Odessa Tourism Festival 18 – 20 May – UK AWOL

OK.  Today I leave the macro-geopolitical and policy realm relating to Ukraine and the neighbourhood and go local.  Namely the Odessa Travel Festival, the bulk and most public part takes place along Deribasovskaya (which is the nominal pedestianised main street in the city centre).

As always in the warmer months, the cafes and restaurants expand from their premises and spread out over the pavements with comfy chairs, tables and parasols to give life to the mañana feel of the city when the hot summer sun begins to camp here.

And what more a pleasant a way to pass a few hours than with a cappuccino  and a cigar watching the beautiful and not so beautiful wandering around the city centre.

What better place to place the Odessa Travel Festival on a hot and sunny day than Deribasovskaya, a street always  brimming with people with time on their hands and money in their pockets?

The point of the Odessa Travel Festival?  Well to promote both domestic and European travel, of course, but also to promote things like language schools, education abroad, and generally encourage Ukrainians (or at least those in Odessa) to think of themselves as “Europeans” and by doing so entice them along the “European path” to values, cultures and people to people contact.  (European Commissioner Stefan Fule would indeed be very pleased with such a strategy, as would the national tourist boards of those taking part.)

Last year more than 10,000 people from Odessa visited the festival.  Approximately 1% of the population of the entire city and therefore quite probably having a small stand for those nations seeking to attract tourists, a worthy and very minor cost.

Now Odessa is not the biggest city in Ukraine.  It is in fact only the 4th biggest.  It is though a tourist destination itself receiving just over 1 million tourists each year.  A ratio of approximately 1 tourist per year to each local,  which is none too shabby considering Odessa does so very little to advertise itself as a tourist destination (and what is does do is disjointed and really rather poor).

The city is also home to about 20 consulates and a few honorary consuls for good measure.   Sadly, the UK does not have a consulate here or indeed an Honorary Consul despite 20 other nations considering Odessa as worthy of one or the other.  An issue I will return to later in this entry.

Anyway, with nothing better than to paint the walls at home, I decided to delay that task until the weekend and wander off and see just who was taking part in this festival organised by the regional administration.

There were numerous other regional oblasts in attendance,  Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk etc luring those from Odessa to visit them and spend money there.

Also present were stalls from Greece, with my old acquaintance Alexandros Ikonomou, Head Counselor of the Trade & Economic Department of the Greek Consulate in Odessa, managing to sneak into this photograph, looking officious as always.  (We have both attended many of the same functions, ranging from the official opening of envelopes, to the more grandiose of functions, although though quite why I am invited and attend such things remains a mystery to me.)

Germany also had a presence.

So did the Czech Republic.

And Bulgaria.

As well as Azerbaijan.

And Turkey.

Not forgetting Italy.

I could go on, but you get the drift.

Where is the UK stall?  -  There wasn’t one!  Where is the British Council encouraging the youth of Ukraine to study in the UK?  - It wasn’t there.  Who was giving advice about IELTS and UK Visas and tourism?  - There was none.  Where was the Union Jack amongst all the international flags and national nick-nacks on display?  There was none.

Why?

Do 10,000 people from Odessa manage to find and enter the British Council office on Admiralsky each year?  I doubt it!  Is part of the British Council’s mission to spread the good word about Blighty or not?  Do the people who work in the British Council and face the Ukrainian public on a daily basis have an in-depth knowledge of the UK education system or tourist industry?  I doubt it as they are Ukrainian.

To be honest, if it wasn’t for my boy having just been offered a place at Trevelyn College at Durham University this October, I wouldn’t know about the application process, IELTS courses and examinations and bureaucratic rigors involved in him studying abroad.

Why does the UK Ambassador in Kyiv regale the Ukrainian public who may read his blog with tales of how good a UK university education is, how essential the English language is, and then there is no presence from the UK at such an event which advertises the fact that education is part of the travel festival perimeters and has done so for months on the Odessa City Website?

I mean literally, the only British thing present was me!

Does the 4th biggest city in Ukraine not warrant public UK participation when the total expenditure for a stall and UK nick-nacks would cost no more than a few hundred quid for the entire 3 days?  Is it some part of the UK FCO plan to have as limited a UK presence outside Kyiv as is humanly possible?

