Social-National Assembly Соціал-Національна Асамблея | |
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Abbreviation | SNA |
Founded | 2008 |
Dissolved | 2015 |
Headquarters | Kyiv |
Paramilitary wings | Patriot of Ukraine Azov Battalion |
Ideology | Ukrainian nationalism Ultranationalism |
Political position | Far-right |
Party flag | |
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The Social-National Assembly (SNA) was[ citation needed ] an assemblage of the ultra-nationalist radical organizations and groups founded in 2008 that share the social-national ideology and agree upon building a social-national state in Ukraine. It is located on the far right of the Ukrainian politics and built around the "Patriot of Ukraine". In late November 2013, both the S.N.A. and the "Patriot of Ukraine" entered in an association with several other Ukrainian far-right groups which led to the formation of the Right Sector. [1] As of 2014 [update] , the S.N.A. was also reported to be close to Svoboda, and Yuriy Zbitnyev, the leader of the nationalist political party "Nova Syla" (New Force). [2] [3] As of 2014 [update] , the S.N.A.'s activities were largely Kyiv-based. [1]
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The S.N.A. was founded in 2008 and maintained relations with the wider social-nationalist movement in Ukraine. [4] Co-founder of the organization was Andriy Biletsky. In the late 2000s, Ukrainian president Victor Yushchenko and the Our Ukraine bloc bolstered the S.N.A. and other far-right groups by supporting an explicitly nationalist view of Ukrainian history. [5] Following the 2009 death of Maksym Chaika, an S.N.A member who was killed in a fight with antifascists in Odesa, Yushchenko supported the far-right interpretation of Chaika's death, describing him and others as heroes and victims driven to violence for a just cause. [5]
In 2010, the Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union reported the S.N.A and "Patriot of Ukraine" attacks Vietnamese and other foreign market stalls in Vasylkiv. Most attacks were carried out by youth and targeted Vietnamese, Uzbeks and Gypsies. [6] According to the S.N.A website, they drove foreigners from the market within two weeks and replaced them with Ukrainians. The S.N.A states that some of their victims were hospitalized. [7] Later that year, Ukrainian authorities shut down an S.N.A.-linked music festival[ verification needed ] near Kyiv that promoted neo-Nazism and chauvinism among Ukrainian youth. The music glorified the skinhead movement, Nazi aesthetics and the harassment of minorities. [6] [ dead link ]
In August 2011, the Netherlands Institute of Human Rights warned about the growth of extremist organizations including the S.N.A and "Patriot of Ukraine", noting repeated attacks against foreigners and visible minorities. [8] The institute also noted the government's inability or unwillingness to deal with extreme-right movements in Ukraine. [8]
In August 2011 Ukrainian police announced that they thwarted a bomb attack planned for the commemoration of Ukrainian Independence. The "Patriot of Ukraine", a part of the S.N.A, declared that some of their members had been detained by police but maintained no connection with any terrorist plan. [9] [10] Spokespersons for the S.N.A and "Patriot of Ukraine" insisted that criminal action against them was a pretext for SBU repression against their organizations. [9]
In 2013, the S.N.A, "Patriot of Ukraine" and Autonomous Resistance all increased in popularity, contributing to the growth of Svoboda as well. [3] The Social National Assembly helped to create an umbrella radical organization - the Right Sector (Pravy Sector). This was also joined by other radical groups including White Hammer and C14, then the youth wing of Svoboda. [1]
During the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, the militants from the S.N.A and the "Patriot of Ukraine" were on the front lines of the street riots in Kyiv. According to Igor Krivoruchko, the leader of the Kyiv's S.N.A. branch, its members started clashes with the police near the Presidential Administration Building (Kyiv) and also initiated the Hrushevskoho Street riots. They seized and burned on 18 February 2014 the central office of the ruling party - the Party of Regions - in Kyiv. A bystander, 57-year-old IT engineer who tried to stop the attackers from entering the server room, was beaten to death. [11] [12]
