It seems to me that Lyonya Kosmos as many like to talk about the incumbent mayor is taking things a little too far... If you happen to be in Kyiv at this point you will see something like the following picture on Maydan, sent to me by another friend who has some good contacts on Maydan:
After spending a little time this morning after surfing the web for a while I came across the following on one of the forums on Ukrainska Pravda and found the picture there with a number of others.
Clearly such tactics by Chernovetsky reinforce my previous post, "Is Ukraine Changing?" Once again my answer is: Apparently not! Elected officials as well as their cronies, have little understanding of the rights of citizens, the image of tourist attractions, or what they have to do to make a city or country tourist friendly. Clearly, Chernovetsky doesn't understand that these vendor's are registered business people who pay taxes, are supporting Ukrainian culture, even though some of them sell kitchy things, are citizens of Ukraine and Kyiv who are not criminals but honest law abiding citizens. Like one comment towards my previous posting noted, "The thing is the more honest and decent you look; the bigger criminal you are..." Damn it the Mayor never even speaks Ukrainian - nor does he seem to care about honest law abiding citizens. I am certain that he didn't make his money by working hard.
It seems to me that Ukraine could develop it's tourist industry so much more than it currently is. Many tourists come here but it is so hard to get around because Ukraine is not tourist friendly. Taking away places where people sell souvenirs is a case in point. Why are there not MORE places to buy souvenirs than just Andrevski?
ReplyDeleteUkraine will never become tourist friendly until they have a policy and strategic plan. Too many people only have their own interests first.
ReplyDeleteIf Chernovetsky had any vision or understanding at all and wanted Kyiv to be a European city he could start by getting rid of all the stray dogs and start fining people who walk their dogs in Kyiv and let them do their matters anywhere.
In fact sellers of traditional materials, some better than others in quality, on Maydan has been a tradition from before Ukraine was independent adds flavor to the city. Unlike the many casinos which are one of the biggest eyesores for Kyiv.
this Chornyi Mer!!! His actions make my living in Kyiv less and less tolerable. If you only try to get into the web of municipal system changes he introduced... The situation with Andriyivsky is just plain exasperating.
ReplyDelete