I mean seriously?  For £100 I could have sat there for 3 days handing out horrible cheap pens that will stop working within 2 or 3 days with the Union Jack (probably the wrong way up) printed on the side.  I could have handed out UK tourist literature and spoke from tourist experience of everywhere from Edinburgh Castle to Stonehenge, from the Roman baths of Bath to Winchester Cathedral and everything in between.

I could have entertained the passing interested Ukrainians considering sending their children to the UK to study with stories from the student union bars of my youth, just how to apply, where to seek out the IELTS tests, what documentation is required to support any Visa application for the UK and a myriad of UK anecdotes and tall tales as a bonus.

All for a cost far less than an average decent bottle of red in the Ambassador’s wine cellar in Kyiv.

In fact, if asked nicely, I would probably have done it for free.  After all, if it became a regular annual event to semi-officially fly my nations flag  in foreign climes (so to speak) at Odessa’s annual tourism festival (or other things), something like a “thanks very much” letter from whoever is Foreign Secretary in 10 years time, to go with the other official commendations and gongs I have for bravery and/or cleverness under pressure, or both stupidity and recklessness on behalf of The Crown with fortunate and successful outcomes, would be a nice addition and recognition enough should I ever undertake such a role over a prolonged period for free.

Instead, I hang my head in shame that not a single representative of my nation can be bothered to turn up to a festival that not only promotes European tourism, culture and people to people contact, but also the very lucrative business of educating foreigners at UK higher education establishments in a major Ukrainian city.  That is made all the more disgraceful by the fact that the UK Embassy and Consulate in Kyiv is not the smallest UK FCO presence around the globe.

Poor show by the UK FCO and British Council all round.

European Council (of Foreign Ministers) – Ukraine football boycott

As many of you dear readers will know, the EU works on the principle of Dante’s many circles of hell, the workings of which I have outlined for you previously.

Yesterday on 14th May, the European Council (which comprises of Ministers from the sovereign nations that make up the EU met under the chairmanship of Herman Von Rumpoy and Baroness Ashton) with a fairly lengthy agenda upon which  Ukraine was listed.  Here is that agenda.

Whether discussing Ukraine during lunch aids or hinders the digestive system, who knows?

Anyway, given some very stern and robust views from certain Member States and other with more tolerant views, quite how the anticipated press releases would read was somewhat unknown.  The wording of said press releases have to be agreed by all concerned after all.

Prior to the meeting, Carl Bildt was talking sense again.  Of course I would say that.  I have said the football is the wrong stick to hit Ukraine with given the need for EU personalities to interact directly with the Ukrainian people.  As He rightly states, the future of Ukraine with regards to the EU should rest upon how the elections in October are run and then the situation duly and impartially assessed.  After that when the undoubted cheating will surface, then condemn the current leadership.  It is after all not the number of electoral violations, (they occur in every nation),   but the nature of said violations.

This, however, is what we got just before lunch regarding a boycott, which Baroness Ashton fully supports.

Much later in the afternoon, Carl Bildt tweeted  “EU is strong on urgency of the rule of the law as well as free and fair elections in Ukraine. Only that will truly open the door to Europe.” – Hardly a telling sign that a consensus for a boycott as championed by the European Commission had been achieved,  Yet another disunited front from the 27 EU sovereigns upon the horizon?

No.  There seems to be unity.  At least unity amongst the European Council where none present stated they would stay away from the Euro 2012 in Ukraine.  That is not to say all will come of course, each nations will decide individually no doubt, but an EU wide boycott as called for by the European Commission?  Apparently not – as confirmed by Baroness Ashton in this clip (4.37).

The difference, as I have written before, the European Commission represents no nation taking part.  Sovereign heads of government must answer to voters if they are not there to support the national teams.

As I have repeatedly stated, this is the wrong stick to beat the current government of Ukraine with from amongst a very limited bag of sticks held by the EU.

Now let us see what comes of the 2 day EU-Ukraine summit led by Prime Minister Azarov over today and tomorrow.  The language of the press releases will be interesting not only in what they say – but also what they don’t!