Oleh Odnoroshenko, the S.N.A and "Patriot of Ukraine" ideologue and also one of the "Right Sector" leaders, stated in February 2014 that the "Right Sector" would be hesitant to enter into the government following the departure of Viktor Yanukovych. Odnoroshenko thought that the politicians would try to use the Right Sector credibility and popularity while pursuing their own agendas. [13]
At the end of April 2014, S.N.A members marched with burning torches to the Independence Square and came into conflict with the Self-defense of the Maidan units. During the fight, the S.N.A. and Self-defense of the Maidan activists used rubber bullet guns and tear gas, and ambulances later arrived to treat wounded. [14]
Oleh Odnoroshenko volunteered to the press that the S.N.A members organized the attack on the Russian embassy in Kyiv on 14 June 2014. [15]
In March 2014 the Social-National Assembly created a volunteer group, Azov Battalion. In April, members were wounded in combat against separatists in eastern Ukraine. During the first week of May, Kyiv granted it official status and began delivering weapons. [16] On 6 May, the Azov Battalion captured Donetsk People's Republic defense minister Igor Khakimzyanov and several other separatist fighters. [17]
On 13 June, 2014 the Azov Battalion stormed separatists' barricades in Mariupol and seized control of the city center after a six-hour battle. [16] The group has been assigned to patrol the Azov Sea coastline and prevent arms smuggling. [16]
The ideologue of S.N.A Oleg Odnorozhenko said in 2014 that the SNA stood for preserving “European identity”. He said: “We consider the present tendency of Europe leads to the destruction of civilisation, with no control of immigration, the destruction of the family, of religious identity and of everything that made Europe Europe.” He said that it had “contact but not close relations” with the British National Party. [18]
In 2014, political scientist Anton Shekhovtsov, Foreign Policy journalist Alec Luhn and Haaretz journalist Lolita Brayman described the S.N.A as a far-right, neo-Nazi or racist group. [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] A ministerial adviser, Anton Gerashchenko, denies these neo-Nazi allegations, stating that "The Social-National Assembly is not a neo-Nazi organization… It is a party of Ukrainian patriots." [23] [24]
The S.N.A is also a "street combat movement" hostile to ethnic and social minorities: according to researchers and its own website it has carried out physical attacks against them. [3] [6] [7] [8]
In 2014, over half the membership of the Azov Battalion, a military group with close ties to the Social-National Assembly, was composed of Russian-speaking eastern Ukrainians, [25] as well as a small number of Russian nationals (estimated at 50 in 2015). [26]
Neo-Nazism comprises the post–World War II militant, social, and political movements that seek to revive and reinstate Nazi ideology. Neo-Nazis employ their ideology to promote hatred and racial supremacy, to attack racial and ethnic minorities, and in some cases to create a fascist state.
Ukrainian nationalism is the promotion of the unity of Ukrainians as a people and the promotion of the identity of Ukraine as a nation state. The origins of modern Ukrainian nationalism emerge during the 17th-century Cossack uprising against the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth led by Bohdan Khmelnytsky. Ukrainian nationalism draws upon a single national identity of culture, ethnicity, geographic location, language, politics, religion, traditions and belief in a shared singular history, that dates back to the 9th century.
The All-Ukrainian Union "Freedom", commonly known as Svoboda, is an ultranationalist political party in Ukraine. It has been led by Oleh Tyahnybok since 2004.
Antisemitism in Ukraine has been a historical issue in the country, particularly in the twentieth century. The history of the Jewish community of the region dates back to the era when ancient Greek colonies existed in it. A third of the Jews of Europe previously lived in Ukraine between 1791 and 1917, within the Pale of Settlement. The large concentration of Jews in this region historically made them an easy target for anti-Jewish actions and pogroms.
Oleh Yaroslavovych Tyahnybok is a Ukrainian politician and far-right activist who is a former member of the Verkhovna Rada and the leader of the Ukrainian nationalist Svoboda political party. Previously, he was elected councilman of the Lviv Oblast Council for the second session.
The Social-National Party of Ukraine (SNPU) was a far-right party in Ukraine that would later become Svoboda. The name of the party was an intentional reference to the Nazi Party in Germany. The party combined radical nationalism, neo-fascist and anti-communist positions.
