Ihor Yukhnovskyi

Ihor Rafailovych Yukhnovskyi (Iгор Рафаïлович Юхновський; also Yukhnovsky; 1 September 1925 – 26 March 2024) was a Ukrainian physicist and politician, and a member of the Presidium of Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Hero of Ukraine.

Life before politics
Yukhnovskyi was born on 1 September 1925, in Kniahynyne village, Dubno powiat, Wołyń Voivodeship (Poland). In 1944–1945 he participated in World War II on the side of Red Army. In 1951 he became the head of Theoretical Physics Department at Lviv University. In 1969 Yukhnovskyi, at that time Doctor of Physics and Mathematics led the newly organized Department of Statistical Theory of Condensed Matter. In 1980 the department was reorganized into the Lviv division of statistical physics for the Institute for Theoretical Physics, and then in 1990 into the Institute of Condensed Matter Physics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.

Political life
On 30 March 1990, Yukhnovskyi was elected with 59.07% votes (out of 6 candidates) as a member of parliament of Ukrainian SSR from an election district in the city of Lviv. On 15 May 1990, he became the leader of the first ever opposition party in the Ukrainian SSR parliament named "Narodna Rada" (People’s Council).

During the 24 August 1991 parliamentary debate preceding the Declaration of Independence of Ukraine Yukhnovskyi was the MP who first called on parliament to immediately declare Ukraine an independent democratic state.

In the first presidential elections in Ukraine Yukhnovskyi was supported by 554,719 voters (1.74%) and took 5th place out of 6 candidates. In 1992 he was appointed the first vice Prime Minister of Ukraine.

In the 1994 parliamentary elections Yukhnovskyi was elected to the parliament in the same electoral district as in 1990, the city of Lviv, with 60.41% of support. In the 1998 parliamentary elections he was elected as #15 in the People's Movement of Ukraine (Rukh) party list. In the 2002 parliamentary elections he was again elected as #68 now in the Our Ukraine party list.

Yukhnovsky was an author of over 400 scientific papers, five books and a textbook "Osnovy kvantovoyi mekhaniky" (Fundamentals of Quantum Mechanics). As a member of the parliament he actively participated in passing of over 100 bills. He was one of the authors of the Act of Declaration of Independence of Ukraine.

Ihor Yukhnovskyi was the head of All-Ukrainian Union of World War II veterans. He supported the reconciliation of veterans of the Soviet Army and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army.

In 2006, the Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko appointed Ihor Yukhnovskyi director of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory.

Yukhnovskyi died on 26 March 2024, at the age of 98.

Distinctions

 * Order of Liberty (Ukraine, 2016)