Ihor Volodymyrovych Huz is a Ukrainian politician who serves as a People's Deputy in Ukraine's 19th electoral district in the Volyn Oblast. He has held this position since 2014. He is part of the For the Future group in the Verkhovna Rada, which is Ukraine's parliament. In the early 2000s, Huz was a leader of the Ukraine without Kuchma protests.
Biography
Ihor Huz was born on January 11, 1982, in Lutsk, Volyn Oblast. His mother's family is from Svirzhe village in the Kholmshchyna region, and his father's family is from Smidyn village in the Stara Vyzhivka district, Volyn region. Huz attended secondary school number 19 in Lutsk. He later graduated from Lesya Ukrainka Volyn State University, where he studied the science of politics and became a teacher of politics.
Participation in the campaign “Ukraine without Kuchma”
In 2001, Huz helped lead the Volyn Branch of the Committee for Truth. On March 9, 2001, he joined the campaign "Ukraine without Kuchma" after the death of Georgiy Gongadze. He took part in an effort to break through a police line set up to protect Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma on the campus of T. Shevchenko University of Kyiv. Because of his actions, he and other students were beaten and arrested by Berkut officers. He spent several days in a pretrial detention center. By the end of the campaign, Huz was questioned 10 times by the Security Service of Ukraine, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, and the Prosecutor General's Office.
On March 15, 2018, at the Verkhovna Rada, along with his supporters, he asked the Parliament to pass a resolution to restore the rights of 17 activists who had been sentenced under orders from President Kuchma.
Chornobyl Way rally and arrest in Belarus
On March 26, 2005, he joined other members of the National Alliance, who supported the Belarusian opposition in opposing the government of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Along with hundreds of other activists, he participated in a protest. At that time, the protesters asked for the president to resign and for imprisoned people to be freed.
The protest was violently stopped by Belarusian OMON. Ihor and his fellow protesters were arrested and sent to a pretrial detention center in Minsk. In protest, they began a hunger strike. After 10 days, they were released. Because of their involvement in protest activities, all members of the National Alliance were forced to leave Belarus for 5 years.
More than 10 years later, People's Deputy Ihor Huz was not allowed to enter Belarus when he tried to attend the Chornobyl Way rally.
Work in local self-government bodies
In March 2002, Huz was elected as a representative to the Lutsk City Council for electoral district 44. He was a member of the committee responsible for youth, education, and science matters.
In March 2006, he was elected as a representative to the Volyn Regional Council through the political group "Our Ukraine." He served as the chair of the parliamentary committee on youth policy, sports, and tourism.
From 2007 to 2011, he worked regularly as an advisor to the mayor of Lutsk and served as the director of the Department of Family and Youth Affairs in the Lutsk City Council.
In October 2010, he was elected as a representative to the Volyn Regional Council for single-member electoral district 27 (Stara Vyzhivka district). He was a member of the Committee on Budget, Finance, and Pricing.
On February 20, 2014, he was elected Deputy Chairman of the Volyn Regional Council.
Activities during the Euromaidan
Huz was a coordinator for the Lutsk Euromaidan protests. Because of his involvement in protest activities, government officials started a criminal case against Ihor Huz. He was accused of breaking laws described in Articles 296 Part 2, 295, and 341 of Ukraine’s Criminal Code. The charges included displaying portraits of Yanukovych inside the Volyn Regional Council building, encouraging actions that could harm public safety, and taking control of government buildings.
On December 25, 2013, the Lutsk City District Court ordered Ihor Huz to stay at home for 60 days. A special device was used to monitor his movements during this time. On December 30, 2013, the Volyn Region Court of Appeal decided to reduce the restrictions placed on him.
Participation in parliamentary elections
In the 2012 parliamentary elections, Huz was a candidate for the Batkivshchyna Party in electoral district No. 21, which included Kovel and nearby areas such as Ratne, Stara Vyzhivka, and Shatsk. He received over 36.39% of the votes, losing less than 1% of the vote to Stepan Ivakhiv.
In the 2014 parliamentary elections, Huz ran as a candidate for the People's Front in electoral district No. 19, covering Novovolynsk, Volodymyr-Volynskyi, and nearby districts such as Ivanychi, Liuboml, and Volodymyr-Volynskyi. He won a large majority, receiving 30.69% (27,243 votes).
In 2019, Huz ran as an independent candidate in special elections for the Verkhovna Rada (the Ukrainian parliament) in electoral district No. 19. According to the district election commission, he won 217 out of 222 polling stations (97.7%) and received 59.69% of the votes, with 41,106 voters supporting him. In parliament, he joined the For the Future faction.
Foreign political activity
A person who took part in the Chornobyl Way – 2005 rally in Minsk was given a 10-day administrative arrest sentence. They were deported from Belarus and banned from entering the country for 5 years. Amnesty International identified them as a prisoner of conscience.
