What is taras chornovil?

Taras Chornovil (December 9, 1937 – March 25, 1999) was a prominent Ukrainian dissident and journalist who played a key role in the movement for Ukrainian independence from the Soviet Union.

He was born in the western Ukrainian city of Pustomyty and graduated from Lviv University in 1960. In the 1960s and 1970s, he worked as a journalist and editor for various Ukrainian-language newspapers and magazines.

Chornovil became an active participant in the Ukrainian dissident movement in the 1970s, organizing protests and advocating for political prisoners. He was arrested and imprisoned several times by the Soviet authorities, and was subjected to physical and psychological torture.

In the 1980s, Chornovil emerged as a leader of the Ukrainian independence movement, founding the Ukrainian People's Movement for Restructuring (Rukh) in 1989. He was elected to the Ukrainian parliament in 1990 and served as a prominent member of the opposition.

Chornovil was killed in a car accident in 1999, which many Ukrainians believe was a politically-motivated assassination. He is widely regarded as a hero of the Ukrainian independence movement and a symbol of the struggle for democracy and human rights in Ukraine.