deep degradation of the ruling class in Ukraine. Authorities constantly ignore national interests of Ukraine, this fact becomes a disintegrating factor in the social life. Fifthly, the conflict in Donbass region showed that the existence of non-state armed groups on both sides of the conflict is a great obstacle to the process of Donbass reintegration into Ukraine. The activity of such militias means the emergence of territories that are not controlled by the state, that is, where laws of Ukraine are not kept regardless of the flag under which they act. Sixthly, the conflict indicated that the Ukrainian national idea despite its aim to unite our society and integrate it into a single social organism does not work. The reason is that many Ukrainian citizens focused on closer relations with Russia and did not share the European aspirations of their authorities (according to 2015 survey – the major part of people). Seventhly, East Ukraine conflict clearly demonstrated that the state significantly weakened its subjectivity and turned into an object of international relations. Ukraine’s dependence on the USA, the EU and the IMF has increased so much that their consent is essential to appoint the government and to define its internal and external policy. Therefore, East Ukraine conflict reflected the social processes in a more detailed way. It also revealed sad consequences of reforms unfolding the state of modern Ukrainian society. Transformation processes in Ukraine were accompanied by the formation of several fault lines of the country’s social body, caused by the irresponsible policy of the ruling circles, false social and material structure, destructive model of national wealth distribution, significant social and cultural differences between regions, lack of the national integration project. The military conflict in eastern Ukraine dramatically increased a social split in the society, causing the process of forming a new identity both in Donbass and in Ukraine by means of information and psychological impact, that is, the imposition of an enemy image represented by the opposite side. East Ukraine conflict highlighted all the processes that had long been manifested in the society, and had become the basis of the conflict and still threaten the entity of Ukraine’s social organism.