On May 25, 2016, a People's Deputy was prevented from entering the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic to meet with the Ukrainian expat community.
Media reports stated that the individual gave medical equipment to voters in exchange for support. Their charity organization, "Pribuzhzhya," sponsored a concert held on the Day of the city of Luboml in the Volyn region.
In 2017, the No.19 electoral district in Volyn, represented by People's Front MP Ihor Huz, received about 26 million hryvnias in public funds, according to journalists from the "Chesno" movement. An investigation by the same group found that one of the individuals who won contracts for services in the No.19 district had a relative who worked for People's Deputy Igor Guz.
Work in the Verkhovna Rada
While working in the Verkhovna Rada during the 8th term, Huz attended 96% of the meetings. He followed his principles and did not secretly influence votes during voting sessions. Based on his legislative work, he ranked first among reform-focused members of VoxUkraine and was one of the most effective majoritarian members of parliament, as reported by the civil network OPORA.
He served as Deputy Chairman of the Committee on State Building, Local Governance, Regional, and Urban Development in the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine during the 9th term, starting on August 29, 2019.
Public activities
He was a member of the Youth Nationalist Congress, served as chairman of the Volyn organization from 2001 to 2005, and was deputy chairman of the All-Ukrainian organization from 2002 to 2005. From 2005 to 2013, he led the All-Ukrainian Youth NGO «National Alliance.»
On April 22, 2015, he created the Ihor Huz Foundation «Prybuzhia,» which works in the areas of Ivanychi, Volodymyr-Volynskyi, and Lyuboml districts, as well as in the cities of Novovolynsk and Volodymyr-Volynskyi. The foundation has participated in various activities in Prybuzhia and supports groups such as ATO participants, NGOs for children with special needs, housing cooperatives, and creative youth.
On April 11, 2016, at the suggestion of MP Ihor Huz, the Local Self-Government Association of Prybuzhia began its work. The main goal of the Association is to help local governments carry out the decentralization reform and increase international partnerships between Ukrainian local governments and foreign communities. At the same time, a memorandum of intent was signed between the Association of Local Self-Government «Prybuzhia» and the Union of Municipalities of Lubelskie Region.
Interests
Ihor Huz enjoys running and swimming long distances. On August 22, 2012, as part of the campaign «Save the Svitiaz,» which aimed to raise public awareness about the issue of building a Hotyslav quarry from Belarus, Ihor Huz swam across Svitiaz, the largest lake in the Shatsk region.
On August 20, 2016, Ihor Huz swam along the Svitiaz river with his friend Valerii Makaruk. This swim honored the 25th anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence.
To encourage a healthy lifestyle, on August 26, 2017, the first sprint cross-triathlon competitions in the Volyn region were held in the village of Smidyn, Stara Vyzhivka Raion. These events included 81 athletes from across Ukraine.
In November 2019, Huz walked 100 kilometers in just over one day without eating or sleeping as part of the #pohod100 campaign.
Initiatives
In 2007, he started the All-Ukrainian Bandershtat Festival for the first time. Today, the event is a major cultural event in Volyn. It is a family-friendly festival that does not serve alcohol and includes music that is both thoughtful and enjoyable. The festival has a welcoming atmosphere and is the only three-day music festival in Ukraine that has taken place 13 times by 2019.
Each year, the number of people attending the festival grows. In 2019 alone, 2,213 soldiers attended the festival for free. About 600 children younger than 12 years old, who were accompanied by adults, also attended. The festival has drawn visitors from seven countries, including the United States, United Arab Emirates, Israel, France, Poland, and Belarus. The event has even been discussed in Russian media. As the leader of the organizing group, Ihor believes the main goal of the festival is to share information about Bandera, the UPA, and Ukrainian nationalism through modern activities.
In 2017, he began a two-day historical and cultural festival called Kniazhyi on the land of the village of Zarichia, Zviahel Raion. The event aims to help the region attract more tourists, promote high-quality music, and share stories about the past, including the lifestyle, traditions, and crafts of the princely era. The festival does not serve alcohol and encourages a healthy lifestyle. In 2017 and 2018, about 9,000 people attended the event. In 2019, a record 10,500 people visited.
In 2017, the Polissia Challenge Cup 2017—a cross triathlon competition—was started in Volyn Polissya for the first time. This event was organized by Huz. A total of 81 participants from across Ukraine and their coaches traveled to Volyn to take part. Athletes, business leaders, government workers, and others who enjoy an active lifestyle competed in the event, which took place along a route that passed through three villages in Volyn: Somyn, Lukiv, and Smidyn.
In 2019, the Ukrainian Cross-Triathlon Championship was held for the third time. Almost 120 athletes from different parts of Ukraine and other countries attended the event.
Honours
Received the Cabinet of Ministers Prize for outstanding accomplishments by young people in helping Ukraine's progress (2005).