Ukraine is preparing for Independence Day on August 24, which will be celebrated for the second year in a general war. The preparation can be felt both in the environment, for example, on the streets of the capital Kyiv, and also by following various announcements by officials.
In Kyiv, one section of the street in the city center in Khreshchatyk is closed to traffic before the holiday. This is the road leading to Maidan Square. A long column of destroyed Russian army equipment is displayed on the street.
This is already the second year that Ukrainians welcome Independence Day in this way – with destroyed tanks in the central street of the capital.
Last spring, Russia intended to invade Ukraine within a few days and enter Kyiv with its troops. But the defenders of the capital held the city and now the destroyed equipment is quite symbolically located in the center of the city, only it is completely destroyed and destroyed. Ukrainians would like to see the entire Russian army in a similar state – broken and destroyed.
When preparing for Independence Day, special thought is also given to security measures. As is known, Russia attacks Ukraine particularly intensively on specific dates and it is expected that Independence Day could also be one of these days. Most likely, this year too, similar to last year, the occupation forces could attack more strongly than usual.
Preparation for the Independence Day of Ukraine
Photo: Indra Sprance / Latvijas Radio
Preparation for the Independence Day of Ukraine
Photo: Indra Sprance / Latvijas Radio
That is why the officials are preparing for it in time, various warnings have also been issued. For example, the military administration of Kyiv issued a statement on Tuesday reminding that mass events in Kyiv were and are prohibited. Some local events could take place on August 24.
Similarly, local military administrations elsewhere have already warned residents not to plan any activities on August 24 – not to gather, to observe safety and to go to shelters during the air alert.
On Monday, the “VOX Ukraine” public opinion survey was published in the Kyiv media center, in which 1,000 residents were asked about what reforms they would like to see in Ukraine at the moment. The respondents expressed the greatest dissatisfaction in connection with the fight against corruption – 81% believe that it should be a state priority. Also, in the opinion of the citizens, reforms should also be carried out in health care, judicial and educational systems, pensions, as well as in the army.
“What do Ukrainians expect from the reforms? First of all, it is the reduction of corruption. According to residents, this is the main result of any reforms. In the second place – improving the welfare of Ukrainians. Similarly, a third – up to 40% spoke about the fact that the reforms should be carried out so that budget funds would be effectively used, Ukraine would join the European Union, the gross domestic product of Ukraine would increase and citizens could have a greater influence on the decisions of the authorities,” said Svitlana Slipchenko, representative of “VoxCheck”.
The pollsters had also asked what they thought was the cause of corruption in the country. Respondents gave different answers – along with greed for money, mentality and others, a large part also indicated that everything can be negotiated and thus avoid punishment.
“A non-working judicial system. The fact that corrupt people can give bribes. In general, the very fact that those who should fight corruption are themselves the biggest corrupt people – this, according to residents, is the main reason for corruption in our country,” explained Slipkchenko.
In this survey, Ukrainians were also asked to evaluate the reforms already implemented in the country. 62% of the respondents rated the digitization reform of state institutions as successful. The fact that Ukrainians are proud of it was also felt in the discussion – electronic document circulation is strongly developed in the country. 41% of the population recognized the army reform as successful, 30% judged that it was only partially successful, and 13% evaluated it negatively.
The rest of the reforms – in decentralization, public procurement, privatization, land market, health care, judicial system and anti-corruption are considered more unsuccessful or partially successful.
Although Ukrainians evaluate the reforms initiated in the country relatively critically, it should be taken into account that Ukraine has been living in the conditions of war and general invasion for the second year, and this has made it difficult to proceed more smoothly in solving the challenges in the country.
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2023-08-22 13:59:32
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