May 28 is celebrated in Ukraine as the Day of the Community Police Officer and the All-Ukrainian Day of Local History, and in the world – the World Day to Fight Hunger and the International Day of Action for Women’s Health. Also, this day left a lot of significant events in world and Ukrainian history, which include both scientific achievements and important political decisions.
Community Police Officer Day
This is a new holiday for society, which symbolizes a change in the approach to the work of law enforcement agencies. This is a day dedicated not only to the formal recognition of the work of police officers, but also to the understanding of the new role that they should play in the life of communities – open, trusting, partner.
One of the key transformations of the National Police reform in Ukraine, which began after 2015, was the implementation of the “Community Police Officer” project. He did not have the goal of raising a new type of policeman, who is known by name to all residents of the village or city, to whom they turn not with fear, but with trust.
A community police officer is not only on duty in a district department, he works directly within the boundaries of one united territorial community, has a workplace and housing within the boundaries of this community, is familiar with its residents, understands local problems, and most importantly, is the first person they turn to in a difficult situation. This is a person who combines the functions of a law enforcement officer, a mediator, an educator, and a crisis manager. And this approach is the embodiment of the community policing model — the police, which serve together with the community, and not against it.
In the conditions of a full-scale war, the role of such officers increased even more. They became not only guarantors of order, but also important coordinators between the authorities and residents, helped with evacuation, distribution of humanitarian aid, explained the rules of martial law. Their contribution to the stability of Ukrainian communities is difficult to overestimate.
This day is also an opportunity to remember and thank those who died in the line of duty.
Interesting facts
The idea of a community police officer comes from the community policing model, which was actively implemented in the USA, Canada and the UK.
In Ukraine, the first community police officers appeared in 2019 as part of a pilot project launched in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
In 2024, more than 1,200 such officers were working in Ukraine in 500+ communities, and the project was recognized as one of the most successful in police reform.
Each officer of the community undergoes special training, in particular on issues of mediation, work with children, victims of violence, and crisis situations.
Community police officers have separate patrol cars that are assigned to their community rather than the district department, which allows for a faster response.
Often it is the community officer who acts as the main figure in school programs of safety and preventive work with adolescents.
During wartime, community officers in border and de-occupied regions serve as operational liaisons, assist in evacuation coordination and security monitoring.
All-Ukrainian Day of Local Studies
This date symbolizes respect for the native land, deep interest in the history, traditions, life and culture of Ukraine at the local level. On this day, the activity of local historians – researchers who do not let us forget that history is made not only in capitals, but also in the smallest villages, hamlets, towns and regions, is honored.
Local history is not just archival work or museum work, but a living science that includes field research, communication with witnesses of events, preservation of ancient songs, tales, photos, dialects, as well as recording changes in the natural environment, architecture, monuments and in the cultural code of the community. Local historians work not only with the past – they create the foundation for the identity of the future, collecting and passing on to generations knowledge about who we are, where we came from and what we preserve as a legacy.
May 28 became a landmark for Ukrainian local history because it was on this day in 1925 that the First All-Ukrainian Congress of Local History was held in Kharkiv. The event brought together teachers, scientists, ethnographers, writers, librarians, who set themselves the goal of creating a powerful scientific and social movement for the study and preservation of regional heritage. It was from this moment that local history gained national importance, united different environments – from a history teacher to a museum director, from an archaeologist to a folklorist.
In modern Ukraine, local history has acquired a new sound. After the Revolution of Dignity, after the start of the war, after large-scale changes in society’s consciousness, interest in one’s roots increased significantly. Communities open their museums, conduct local research, local history readings, record oral history, and create local archives. The role of local historians became especially important during the war — they document losses, the destruction of monuments, collect eyewitness accounts, and preserve invaluable evidence of the cultural heritage that the aggressor is trying to erase.
Interesting facts
The oldest local history museums of Ukraine were created in the 19th century — one of the first was founded in Poltava in 1891.
Local history in Ukraine covers more than 15 areas: historical, ethnographic, natural, artistic, literary, archaeological, religious, etc.