Andriy Volodymyrovych Parubiy is a Ukrainian politician who served as the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, from 14 April 2016 to 29 August 2019. He previously served as Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine, appointed after leading the anti-government protests in the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, until his resignation on August 7, 2014.
The Radical Party of Oleh Liashko and formerly known as the Ukrainian Radical-Democratic Party, is a political party in Ukraine that was registered in September 2010. It was primarily known for its radical populism, especially in the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election when it gained its largest support.
Right Sector is a loosely defined coalition of right-wing to far-right Ukrainian nationalist organizations. It originated in November 2013 as a right-wing, paramilitary confederation of several ultranationalist organizations at the Euromaidan revolt in Kyiv, where its street fighters participated in clashes with riot police. The coalition became a political party on 22 March 2014, at which time it claimed to have roughly 10,000 members. Founding groups included the Trident (Tryzub), led by Dmytro Yarosh and Andriy Tarasenko, and the Ukrainian National Assembly–Ukrainian National Self-Defense (UNA–UNSO), a political and paramilitary organization. Other founding groups included the Social-National Assembly, and its Patriot of Ukraine paramilitary wing, White Hammer, and the Sich Battalion. White Hammer was expelled in March 2014, and Patriot of Ukraine left the organization, along with many UNA–UNSO members, in the following months.
S14, also known as C14 or Sich, was a neo-Nazi, Ukrainian nationalist group founded in 2010. In 2018, it gained notoriety for its involvement in violent attacks on Romani camps. S14's links with the Security Service of Ukraine were revealed in 2019. In 2020, the group disbanded and was succeeded by a new organisation, Foundation for the Future.
The Association "Struggle" was a Stalinist organization operating in Odesa, Kharkiv, Kyiv, and Dnipro in Ukraine.
The Azov Assault Brigade is a formation of the National Guard of Ukraine formerly based in Mariupol, in the coastal region of the Sea of Azov, from which it derives its name. It was founded in May 2014 as the Azov Battalion, a volunteer paramilitary militia under the command of Andriy Biletsky to fight pro-Russian forces in the war in Donbas. It was formally incorporated into the National Guard on 11 November 2014, and redesignated Special Operations Detachment "Azov", also known as the Azov Regiment. In February 2023, the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs announced that Azov was to be expanded as a brigade of the new Offensive Guard.
The Patriot of Ukraine was an ultranationalist organization in Ukraine founded in 1999, disbanded in 2004, revived in 2005 and defunct since December 2014.
Andriy Yevheniyovych Biletsky is a Ukrainian far-right politician. He is the leader of political party National Corps. He was the first commander of the volunteer militia Azov Battalion, which he founded in 2014, and a co-founder of the nationalist movement Social-National Assembly. From 2014 until 2019, Biletsky was a People's Deputy of Ukraine.
Vadym Anatoliyovych Troyan is a former Ukrainian government official and military leader. He was the chief of police for the Kyiv Oblast from 2014 to 2021. He was formerly the deputy commander of the Azov Battalion with the rank of colonel.
The National Corps, also known as the National Corps Party, is a far-right political party in Ukraine founded in 2016 and then led by Andriy Biletsky. Biletsky had previously founded and led two far-right groups, the Patriot of Ukraine (2006) and the Social-National Assembly (2008) and played a key role in the Azov Battalion. National Corps was created by veterans of the Azov Battalion and members of the Azov Civil Corps, a civilian non-governmental organization emerging from the Battalion.
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The Misanthropic Division, also known as Division Phoenix since 2016, is an international neo-Nazi group based in Ukraine which has been described as a paramilitary organization, or as a movement. They originated in 2014 to take part in the Euromaidan protests against the government of Viktor Yanukovych, with some members later fighting alongside the Azov Battalion and UAF in the Donbas region against Russian-backed separatists. Chapters of the group have also been reported to exist in other countries. According to researcher Natalia Yudina, it is not a centralized organization, and it has neither a rigid structure nor permanent leaders.
