The conference was opened by Svitlana Matviienko, Executive Director of the Agency for Legislative Initiatives and Director of the Ukrainian School of Political Studies. We are publishing the full text of the speech, and afterwards, we will share the speeches of all speakers of this year’s conference.
Svitlana Matviienko – Call of the Land
Dear guests, alumni, donors, partners, dear team!
It is really difficult for me to stand here, in front of you, and to find the right words that would leave a mark on your soul. The most difficult thing for my team and for me was to dare to hold the conference of 2023 alumni.
At every School event since 2014, we have warned of the unavoidable threat, and we have been aware of it every minute. We prepared for the war that would never have happened if safety, justice, and law had predominated in the world. However, we dared because we could not but respond to what is the most important. The call of our military servicepersons is to hold this event by all means in order to confirm our faith, strength and invincibility. Our contribution to the events of today is very small, but it is permanent. The pain of our people, our losses, and our sufferings are transformed into support of the home front. And we really wish this home front to be reliable.
Frankly speaking, I am embarrassed and ashamed to welcome you in this luxury hotel on days full of suffering and sadness when it is hard to distinguish at least one day without losses, blood and tears. But even here, I had to think about safety rather than about aesthetic relevance.
Generally speaking, it has already become a good tradition since all tuition fees for USPS in 2023 were also transferred to “Come Back Alive.” Support of the foundation with your contributions alone amounted to more than one million hryvnias, and support from the Agency for Legislative Initiatives to strengthen the foundation’s institutional capacity is much greater, and we are proud of this.
Our team did not leave Ukraine even for one day, except for short business trips.
This year, we have chosen a special topic for you – “Call of the Land.” The land is a powerful and meaningful image. The land is our common home. The land is our shelter and the borders of our shelter. The land is also a priceless resource. Our land gives us a lot, but the main thing is that It unites us. In addition to its creative role, our land needs us in crucial times like today and calls for its protection. Today, we will speak about our common present and future on our land to pay respect to the land and the people who responded to its call and stood up to defend it.
The land that is fought for, that is defended by the most honourable daughters and sons, that is flooded with tears of suffering mothers, husbands, children, wives, our people. The land is indispensable to each and every one of us, but the main thing on the land is the people. We are not the ones to speak slogans; we are not the ones to talk about victory because we are not the ones who fall asleep in cold trenches holding weapons in our hands. However, we have the honour and the opportunity to make maximum effort to enlighten, set up and strengthen institutions, and support each and every person from our Community, those who really bring us closer to the new Ukraine with their actions. And we believe that the most important is for Ukraine to withstand. But what it is going to be like depends on each citizen, on every conscious choice and every pure intention.
Thank you for coming and cheering us up with your bright eyes and calm smiles. Believe me, we know how difficult it was for every girl to be dressed well, how difficult it was for every man to dare and come because, for some reason, they were not in the army. We welcome our military servicepersons, and we are happy that many of them are not wearing military uniforms today. We managed to give them a couple of hours staying in the dreamy Kyiv, in the pre-Christmas melodies of the deep home front. The speakers we are going to hear today are people that we are proud of and cooperate with, who are our pride and whose opinion matters. We have prepared several pleasant, memorable moments that should warm you on these extremely difficult days. I am calling to you, “Appreciate the moment and be responsible!” Each moment is granted to us by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Responsibility to yourself and the world is granted only by you. Responsibility when you hold a high-ranking government post, responsibility when you enlist in the army, responsibility when you raise your children the way that even your great-grandchildren know your teachings, responsibility when you write every text, make a donation, or stand up for the truth on social media.
We have to restrain our pride and our selfishness to save the state. We need to do it in the memory of every fallen hero and every shed drop of Ukrainian blood. We would never wage war against our neighbours, and this makes us different from the horde next to us. However, though not instantly, the light always overcomes the darkness. Let the pre-Christmas time be bright for you, your families, relatives and friends, and the Christmas carol will sound all over Ukraine.