During the years of Soviet repression, dozens of Ukrainian local historians were arrested or destroyed – as “nationalists”, “bourgeois historians”, “township propagandists”.
After 2014, a new direction appeared – military local history, which records the course of the war, changes on maps, renaming of toponyms, destruction of cultural heritage objects.
World Hunger Day
This day was founded in 2011 by the British charity The Hunger Project as a global call to action against chronic hunger, poverty and social injustice. This is not just a day of compassion for those who are hungry – it is a day designed to remind the systemic nature of this problem, its structural causes and the importance of sustainable solutions that change not the symptoms, but the very essence of inequality.
Hunger in the 21st century is not the result of a lack of food — humanity produces enough resources to feed everyone. The problem is distribution, poverty, conflict, climate disasters, bad governance, corruption and broken aid mechanisms. World Hunger Day aims to change mindsets: not just to give, but to build community resilience and capacity—through education, access to land, water, credit, health care, and the development of women’s leadership and participation.
Today, more than 735 million people in the world live in chronic hunger. This is not hunger in the sense of “didn’t eat during the day”, but systematic malnutrition, which leads to exhaustion, illness, the inability to study, work, and give birth to healthy children. This is hunger that kills slowly. And the worst thing is that it often affects children. According to UNICEF, thousands of children around the world die every day from causes related to malnutrition.
This day calls on governments, international organizations, business, civil society and each of us to participate in creating solutions: from investments in smallholder farming to awareness campaigns, from humanitarian aid to the transformation of food systems. In a world where billions of dollars are spent on armed conflicts, the fact of mass starvation is the political and ethical verdict of our time.
This day is also important for Ukraine. We remember the Holodomor, the genocide of the Ukrainian people organized by the Stalinist regime in 1932-1933. But today we are also talking about modern challenges: destroyed agriculture in the occupied territories, food crisis in aid-dependent regions, rising prices, blockade of ports. Ukraine, which is the breadbasket of Europe, today itself needs support in the field of food security. At the same time, Ukrainian grain saves entire countries in Africa, and farmers work under fire to provide the country and the world with bread.
Interesting facts
World Hunger Day emphasizes solving the problem of hunger not through constant humanitarian aid, but through development: education, gender equality, microfinancing, agricultural cooperatives.
Every year, this day is supported by prominent figures, including Nobel Peace Prize laureates, leading musicians, artists and philanthropists.
As of 2025, countries in the Horn of Africa, Afghanistan, Yemen, South Sudan, Haiti and parts of the Sahel will suffer the most from chronic hunger.
The Global Hunger Index not only captures malnutrition, but also assesses the level of child wasting, mortality and stunting.
Since 2022, Ukraine has been actively cooperating with the UN and African countries within the framework of the “Grain from Ukraine” initiative — food supplies to countries where people are starving.
According to the WFP (World Food Program), about 45 million people in the world are on the verge of starvation already today.
Every dollar invested in fighting hunger through development returns an average of sixfold to the economy—through health, education, and increased productivity.
International Day of Action for Women’s Health
It is a day of active public voice, demanding governments, medical systems, international organizations and societies to ensure women a full range of rights related to health, bodily autonomy, safety and dignity. This day became a symbol of the feminist struggle for a woman’s right to decide about her body, to give birth when she is ready, to live without violence, to receive quality and affordable medical care.
The Day of Action for Women’s Health was launched in 1987 by the Women’s Global Network for Reproductive Rights. From the beginning, it aimed to break the silence around topics that remained taboo: reproductive rights, safe abortion, violence in health care facilities, sexuality education, the right to contraception, HIV treatment, transgender women’s health, disability, access to care in rural areas. Over time, the topic expanded, but the essence remained: a woman’s body is not a field for political control or moralization, but her own space of decisions and care.
Today, this day is used by activists and human rights defenders in dozens of countries to draw attention to crises in women’s health. In the countries of the Global South, it is a lack of obstetric care, high mortality of women in childbirth, forced sterilization, prohibition of abortion even in cases of rape. In the countries of Europe and the USA, this is a problem of underfunding of women’s medicine, stigmatization of mental health, forced gynecology, danger during childbirth, contempt for women’s pain.