Victoria Ihorivna Zaverukha, better known as Vita Zaverukha, is a Ukrainian nationalist militant and ex-member of the volunteer battalion Aidar. Following Elle France's publication in 2014 of an article on pro-government female fighters in the war in Donbas, she became known for publishing neo-Nazi content on social media. In 2015, she was arrested on charges of participating in a robbery in Kyiv that resulted in the death of two policemen of the Berkut special force. A public campaign for her liberation developed from nationalist right-wing circles. She was released on bail in 2017 and later released from the investigation. Following the 2022 Russian invasion, she reportedly joined the territorial defense near Kyiv.
As a result of the raid, several Vietnamese containers were closed, together with the goods of the aliens, and the counters of Uzbeks and Gypsies were removed. The majority of Ukrainians, who were at the open air market at that time, were approving of the actions of national-socialists. As it was already mentioned before, Ukrainians entrepreneurs who sell at the market are firmly against aliens, in particular Vietnamese, Gypsies, and Uzbeks, etc., selling their goods there. Ukrainian entrepreneurs were supported by Social National Assembly, and by the organization «Patriot Ukraiiny». With joint efforts, the patriots and the entrepreneurs forced out the majority of aliens from the open air market of Vasylkiv during the last 2 weeks.
In light of the resurgence of activities by extremist organizations such as "Social National Assembly" and "Patriot of Ukraine", the Committee notes with concern the repeated attacks against foreigners and members of "visible minorities" by young extremists and the information contained in paragraph 85 of the State party's report to the effect that the extreme right-wing movements are "in some respects beyond the Ministry of the Interior's legal competence"
According to eye witnesses, 100 people, reportedly members of the far-right Social-National Assembly, marching with burning torches towards Maidan – the epicenter of the massive uprising that removed former President Yanukovich from power. The marchers came to commemorate those killed during anti-government protests in December–February… Maidan self-defense units blocked the rally at the barricades across from the main post office, prompting a massive fight. The far-right protesters reportedly used firecrackers, traumatic guns, and tear gas. Many of them carried bats and sticks.
Azov was created in March by the Social National Assembly…. Azov was granted official status as a volunteer battalion…. Azov stormed the rebels' barricades, seizing control…. Since then, its main role has been to keep an eye on Mariupol and patrol the Azov coastline, preventing arms smuggling from Russia.
At the same time, Nova Syla's Yuriy Zbitnyev is one of the leaders of the neo-Nazi group Social-National Assembly, an organization that is also close to the younger members of Svoboda, but Nova Syla itself, while remaining on the fringes of Ukrainian politics, is not much influenced by these relations.
Interestingly, 'street combat movements' like the SNA no longer focus on ethnic issues: in contrast to the older Ukrainian far right, the new groups are, first and foremost, racist movements. Their disregard for the perceived 'Ukrainian versus Russian' ethno-cultural cleavage allows them to gain support from many 'white' ultra-nationalists. Once drawn to these movements, 'white racists' also contribute to the organizational efficiency of the Svoboda party, which is, to reiterate, considered the only representative of 'white racism' in the Ukrainian electoral sphere.
Some Pravy Sektor protesters on the Maidan sported yellow armbands with the wolf hook symbol revealing their specific political party affiliation—that of the Social National Assembly (SNA), a largely Kiev-based neo-Nazi organization. Other more openly anti-Semitic parties are White Hammer and C14, the neo-Nazi youth wing of the Svoboda party.
On the public request, the authorities stopped the musical festival «Traditions of Spirit» near Kyiv, scheduled for June 26–27, 2010, under the aegis of the radical «Social Nationalist Assembly» with the goal to promulgate among the youth the ideas of neo-Nazi and chauvinism. During the festival, the performances of ultra-right musical bands were planned («Sokyra Peruna», «Seitar», «Nachtigall», «White Lions»), who in the lyrics of their songs openly approve and show in romantic light the skinhead movement, promote Hitlerist aesthetics, and encourage to harass national minorities.
[The] members of Azov Battalion … have been labeled patriots by some, neo-Nazis by others…