Politics and sport – Ukraine UEFA 2012

Now as you know, generally I stay away from the “headlining MSM” media news about Ukraine.  Occasionally I don’t use the news as a springboard at all, particularly when I feel like a meander through policy, effective, ineffective or counterproductive thereof, negotiations and diplomacy, positions, needs and interests, interests verses values and all that terribly clever stuff that makes the world of policy and international relationships go around – mostly in shades of nuanced grey rather than black and white I would add.

However, now seems like a good time to ponder recent mutterings over Ukraine, Euro 2012 and political leaders thoughts as the tournament comes ever closer with Ms Tymoshenko (and others) languishing in jails after what is perceived by many as politically motivated prosecutions.

Of course, sport and politics have collided on numerous occasions in the past.  The World Cup in Argentina went ahead despite the Argentinian Junta politically persecuting and torturing large numbers of Argentinians at the time.  A full political and diplomatic turnout was present during that sports fest regardless of those activities.

In contrast to that we have the Beijing Olympics only a few years ago where only 9 EU political leaders attended the opening ceremony in protest over the Chinese human rights record.

Then there are instances that can be cited such as apartheid South Africa and tours such as Kerry Packer’s England cricket tour that went ahead despite the political opposition to it.

Consistency?  Of course not.

Will there be consistency amongst the EU national leadership over Ukraine next month?  Again highly unlikely with Poland already going on record that political leaderships staying away from Ukraine is the wrong thing to do.

It is the age old problematic question of whether you seek to remain engaged and try to influence matters from within or take a stance that will leave you outside and shouting over the fence to a neighbour who is hard of hearing.  Can any EU leader afford to miss the opportunity to crucify the current government when they will have free access to the Ukrainian media and society live on Ukrainian soil?

There is then not only the matter of foreign policy but domestic policy for those leaders who choose to stay away.  How does it look to the increasingly nationalistic voters who are rapidly tiring of almost all things “EU”, when their leadership will not be present when their national teams are playing in a major tournament?

For the European Commission who are not elected by the EU voters, they have no domestic nationalist backlash to concern themselves with.  For the sovereign nations who are seeing a rapid rise of right-wing nationalistic drum thumping, failure to be there to support their nation who have been through a difficult qualification process to reach these finals, may not sit so well with their voting public.

After all, to them Yulia Tymoshenko is just another corrupt politician from Ukraine, an impression consistently enforced by the media that states all politicians are corrupt in Ukraine.  Thus possibly not enough to justify snubbing their own national team in the tournament for some domestic voters.

On the subject of the European Commission,  it seems the western press are using only the most useful parts of press statements to sell copy.  Take for instance the absence of EU Justice Commissioner Reding from the tournament despite the UEFA (not Ukrainian) invitation to be there.  It is being reported that she is not there due to political reasons.  Not entirely true.

Her press department made the statement “She is not going.  First of all her agenda does not permit this.  But also she is quite concerned about the situation in Ukraine and in particular by the situation with Yulia Tymoshenko.”   EU Observer 30.04.12

Now I would like to think that as the European Commissioner for Justice, even if her agenda did permit her attendance, as she doesn’t answer to any domestic voters to hold and retain her position, she would, could and should make her decision based on the values she is supposed to represent.   Unfortunately we will never know as her agenda doesn’t allow it anyway (even though that bit seems to be missing from almost all MSM reporting on her absence).

Mr Barroso has also stated he will not come to Ukraine “unless there is a swift improvement in human rights there.”   Anybody who is even remotely aware of “diplo speak” will recognise this statement is notable not for what it says, but for what it does not.  A swift improvement in human rights does not necessarily translate to the release of Ms Tymoshenko.

A “swift improvement” could very well be the sending of Ms Tymoshenko to Germany for treatment a few days before the tournament is due to begin.  That would allow Mr Barroso to enjoy yet another free jolly of VIP treatment and delay having to deal with the uncomfortable issues relating to what happens to Ms Tymoshenko once she has been treated in Germany.

Upon her return to Ukraine she would return to jail to continue to serve her sentence one must presume as things currently stand.  She would also have to face her trial over the shenanigans of UESU and Somolli Ent which has been postponed by the Ukrainian courts due to her health.

