Beyond the Boundaries

Yulia's Lament

Though imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, it seldom feels that way - especially if you're a political candidate and the opposition is imitating you in a manner that exposes you to ridicule.

Although not officially candidates yet, Ukraine's political heavyweights dominated billboard use as early as August.  Some of the campaigns have been memorable - we mentioned Arseniy Yatsenyuk's boards in our September issue - and others have been run-of-the mill. 

Yulia Tymoshenko's early campaign, which featured an unsigned white board bearing four-word slogans like, "They Steal. She Works" were intriguing, but quickly lent themselves to abuse by pundits and critics.  Because they were unsigned, opponents were able to post imitations.  After Tymoshenko look-alikes with messages like "They're Excrement, She's a Doll" began appearing, the prime minister's lawyers went to work to have the parody boards blocked.  An injunction was entered, then overruled, leaving Mrs. Tymoshenko miffed and opponents claiming to have won a round for free speech.

Mrs. Tymoshenko left herself open to attack when she chose to erect board without 'signing' them with her bloc's logo - an element that would have been hard to copy without running afoul of the law.  And while we aren't won't go so far as to support the free-speech argument, we do believe that different rules apply to lampooning politicians and other public figures.  Politics is a tough game, after all, and it's a game the prime minister knows very well.