The death penalty for corruption, the expansion of
presidential power, and the severance of diplomatic relations with Russia –
these are just a few of the policies proposed by the National Corps, a newly
established right-wing political party created by the Azov Battalion.
Azov Civilian Corps members march as they mark
Defender's Day on Oct. 14.
Photo by Volodymyr Petrov
The battalion, a
Ukrainian National Guard unit often described as supporting neo-Nazi ideology
and accused of human rights violations, presented its new political party and
its rather radical statute on Oct. 14.
The political convention
in Kyiv gathered around 292 delegates from all regions of Ukraine. Azov’s
commander, Andriy Biletsky, was unanimously elected as the party leader for a
four-year term.
“We will be different
from other parties. Everyone will see it in 3-4 months. We won’t be a party for
TV debates. We want to work on real projects and implement them ourselves, be
it in the environment, or security, or extremely important issues of the
moment,” said Biletsky in interview with Hromadske Radio.
The National Corps backs
constitutional changes, including the expansion of presidential powers by
granting the president the authorities both of commander-in-chief and head of
the government. The party also wants to start a public debate on the
restoration of the death penalty for treason, and for embezzlement by
top-ranking public officials.
Moreover, the party
wants Ukraine to rearm itself with nuclear weapons, and nationalize companies
that were public property in 1991 when Ukraine gained independence.
In foreign policy, the
National Corps supports the severance of diplomatic relations with Russia until
its forces leave Crimea and the Donbas, and Moscow pays war reparation. In the
meantime, Ukraine should focus on developing comprehensive cooperation with the
Baltic and Black sea states.
Finally, the National
Corps called for citizens to have the right to armed self-defense, which became
a matter of debate in Ukraine in 2015.
Azov’s nationalist
convention culminated with the Nation March in the evening, which it organized
together with the Right Sector, another far-right organization.
An estimated 5,000
people walked with torches and flags from the Mother Homeland monument to St.
Sofia Square chanting “Death to the enemies!” and “Glory to Ukraine, glory to
the heroes!”
“I joined the march
because I believe in a free Ukraine,” said one young man wearing a face mask
with the yellow and blue emblem of Azov Battalion, which resembles a
Wolfsangel, a symbol associated with Nazism. “We have friends and relatives who
fought or fight in the east. Our ancestors were Cossacks and also defended our
homeland. We must never forget them.”
The launch of the party
and march coincided with the Defender of Ukraine Day, a newly-established
holiday that replaced a Soviet Defender’s Day that used to be celebrated in
February. Ukrainian government chose Oct.14 as the date for the new
holiday as it is an Orthodox holiday of Pokrova, or Intercession of the
Theotokos, the holiday that was most sacred to Ukrainian Cossacks.
The government replaced
the old Soviet holiday with the new one in an attempt to distance Ukraine
from Russia after Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the start of the
Kremlin-instigated war in eastern Ukraine, which has claimed the lives of
nearly 9,600 people to date.
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