There is then the matter of Chancellor Merkel who has yet to make a formal decision to attend or not.  She will be acutely aware that whilst a percentage of Germans would support her staying away if that was her decision, there would also be a large number who would not be happy that a German Chancellor is not present at a tournament which Germany not only qualified for, but also stands a very good chance of winning – with the final in Kyiv.

She faces reelection next year.  Unsurprisingly she has not made that decision yet.

To add more difficulty to her position, Vitali Klitchko, Ukrainian opposition politician and Heavyweight Boxing Champion whose sporting career is based in Germany and who thus has a massive German following, had this to say about sports, politics and boycotting Ukraine:

“Europe and (Ukraine’s) neighbouring countries have enormous influence on Ukraine both economically and politically.  The important thing is that the whole country is not punished through penalties and sanctions that also effect the people.  The pressure needs to be directed against the country’s leadership.  Each person at the country’s helm has a personal responsibility for what is currently happening in Ukraine.  They must be held accountable.

The German team would be proud if it knew the Chancellor was in the stadium.  Another question is whether the visit would be an official one and if Merkel would attend as a representative of her country.  A private visit would be unproblematic.

This tournament is the biggest sporting event in the history of Ukraine.  It has to happen.   It is even an excellent opportunity to draw the world’s attention to the maladministration in our country.

Democratic changes are primarily dependent on the people at the highest levels of government.  Throughout the years, our politicians have spoken about the democratisation of our country, but in their heart of hearts they don’t want it at all. “  Der Spiegel  28.04.12

Suffice to say, Vitali Klitchko falls into the Polish camp of boycotts being counterproductive.   It should be worthy of note, that at the time of writing this, Klitchko and his party have thus far not joined the United Opposition when it comes to a single party list of candidates for the October elections.  One suspects his reasons for that are founded in the very last sentence of the above Der Spiegel quote which is all encompassing rather than party specific.

In case you are wondering, the current position taken by Ms Tymosehnko herself over the matter, is that there should not be a boycott because of her, and that the Ukrainian people should see the EU leaders in Ukraine as it will encourage them to look to the EU rather than think they have been written off.  In this she has a very good point when we consider the EU EaP policy is now to engage with Ukrainian society rather than Ukrainian politicians.

Anyway, it remains to be seen who will boycott the Ukrainian side of the Euro 2012 tournament and who won’t.  Aside from Ms Reding, who is too busy anyway, there doesn’t seem to be any other absolute confirmations of personalities who count and are recognisable to the Ukrainian public at the time of writing.  That may well change of course over the coming weeks.

If it does change, do not expect the Ukrainian position to change drastically because of it.  The very best that could be hoped for is that Ms Tymoshenko is sent to Germany for treatment immediately prior to the tournament.  The question is, would she then go, as effectively she would be in exile during the tournament with a cell awaiting her return.

To be honest I am not even sure the Ukrainian side will cede that much ground as currently there is no legal way to allow for prisoners to receive treatment in a foreign nation as far as I can tell.

The question for the EU nations is then whether the diplomatic pleasantries will continue or not.  Empirical global historical evidence would indicate that the current situation in Ukraine (and with regards to Ms Tymoshenko) are not sufficient to end such niceties for most nations.  For the most part such things are stretched far past the point where most people would ever allow matters to go in their lives, simply because international issues are here one day and gone the next.  There is an overarching desire to keep such relations going far more often than not, despite immediate circumstances.

If the EU national leaders are now going to put human rights as the qualifier to their attendance at major international sporting events as the “norm”, then it will be interesting to see what happens with the Winter Olympics in Russia (with very similar issues of alleged political persecution) and the Summer Olympics in Brazil within the next 4 years, (with human rights abuses relating to Brazilian street children arguably dwarfing the human rights issues in Ukraine and Russia).

When politics and sport collide the results are always interesting.  Let’s see how this unfolds.

Keeping promises – Expat-blog.com

OK.  Today we take a break from policies, politics, human rights, civil liberties etc.  There is no need to, there is more than sufficient activity (or inactivity) generated within Ukraine, or externally affecting Ukraine, to write five or ten posts a day most days.  I simply choose one each day.

