Civil society in Ukraine

Abstract

On the eve of 2004/2005 and 2013/2014, Ukrainian citizens demonstrated a high-democratic, as it appeared—level of civil disobedience. Yet a sociological analysis shows that both “revolutionary” events had little impact on the development of the third sector organizations as well as attitudes that are associated with “civic culture”. The weakness of civil society in Ukraine can be explained by an adversarial relationship between the state and the third sector organizations, poor economic conditions in the country and a post-totalitarian psychological legacy. Nonetheless, even a weak third sector fulfils important functions, such as filling gaps of state administration (for example, in managing the refugee crisis), lobbying for reforms and supporting nation-building.