Genozid.pdf

Raphael Lemkin's 1953 article "Soviet Genocide in the Ukraine" describes the systematic destruction of the Ukrainian nation by the Soviet Union, which he considers a classic example of genocide. The Soviet leaders aimed to create a unified "Soviet Man" and "Soviet Nation" by destroying the cultures and nations of Eastern Europe, including Ukraine. Lemkin argues that this policy of genocide is not new, but rather a continuation of Tsarist Russia's crimes, such as the drowning of 10,000 Crimean Tatars and the extermination of National Polish leaders and Ukrainian Catholics. The Soviet Union's attack on Ukraine targeted its intelligentsia, churches, and farmers, using methods such as mass murder, deportation, forced labor, exile, and starvation. Between 1932 and 1933, 5,000,000 Ukrainians starved to death, and at least 75% of Ukrainian intellectuals and professional men in Western Ukraine were brutally exterminated. The Ukrainian Orthodox Autocephalous Church and the Ukrainian Catholic Church were also liquidated, with their clergy and hierarchy arrested, deported, or killed. Lemkin concludes that the Soviet Union's goal is to eradicate Ukrainian nationalism and establish a uniform Soviet state, and that the destruction of Ukraine is a crucial step in achieving this goal.