Ukraine marks Day of Dignity and Freedom

On Tuesday, November 21, Ukrainians mark a milestone holiday in the history of Ukraine – the Day of Dignity and Freedom. The holiday is marked annually on November 21 pursuant to the Decree of the President of Ukraine. It is established in honor of the commencement on this day of two significant and fateful events in the contemporary Ukrainian history: the 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2013 Revolution of Dignity. The Day of Dignity and Freedom became a kind of successor to the Freedom Day holiday, which was celebrated in honor of the Orange Revolution on November 22 from 2005 to 2011 but was later canceled. It was on November 21, 2013, when Ukrainians started to hold the first protest actions in response to the decision of the then government to stop the country’s European integration and freeze the preparations for the signing of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. The change in the legislatively enshrined priorities of Ukraine’s foreign policy aroused the indignation of Ukrainians.