Today though I keep a promise to Julien, the founder of Expat-blog, which is an umbrella website occupied by a large number of Expat/Immigrant blogs from around the world.  In amongst this global treasure trove of Expat tips, trials and tribulations, this blog is a small part.

Anyway, Julien emailed me and asked me to draw attention to the new housing and jobs sections, which if you click on those links, should take you to those in Ukraine.

I have absolutely no idea how good, bad or indifferent the information in those sections are as I do not need housing or a job in Ukraine.  I have been here far too long to need help with either.  Therefore I can offer no opinion and of course cannot vouch for the integrity of any content within those sections.  Any comments you may have should be directed towards Julien at Expat-blog and not me.

However, this post now keeps my promise to Julien and Expat-blog.  Even if you have no interest in housing or jobs, it is still well worth poking around in the darker corners of that website simply to see if life as an Expat/immigrant in country X is how you thought it would be.

After all, if you are reading my blog, and an average of a thousand people a day do, then you’ll read just about anything.  Amongst those on Expat-blog you are certain to find some that are written in a far superior fashion and manage to put together something like coherent thoughts. – That will make a nice change for you all compared to my random ruminations!

Tomorrow, back to the usual issues you expect to find here at Odessablog.

Human Trafficking

Today I was going to write about why reform in Ukraine is so slow and the bottom-up support that is missing.  That will have to wait until I get around to it.

Currently I am researching serious and organised crime for a document that will be published elsewhere in cyberspace in the months ahead.  Certainly it should be published by the year end.  Needless to say, Ukraine like most nations has issues with serious organised crime and within that broad heading human trafficking falls.

During this research, this very powerful, short and thoughtful Dutch video got my attention.  Whilst it does not go into the methodology, statistics, trafficking routes, reasons and end results, it does make anybody who watches it think twice about what is going on around them.

Watch it to the end – Something to think about!

The French Spring reaches Odessa

Sacrebleu mon ami!  The French Spring has spread to Odessa!

No, no – the French Spring has nothing to do with the so called Arab Spring despite the French being past masters of revolutions.

Once again Odessa City Administration is taking us on an entertaining, culture expanding, thought provoking journey into the world of international film just as it does each year with the Odessa International Film Festival every summer.

The French Spring film festival includes Cannes prize winners and takes place on 14 -15 April throughout various cinemas in the city.

That is not all.  French fashion in the shape of Helene Sorel gets an outing at the Odessa Philharmonic amongst other Franco events around the city.

The whole event is capped off with a cinema marathon “Long Nights of Short Films” program that presents 26 best short films, prize-winners of numerous international festivals.  (Let’s hope there are no private short films from DSK’s collection within.)

Mon dieu – How very bourgeoisie!

English FA moaning about hotel prices for fans in Ukraine

Well here is an interesting dilemma.  The English FA and UEFA are moaning about hotel prices for English football fans in Kyiv and Donetsk and asking the Government of Ukraine to do something about it.

What does it have to do with the Government of Ukraine?  Does it have the ability to tell an international hotel chain like Ibis what it can and cannot charge, unless we are advocating it overtly and directly interfere with an international investor and that FDI in Ukraine.

Is it not the argument that FDI is scared away from Ukraine by governmental interference?

The same can be said for the private entrepreneurs being interfered with, whether it is their spare rooms, privately owned hotels or hostels.

Should the Ukrainian government interfere in the free market very publicly for an international tournament or shouldn’t it?

When prices rocket in London for the Olympics, will the UK Government step in regarding private businesses?  Definitely not.

If the Ukrainian government does step in, all those who say FDI is a bad idea in Ukraine because the government interferes will be wandering around saying “told you so” as will all those who claims it stifles free market economy.

What power does the Government of Ukraine have to tell Ibis or any other hotel, B&B, hostel etc (that it doesn’t own) what to charge without making a very public faux pas via interference in the free market when the free market is once again going to have its attention briefly focused on Ukraine?

The tournament is still 3 months away. Prices may come down or demand may yet go up, or both, simply through the natural forces of the market.

If the English FA wanted more English fans to come to Ukraine, maybe they should have based the English team in Ukraine rather than Poland?

