Ukrainian socialist militant travels through Brazil on a solidarity journey
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Ukrainian socialist militant travels through Brazil on a solidarity journey

Comrade Zakhar Popovych, a militant of the Ukrainian socialist organization Sotsialnyi Rukh, was in Brazil at the invitation of the MES/PSOL.

Revista Movimento 1 ago 2022, 17:08

A journey in solidarity with the Ukrainian people’s resistance against Putin’s aggression went around the country during the last week of July. Comrade Zakhar Popovych, a militant of the Ukrainian socialist organization Sotsialnyi Rukh (Social Movement) was in Brazil at the invitation of the Socialist Left Movement (MES/PSOL) and visited the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Paraná in a series of activities to inform about the current situation in the Ukraine and to spread mechanisms to promote concrete solidarity with this people that heroically resists the Russian imperialist aggression.

The Sotsialnyi Rukh is today the main organization of the Ukrainian revolutionary left, formed in 2015 by socialist militants participating in the popular uprising of Maidan Square and bringing together youth, academics and trade unionists in a broad and combative organization with militants active in armed resistance to the invasion and in networks of solidarity with war refugees. Confronting at the same time Russian imperialist aggression and Ukrainian right-wing factions, the organization recently decided to apply for observer membership in the Fourth International.

The journey through Brazil

In Rio Grande do Sul, Zakhar’s first activity was in Porto Alegre, at the PSOL State Convention, where he greeted all the party militants. In addition, he met with union leaders of health and subway workers, where he shared experiences of Ukrainian independent trade unionism and took the first steps towards a direct contact between workers’ organizations of these categories in Brazil and Ukraine. In addition, he participated in a public event at the Legislative Assembly of Rio Grande do Sul, at the invitation of State Representative Luciana Genro, where he explained in detail the current Ukrainian situation to dozens of activists present, including Federal Representative Fernanda Melchionna and Porto Alegre Councilman Roberto Robaina.

Debate at the Legislative Assembly of Rio Grande do Sul

Visit to the Union of Subway Workers of Rio Grande do Sul
Meeting with health workers from Rio Grande do Sul

In Rio de Janeiro, the Ukrainian leader met with internationalist militants at SEPE (Sindicato Estadual dos Profissionais de Educação do Rio de Janeiro), where he again went into depth on issues related to the war and answered questions from those present. Zakhar also visited the headquarters of PSOL São Gonçalo, invited by Councilman Professor Josemar, where he was received with a breakfast and talked with activists from the city about his native country, besides hearing about the reality of the peripheral city of Rio de Janeiro and the racial issue in Brazil.

Conversation at the State Union of Education Professionals of Rio de Janeiro)

Militants at the PSOL headquarters (city of São Gonçalo/RJ)

In São Paulo, a large public activity held at the Satyros Theater was convened by councilwoman Luana Alves and was attended by Federal Deputy Sâmia Bomfim and State Deputy Mônica Seixas. The debate also had contributions from UFSCAR professor Svetlana Ruseishvili, a Georgian who grew up in Ukraine and also studied in Russia, and Bruno Magalhães, editor of Revista Movimento. Also present were comrade Fábio Bosco, representing the Unified Socialist Workers Party (PSTU) and comrade Verónica O’Kelly, from Alternativa Socialista – PSOL. In the city of Campinas, the second largest in the state, Zakhar participated in a public activity organized by councilwoman Mariana Conti.

Debate at Satyros Theater, in São Paulo/SP

Debate in Campinas / SP

The last leg of the trip was in the city of Curitiba, state of Paraná, where the comrade and Bruna Chamas, councilwoman of the city of São Caetano (SP) participated in the celebrations of 100 years of the Ukrainian Society of Brazil held with members of the Brazilian, Argentinean, Paraguayan and Canadian Ukrainian communities, in a demonstration of the strength of the resistance of Ukrainian communities abroad against Russian aggression. In the city, Zakhar met with comrade Vitorio Sorotiuk, leader of the Ukrainian community in Brazil and a historical socialist militant who was persecuted by the military dictatorship in the country. Exiled in Chile and persecuted again by Pinochet’s dictatorship, having been one of the prisoners in the infamous torture center in Santiago’s National Stadium, today Vitorio organizes Latin American solidarity against Russian aggression.

Meeting with Vitorio Sorotiuk in Curitiba/PR

Throughout the intense trip, comrade Zakhar met several times with union leaders from the TLS (Workers in Socialist Struggle), from the youth movement Juntos!, from the Rede Emancipa de Educação Popular, from the feminist collective Juntas!, among other social organizations that have given active solidarity to the Ukrainian people since the beginning of Putin’s invasion. As the first Ukrainian to make such a trip to Brazil, Zakhar collaborated enormously with his reports and explanations about this conflict so distant from our country, but at the same time so important for what it means in the face of the current imperialist system.

Meeting with TLS union members

Our struggle continues!

This journey does not end here. Our solidarity with the Ukrainian people will continue as long as the imperialist aggression continues and, at this moment, it is concretized in two important campaigns. The first is the campaign to cancel the Ukrainian foreign debt, which we will carry out in Brazil in partnership with the CADTM (Committee for the Abolition of Illegitimate Debts), and the second is the campaign to repeal the new labor laws approved by the Zelensky government, which is taking advantage of the state of war to deregulate the country’s labor legislation and remove the rights of Ukrainian workers. We call on everyone to contribute to the international petition at: https://chng.it/K4GQVybVrP

All support to the Ukrainian resistance!


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