In Ukraine, this day is also getting louder and louder. After the start of the full-scale invasion, the problem of women’s health took on new dimensions: destroyed medical infrastructure, lack of access to a gynecologist in the occupied and front-line territories, lack of contraception, increased vulnerability to sexual violence, difficulties in obtaining help during pregnancy. Women who were forced to leave their homes, lost their jobs, and found themselves in a new environment without support are especially vulnerable. This day becomes an opportunity to talk about postpartum depression, the effects of stress on reproductive health, the impossibility of access to emergency contraception, and the stigma surrounding abortion.
Interesting facts
The slogan of the day is “My body is my right” and emphasizes a woman’s right to make independent decisions about her health and reproduction.
In many countries, mass actions for the legalization or decriminalization of abortion are held on May 28, in particular in Argentina, Poland, Nigeria, and the Philippines.
According to the WHO, more than 295,000 women worldwide die from complications of pregnancy and childbirth each year, and 94% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries.
Most of the world’s health care systems are still built with the “average man” in mind, resulting in insufficient consideration of women’s symptoms and experiences.
As part of this day, the concept of sexual and reproductive health is actively promoted as part of human rights enshrined in international law.
Historical events on this day
1742 – The world’s first indoor swimming pool opened in the capital of Great Britain. This became a real revolution in the everyday life and health of citizens, because for the first time in the world, sports, hygiene and recreation were combined in one space, accessible regardless of weather conditions. This innovation marked the beginning of the modern culture of indoor fitness and sports.
1812 – After a long war between the Russian and Ottoman Empires, the Bucharest Peace was concluded. Under its terms, the Ottoman Empire ceded part of its territories to Russia, including Bessarabia. This agreement changed the political map of Eastern Europe, significantly affecting the fate of the Ukrainian lands, which were at the center of the geopolitical interests of the two empires.
1830 – The President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, signed the so-called “Indian Act” – a document that legalized the forced relocation of Indian tribes from their lands west of the Mississippi. This act began a tragic chapter in US history known as the Trail of Tears, where thousands of Native Americans died during deportations.
1918 – Immediately two Caucasian nations, Armenia and Azerbaijan, declared state independence after the collapse of the Russian Empire. It was a turning point in the region, where a new era of national self-determination began, but also a new round of conflicts that continue to this day. The Armenian Democratic Republic and the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic became the first modern states of these peoples.
1923 – The US Attorney General made an unexpected and progressive statement at the time: women have the right to wear pants whenever and wherever they want. In those years, it looked like a real challenge to social norms. The statement became an important milestone in the struggle for gender equality and a symbol of women’s emancipation.
1925 – The 1st All-Ukrainian Conference on Local History opened in Kharkiv, at which the Ukrainian Committee of Local History was established. This was the official start of a broad local history movement in Ukraine. The conference united teachers, historians, ethnographers and cultural figures in the common cause of preservation and study of the native land.
1959 – The USA conducted a historic scientific experiment: launching two monkeys, Able and Baker, into space on an AM-18 rocket. It was the first successful launch to return a living creature, paving the way for future manned flights. Monkeys became the first “space travelers” to return safely to Earth.
1965 – The Council of Ministers of the USSR passed a decision on the establishment of Donetsk State University on the basis of a branch of Kharkiv University. This step became important for the development of higher education in Donbas, giving rise to one of the key educational centers of the region. DonSU will later become the center of the scientific life of eastern Ukraine.
1985 – Dynamo Kyiv set a football record by scoring their 2,000th goal in the USSR championships. The event proved the stability and high level of play of the team, which at that time was among the strongest in the Soviet Union and Europe. For many fans, it was a day of pride and glory for the Kyiv club.
1997 – An important event in Ukrainian-Russian relations took place in Kyiv: the prime ministers of both states signed a package of documents on the basing and distribution of the Black Sea Fleet. This step, albeit temporarily, stabilized the situation in Crimea and became a kind of “balance point” after the collapse of the USSR. At the same time, the agreements laid the groundwork for further disputes that will erupt in 2014.
