Executive Council Statement
2004 George Meany–Lane Kirkland Human Rights Award—Mikhail Volynets, President of the Confederation of Free Trade Unions of Ukraine
… workers’ rights, democracy and social and economic justice. His personal and the Confederation's numerous contributions to building democracy over the past nine years were critical to the success of Ukraine’s Orange Revolution. The Confederation has developed in spite of daunting obstacles. In the past … was stricken by political repression, economic violence and social isolation. Authoritarian political leadership linked to unregulated economic fiefdoms led to extreme abuses of power, rising economic paralysis, ubiquitous corruption, and …