Are the English FA not forgetting there is a major tournament being held in the UK at the same time and many England fans may well prefer to go to the Olympics rather than spend thousands watching England get dumped out of the tournament before even qualifying for the knockout stages?

Let the markets do what markets do and allow supply and demand to attempt to come to a balance – but do not ask the Government of Ukraine to interfere, for if they do, somewhere in the “Business Section” of the Telegraph, the Ukrainian government will be lambasted for doing exactly what the FA are asking for.

Leave it alone.  Not every issue in society requires a government to do something.  Governments already interfere in far too much because they feel they need to be seen to do something!

Fans Consulates – Euro 2012

Now here is an interesting concept.  It maybe not a new idea directly out of the box of new ideas, but it is certainly an interesting concept for Ukraine.

“Embassies for fans” situated along side relevant national embassies –  Blimey!

Me thinks the UK Consulate building is more appropriate than a tent pitched in the back garden of the Ambassadorial residence.  It simply wouldn’t do to have the lawn at the rear trampled and muddied by several thousand drunken Englishmen seeking advice having been conned by a landlord or leggy Ukrainian lovely let alone roughly refused entry into certain Kyiv clubs because they are the wrong colour Englishman.

What is more interesting still, is that it seems the fans will be advising the fans – Really?

One look at the Expat forums in Ukraine or about Ukraine and a fan can find all the bad advice they could possibly wish for.   Some forums are better than others, however the better ones will state what the law is as written and immediately follow it up with a caveat that whilst the law maybe consistent, interpretation and implementation can vary dramatically from region to region.  Thus even 100% correct information provided can in practice be completely irrelevant to circumstances faced by an individual.

Which fans are going to work next to their Embassy’s/Consulates and provide advice that may have absolutely no grounding in fact, or if it is indeed factually correct, proved irrelevant by local authority interpretation?

Would a national Embassy/Consulate want such a facility temporarily planted next to them?  Would it not be easier to simply have those with “issues” speak with the Consular staff as they normally would when in the mire?

Does a “Fans Embassy” situated next to the official Embassy/Consular building provide some form of faux authority and inference that any advice given is representative of the relevant government?

Does Ukraine think that the UK Embassy and Consulate in Kyiv will be completely unprepared for Euro 2012 and not already have plans (and hopefully contingency plans) in place?

Given the advice and personal assistance that the UK Embassy can and does give on a personal level for a UK citizen who comes unstuck in Ukraine, unless a fan loses their passport, dies or gets arrested, there is very little that will be done on their behalf.  Quite rightly too, the UK Embassy is not your mother and there to wipe your nose, read you a bedtime story and tuck you up in bed feeling all snug, warm and loved-up!

What more, exactly, is a “Fans Embassy” going to do?  In fact, considering it can’t replace your passport,  could possibly repatriate your dead body (but nowhere near as efficiently as the official UK FCO representatives), and would not be given access to visit a Brit in a cell, the question should be, what will a “Fans Embassy” actually do?

Hand out maps of Kyiv and Donetsk cities with the name written in English in case you get lost?  Hand out telephone numbers for English speaking lawyers, dentists, doctors and police?  Such things no doubt will be posted on the UK Embassy website temporarily during the competition.  They may even be available as an “App” download if the FCO is on the ball and tech savvy.

What is highly unlikely is that a “Fans Embassy” will get involved with a landlord dispute or mediate a resolution with a leggy Ukrainian lovely who some drunken fan feels wronged by after she has allowed him to wine, dine and dance the night away without the resulting Slavic notch on his bedpost.

A small handbook of Ukrainian/Russian phrases in English to point at when our drunken fan cannot get his tongue around such “complicated” sounding words?

A liaison point for taxis to the airport possibly?

Just what will the “Fans Embassies” be telling the fans that the existing Embassies/Consulates cannot or will not and just what exactly will the official Embassies and Consulates be prepared to let “Fans Embassies” tell those that find their way to them in some inferred “official” capacity?

Is it not going to be easier to simply set up twenty or so temporary “tourist/Euro 2012″ information centres dotted around the hosting cities that have no inferred governmental affiliation to nations of visiting fans and thus any advice given will not result in a tempest of complaints to Foreign Ministries should the advice be “suspect”?

What, exactly, is the point of “Fans Embassies”?