Freedom of Speech under Militant Democracy: The History of Struggle against Separatism and Communism in Ukraine

Abstract The article is devoted to the experience of the application of a concept of militant democracy in modern Ukraine. This concept is relevant due to the prolonged domination of the communist totalitarian regime until 1991, and also in view of the encroachment on the principle of territorial integrity in 2014. It is argued that Ukraine, formally consolidating separate instruments of militant democracy at the level of the Constitution of Ukraine, almost did not apply such instruments until 2014. The active process of decommunization started in 2014, after the Revolution of Dignity; it was realised, in particular, in the declaration of lustration, as well as the banning of the two communist parties, but the most influential Communist Party remains officially not banned up till now. Also, the two parties, accused of infringement on territorial integrity, were banned in 2014. The issue of differentiation between aggressive words and aggressive actions of parties is analysed. It is argued that representatives of the parties, who during the twenty years of Ukrainian independence openly denied one of the key values of the constitutional order of Ukraine, its territorial integrity, became active participants of the temporary occupation.