Stepan Bandera Monument in Lviv

Stepan Bandera monument in Lviv has a very interesting story and this statue is considered as a holy symbol of the western Ukrainian citizens.

Stepan Bandera is a name written with gold in Ukrainian history of politics. Stepan Bandera was the chief in the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists.  He was a militant, an explorer and a director of Ukrainian nationalist movement.

During his political career OUN was divided into OUN-M and OUN-B. Stepan Bandera was accountable for the declaration of the independence Ukrainian state in Lviv.

Stepan Bandera was a divisive figure in Ukraine for his probable cooperation with NAZI Germany. In September 1941 Bandera was captivated by the NAZIS and was released in september1944.

Stepan Bandera was born in a small village of Uhryniv Staryi now in Western Ukraine. Stepan spent his entire childhood with his parents and grandparents. Later on he started political career by joining Ukrainian nationalist organization and accompanied it throughout his school life.  His outstanding personality helped him to raise his position as a chief in OUN in 1931.

Bandera believed in order to get a dominant position in OUN he needs the support of common people from all classes and thus he focused on it and tried to grow up such assistance from people of Eastern and western Ukraine. Stepan became the chief of OUN in June, 1933. It was he who expanded the network of OUN in western Ukraine and motivated it against Poland and Soviet Union. Then Bandera led OUN against the anti Ukrainian policies undertaken by the polish officials.  He fought against the tobacco and alcohol domination and the denationalization of the youth of Ukraine. In 1934 he was arrested and later on was sentenced to death.

The Common people of Lviv consider Stepan Bandera as a patriot and thus after his death Ukrainian Government featured The Lviv monument of Stepan Bandera.  The statue of him was unveiled on the 103rd birthday of this national figure.  Some of the Ukrainian mostly from west part of Lviv considered him as a national hero, where other people take him as a NAZI associate. The construction of the statue took 10 years to be completed and it is said that it took 4.7 million dollars. The Lviv monument of Stepan Bandera is situated at the middle of western Ukraine.