Any parliament should have traditions, and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has developed touching customs during the martial law period. Every session, Ukrainian MPs honor those who died in russia’s nine-year war against Ukraine with a minute of silence. Before that, they sing the National Anthem of Ukraine a cappella. And while the minute of silence is a long-standing parliamentary tradition that has unfortunately been held in the Parliament quite often, the performance of the National Anthem is a novelty of martial law.
Oleksandr Korniienko, the First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, spoke about the emergence of the tradition.
“I was already in the Presidium, preparing for the start of the most disturbing meeting on the morning of February 24, 2022, where the Presidential Decrees on the introduction of martial law and the start of mobilization were to be approved. The apparatus was preparing documents, so the start was delayed. People’s Deputy Yaroslav Yurchyshyn came up to me and suggested: “What do you think of the idea of singing the National Anthem now? It would support everyone, everyone would calm down, feel each other.” “Actually, it’s never a bad idea to sing the National Anthem, so I welcomed the idea,” Oleksandr Korniienko shared the story of the origin of this tradition: “Then I proposed it to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk, which he agreed to, and we performed the Anthem of Ukraine as a cappella. And when we gathered at the next meeting, it became an obligatory element of the meetings of the Parliament of Ukraine.”
“The meeting was about to start, and there was anxiety in the room, which was quite logical at that moment. I really wanted to do something that would motivate and give a sense of unity. It seemed that this could best be done through a joint action, and the performance of the National Anthem was perfect. I ran up to Oleksandr Korniienko, who had just entered the hall and taken a seat in the presidium, and said: “Let’s start with the National Anthem.” Oleksandr looked over to the press balcony, where the Hryhorii Veriovka National Honored Academic Ukrainian Folk Choir of Ukraine traditionally stands in the open. But there was no choir, and the balcony was closed. “Let me announce it.” The feeling was extraordinary, the unity of the Parliament at that moment was unsurpassed. And since February 24, it has become a permanent tradition,” said Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, MP, the author of the idea.
Each of the 58 performances of the National Anthem of Ukraine (the number of times the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has met) during the year since the full-scale invasion was special and memorable. Some are the most memorable.
“We will lay down our body and soul for our freedom. The lines of the Ukrainian National Anthem capture the greatest meanings and values inherent in our nation. The words that emphasize the uniqueness and unity of our people,” said the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk.
The Speaker of the Parliament noted that the performance of the Anthem of Ukraine every time MPs start working in the session hall is “the tuning fork that sets the tone and understanding of what we are working for.” “And we are working to ensure that our national symbol, the Anthem of Ukraine, is heard in all corners of Ukraine as a symbol of Victory!”
“An extraordinary meeting of the Verkhovna Rada on February 24, 2022. The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksii Danilov has just handed me a flash drive with the Decree of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi on the introduction of martial law, which we then promptly approved,” Olena Kondratiuk, the Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, shares her memories of that day.
She said that meanwhile, the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk said: “Let’s sing the National Anthem of Ukraine a cappella?” “Let’s do it!” everyone said. “Our a cappella performance of the National Anthem is probably the most remembered by the Speakers of the Parliaments of the EU countries – Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia – who were the first to arrive in Ukraine after the start of the large-scale invasion and delivered speeches from the rostrum of the Verkhovna Rada,” noted Olena Kondratiuk.
“Later, during a personal conversation, the Speaker of the Saeima of Latvia, Inara Murniece, mentioned that our performance of the Ukrainian anthem in the parliamentary hall gave incredible strength and energy,” the Vice Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said.
For reference. On March 6, 2003, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the Law of Ukraine “On the National Anthem of Ukraine”, which approved the national anthem “Ukraine has not yet died” with lyrics by Pavlo Chubynskyi and music by Mykhailo Verbytskyi as the National Anthem.