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Video: Child of freedom: How was the fate of 12-year-old defector from the USSR Vladimir Polovchak
2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55
This was one of the most high-profile cases of the early 1980s. The case when a 12-year-old child, against the will of his parents, asked for political asylum in the United States was unprecedented, he was covered by the leading media around the world. Vladimir Polovchak became a symbol of the desire for freedom and managed to defend his right to an independent choice of residence and citizenship. How did the fate of the youngest defector from the USSR develop in the future?
Family or freedom
In 1980, Mikhail and Anna Polovchak arrived in Chicago from the Soviet Union with their three children. In the USSR, they lived in their house in the village of Voloshinovo, Lviv region. In the United States, the head of the family was never able to adapt to a new life and expressed a desire to return to his homeland. However, the embassy set him a condition: the whole family must return.
When the father announced his departure home, the older children, 17-year-old Natalya and her 12-year-old brother Vladimir, expressed disagreement with the father's decision. Mikhail Polovchak admonished his daughter and son and even intimidated by the police. Natalia went to live with her cousin, who had already lived in America for a long time, and soon Vladimir joined her.
The boy already saw the prospects of life abroad, and besides, he began to attend a Baptist church, where American relatives attended weekly. Memories of his past life did not torment him at all, and the bright shop windows were dizzy. At home, he saw endless queues for the essentials.
Mikhail and Anna Polovchak turned to the police for help and soon the children were detained. But Natalia and Vladimir declared their unwillingness to return to the Soviet Union and asked for political asylum in the United States. The issue with Natalya was resolved pretty quickly: she was almost 18, and by the time her parents left, she could already manage her life herself. With her brother, things were completely different.
Once at the police station, the boy began to ardently convince the law enforcement officers that he wanted to stay and live in the United States. Naturally, no one knew the Ukrainian language at the police station, they had to wait for an interpreter, and then figure out what to do with the teenager. It became clear that he did not just leave home, but made a serious decision. The case took a political turn.
Later, Mikhail Polovchak will say that this whole story would not have happened to his family if he were a citizen of any other country.
Cold War bargaining chip
Vladimir spent several hours at the police station, and at the end someone called on television and a big political game began.
The media in the USA and the USSR presented completely different information to their readers. In the Soviet Union, they wrote about the illegal detention and even abduction of children by Baptists. After that, a new version appeared: the underage Vladimir was bribed with a bicycle and jelly sweets. In fact, the teenager made a decision on his own, realizing that this was his only chance to stay in America, he would no longer have a second. In the United States, the case was presented in such a way as if the boy in his homeland was in serious, almost mortal danger.
The American authorities allocated a lawyer who defended the interests of Vladimir Polovchak in court and advised him to write an official petition for political asylum. As a result of lengthy proceedings, the court refused to restore guardianship to Vladimir's parents, Mikhail and Anna Polovchak returned to the Soviet Union only with their youngest son in 1981.
However, Vladimir will later talk about how he lived in constant fear. He was afraid that he would be kidnapped by KGB agents and forcibly taken to his parents. However, the trials ended in victory: the boy stayed in America, began to live with his sister with relatives and wait for adulthood to obtain American citizenship.
American dream
In 1985, Vladimir Polovchak's dream came true: he received the coveted citizenship, began to call himself Walter and forgot about all his childhood fears. By that time, he was sure that his parents were ready to support his decision, but they could not declare this openly while in the Soviet Union. After receiving an American passport, Walter Polovchak again became a hero in the American media. He generously shared his emotions and argued that he had no reason to regret the decision made several years ago.
Three years will pass and the light will see the book by Vladimir Polovchak "The Child of Freedom", which he wrote together with the journalist Kevin Klose. These were the memories of “the youngest Soviet defector,” as he was called in the media. The book reflects the fears and panic of a boy who was afraid, but still determined to go to the very end.
Eight years after his majority, Walter Polovchak was able to come to Ukraine and restore relations with his parents. After that, every two years he visited his father's house, until Anna and Mikhail Polovchak died. According to Vladimir, his father in the last days of his life called the decision to return to the Soviet Union his biggest mistake.
Walter Polovchak has been living in the United States for nearly 40 years. He works as an office manager, brings up two sons with his wife and is still sure: then, in 1980, he did absolutely the right thing.
Some still consider this girl a traitor, for others Lina Gasinskaya's red swimsuit has become a symbol of craving for freedom and determination. Fact is fact: once a girl named Lina realized that she would not be allowed to live in the country she wanted, and swam there in one swimsuit.
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