We would like to introduce you to Anastasia Borisyuk, a representative of the NGO “Automaidan Vinnytsia”. This is the organisation that was once led by Ms Taisa Haida. The Haida Scholarship was established in her memory, and this year Anastasia became a scholarship holder, following in her mentor’s footsteps on our ACREC “Anti-Corruption Studies” Master’s programme. For her, this choice was a logical continuation of her civic engagement.
It was simply a natural progression for me. All members of the organisation involved in investigations have received training in anti-corruption, and I was no exception. The vision of ‘Automaidan Vinnytsia’ is that it is a team of professionals which supports and fosters national and civic awareness through anti-corruption activities.
Receiving the Taisa Gaida Scholarship was a significant and deeply personal moment for Anastasia. It is a sense of connection with someone who has left a lasting legacy.
To me, this is proof that all the efforts made by Ms Taisa to fight corruption, to ensure that our city and our country have a future, have not been in vain. All the seeds she sowed are sprouting, and despite such a great loss, ‘Automaidan Vinnytsia’ continues to preserve and build upon her achievements.
Anastasia recalls the moment when the team found out about the scholarship:
I still remember the moment when my team and I read the letter announcing the Haida Scholarship, and we all felt, all at once, as though she had appeared right there beside us for a second.
I feel immense gratitude that I have the opportunity to benefit from this scholarship, because my studies on this programme are entirely thanks to her and her achievements. And I always thank her in my thoughts and prayers for everything she has done for us and our city, and for the fact that I have the opportunity to study and undertake an internship on such a programme.
For Anastasia, the “Anti-Corruption Studies” programme was not merely a new phase, but a moment of deeper understanding of the processes she had already encountered in practice at the NGO ‘Automaidan Vinnytsia’.
Throughout my career, I have spent a long time reflecting on the root causes of corruption and why it takes this particular form in our country, and I have read extensively on the subject; however, thanks to this programme, I have finally uncovered the secret as to why it is actually so difficult to combat. I have also learnt about the challenges faced during investigations and court proceedings. Why do some reforms fail, and what can be done to ensure they work?
One of the key values of the programme for Anastasia was the professional environment—the lecturers and students who work directly in the field of anti-corruption and are shaping it today. The programme’s lecturers are practitioners who were working with anti-corruption tools even before the Revolution of Dignity. They impart not only theoretical knowledge, but also an understanding of how the system actually works.
I could never have imagined that I would be taught by such distinguished people who have already put so much effort into the real fight against corruption. And they were doing this even before the Revolution of Dignity, when it was hard to even imagine such a thing.
Some of our lecturers have actually undergone this training themselves, and are now sharing their experience with others. And this creates a sense of community that you can belong to, that this isn’t just learning from one lesson to the next. It’s a living process where you can already put your skills to the test in practice or on an internship under the guidance of such experienced and expert people. I’m glad that we’ve chosen this fight together and will be moving our country towards a better future.