In Ukraine in the near future may change the holiday calendar is under threat of cancellation of weekend 2 and 9 may. NV looks like appeared may holidays and their possible cancellation is related to the politics of decommunization.
What we have now
At the moment, according to Ukrainian legislation, in may has three holidays that are holidays. Is 1, 2 and 9 may. 1-2 may is traditionally celebrated workers ‘ Day, may 9 — the Victory Day. The history of labour Day begins in 1886, when the U.S. passed mass demonstrations with the requirement to establish an eight-hour day (in those days, the working hours sometimes reached 15-20 hours). The center of the protests was the city of Chicago, and the protesters were about 500 thousand.
May 1, 1886 to protest the Chicago workers join workers in new York, Baltimore, Washington, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Detroit and other cities. However, the employers and the authorities dispersed the protesters. During the protests, which began a few days after the crackdown killed 7 and injured 50 police — unidentified persons threw a bomb into their ranks. After that the police opened fire, killing four protesters. He was arrested the anarchists, who led the labor movement in Chicago. Eight of them were sentenced to be hanged, but the three has replaced the sentence of 15 years hard labor.
Two years later, the Convention of the American Federation of labor declared may 1 national Day of struggle for workers ‘ rights. A year later at the Paris international Congress II, after the report of the American delegates, it was decided to commemorate the may events in Chicago to carry out may 1, international workers demonstration demanding the reduction of working hours to 8 hours.
In 1890 international workers ‘ day was first celebrated mass meetings demonstrations and strikes in many cities in the world. Among the other cities for the first time celebrated this day in the city, near the town hall on the Market square have gathered about 4 thousand Ukrainian, Polish and Jewish workers.
In the Soviet Union on may 1 became an official state holiday. In this day of widespread demonstrations, which were open to all citizens of the country. The exception was made even in 1986, in Kiev on the fifth day after the Chernobyl disaster.
May 1, workers went on demonstrations and parades, and the next day rested from slogans and chants to nature — the so-called may day — trips with families and staff in the forest or Park.
In prerevolutionary Russia, may day was illegal and persecuted by the tsarist police. In the USSR legalized this tradition and made 2 may also weekends. After the collapse of the Soviet Union on may 2 stayed the weekend in the Ukraine — the Ukrainians are still traditionally go camping on may 1-2.
In addition, in the countryside of the Ukraine long weekend for the may holidays are often held in the garden — in these days comes a time for planting many crops. So, in early may, villagers often thrown potatoes is one of the most labor-intensive types of garden works.
The may 9 Victory day was declared a holiday “to commemorate the victorious conclusion of the great Patriotic war of the Soviet people against the German fascist invaders”. This date is associated with the adoption of Germany’s surrender in the war in the Soviet occupation zone in the Berlin suburb of Karlshorst, Moscow time. The decree on declaring may 9 Victory day was signed on 8 may 1945. However, three years later output on this day was cancelled.
Resumed the celebration of the Victory Day only in 1965. Since that time the holiday was celebrated by military parades and demonstrations. Now in Ukraine the Victory Day is celebrated as the victory Day over Nazism in the Second world war (2016).
In addition, on may 8, the anniversary of the capitulation of Nazi Germany, Ukraine celebrates the Day of memory and reconciliation. This memorable day was established by the decree of the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko signed in 2015 with the goal “worthy of honoring the feat of the Ukrainian people, their outstanding contribution to victory of anti-Hitler coalition in world war II and showing respect to all the fighters against Nazism”.
I suggest to change
3 February the head of the Institute of national memory Vladimir vyatrovich said that he had prepared a draft law On state and other holidays, memorial days and sad days. The bill proposed to celebrate may 1 and 2 and postpone the day of victory Day over Nazism on may 9 Day of memory and reconciliation on may 8.
Commenting on the proposal to cancel the public holidays of may 1 and 2, viatrovych in the explanatory Memorandum to the bill notes that they were established as mass holidays and weekends in Ukraine from the first years of the Bolshevik government and implemented in support of socio-political movements.
“Now the holidays have ceased to meet the priority value. Their content eventually leveled. Since they are not events of the Ukrainian state historical and cultural traditions of the Ukrainian people, they cannot be given the status of state holiday”, reads the explanatory note.
April 13, viatrovych said about the discussion of this bill and the introduction of its new edition taking into account criticism. In the second version of the document is a new category — International days. Among others it includes labor Day, which is celebrated on may 1 and is to be output. At the same time, the bill proposes to cancel the day off on may 2 and still postpone the day from 9 to 8 may.
