Walter Kish

I have been in Japan the past few weeks on business, and quite by chance, I stumbled across a group of Ukrainian ex-pats living and working in Tokyo. Through the wonderful functionality of the Internet, the input of the terms Ukrainian and Japan returned information on the existence of an E-mail mailing list known as Kraiany, used by members of the Ukrainian community in Japan. I was able to contact the organizer of this list, Dmytro Kovalov, and subsequently meet with a dozen or so Ukrainians currently living in Tokyo.

They are a fairly young group of professionals who have come here over the past decade, usually as students or on fellowships. Many have found permanent employment and have settled down with their spouses and children, primarily in the greater Tokyo area. Many of them work in the IT field, holding senior technical and management positions in large Japanese and foreign companies.

They appear to have done well from a career and economic point of view, especially compared to their counterparts who have remained within the constrained and troubled economic environment of Ukraine

Although they have managed to avoid the limitations and obligations of a formal organizational structure, they do constitute an informal group of around fifty or so, that gets together on a regular basis to network, socialize, celebrate Ukrainian holidays and maintain a sense of Ukrainian community in a sea of Japanese language and culture. I was much impressed with their friendliness, hospitality, and desire to maintain their cultural identity, especially in the face of a complete absence of any formal religious or organizational infrastructure. There is a Ukrainian embassy in Tokyo, however they appear to have little interest or involvement with the resident Ukrainian community.

These people represent the latest wave of Ukrainians emigrating from their homeland in search of a better future for themselves and their families. They are leaving in large numbers for Europe, North America, and it seems even the far corners of Asia. This in itself, is not new. Ukrainians have been doing this for most of the last hundred years. What is distinctive is the fact that most immigrants in the past have come from the ranks of the poor, the uneducated or the oppressed. Most were unwilling or reluctant migrants, forced out by the circumstance of war, famine or Communist oppression.

This latest wave, in contrast, is made up primarily of some of the most educated and capable young people Ukraine has produced in the past century. They come from a country that is at least theoretically, a functioning free-enterprise democracy. Their leaving is planned and purposeful, motivated by a strong desire to realize their ambitions, dreams and potential, such a possibility being highly unlikely in today’s Ukraine.

The fact that that they are leaving, is a telling indictment of the existing political and economic situation in Ukraine today. It is a vote of non-confidence in the country’s leadership and government. I sincerely hope that the time will soon come, when they may feel equally motivated to return to a Ukraine with a more hopeful and certain future.