Completion of the history of the Paris Commune
On May 28, 1871, the history of the Paris Commune ended – the first example of the dictatorship of the proletariat in history, which lasted only 72 days, but left a deep mark on world political thought. The Paris Commune was founded on March 18, 1871, after the defeat of France in the Franco-Prussian War and the capitulation of the government. The situation of instability and deep social stratification in Paris led to the fact that the main support of the new regime was the Parisian workers. The leadership included socialists, anarchists, and neo-Jacobins based on the ideas of self-government, people’s power, social justice, and the fight against exploitation.
The commune made a number of radical decisions. Already the first decree abolished the standing army, which was based on forced conscription. In its place, the National Guard was formed from armed workers and representatives of democratic circles. The police as a separate entity was disbanded, and security functions were transferred to the reserve battalions of the Guard. All officials, including the members of the Commune themselves, were subject to elections, were accountable to the people and could be recalled at any time.
Salaries for officials were limited to a level that did not exceed the salary of a skilled worker. The Commune also announced the separation of church and state, introduced free and compulsory primary education, canceled rent for nine months, and transferred private theaters to the management of collectives of actors and stage workers.
However, this social revolution within one city was doomed. Paris was surrounded by a regular army controlled by the government, and the assault soon began. The week of battles – from May 21 to 28 – went down in history under the name “Bloody Week”. About 25,000 Communards died in clashes on every street, and about 40,000 more were arrested, deported or sent to hard labor.
The last battle was fought in the Père Lachaise cemetery, where on May 28, 1871, 147 captured Communards were shot near the wall now known as the Communard Wall. This wall remained intact and turned into a place of memory, a symbol of heroism and tragedy of the revolutionary struggle.
It is interesting that the last living member of the Commune, Andrien Lejeune, died in January 1942 in Novosibirsk. In 1930, he received political asylum in the Soviet Union. In May 1971, on the occasion of the centenary of the Paris Commune, at the initiative of the French Communist Party, his ashes were transported to Paris and reburied near the same wall at Père Lachaise. Thus ended the life path of the last of the Communards, a symbol of revolutionary memory that united eras and continents.
Signing of the agreement on the distribution of the Black Sea Fleet
On May 28, 1997, the presidents of Ukraine and Russia signed agreements on the distribution of the Black Sea Fleet of the former USSR. This process was long and accompanied by political disputes. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, in September 1991, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a resolution on the subordination of the entire Black Sea Fleet to Ukraine. However, two days later a decree of the President of the Russian Federation appeared with the opposite content. Thus, the actual confrontation lasted more than five years and ended only on May 28, 1997.
According to the agreements reached, Russia received 80% of the ship’s fleet — almost 400 combat units of various classes and purposes, as well as 161 units of aviation equipment. The Russian fleet acquired the status of a “foreign military formation” and received permission to temporarily use three bases – in Sevastopol, Feodosia and (temporarily) in Mykolaiv. Aviation units of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation were stationed at two airfields in Crimea. The total number of personnel of the Russian naval forces on the territory of Ukraine should not exceed 25 thousand people.
On the same day, the parties also signed an agreement on financial settlements related to the distribution of the fleet and the stay of the Black Sea Fleet of the Russian Federation on the territory of Ukraine. Russia pledged to pay $98 million annually for the lease of military infrastructure in Crimea. The term of the agreement was limited to twenty years – until May 28, 2017.
As a result of the agreements, the Naval Forces of Ukraine received 43 warships, 132 vessels and boats, 12 aircraft, 30 helicopters, 227 coastal infrastructure facilities, as well as significant stocks of equipment, weapons, ammunition and other property.
After the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Russia partially transferred only seven ships to the Ukrainian side: the Kirovohrad amphibious assault ship, the Vinnytsia corvette, the Zolotonosha floating base, the Kherson artillery boat, the Kovel tugboat, the Horlivka tanker, and the Novoozerne tugboat. The rest of the Ukrainian ships remained in Crimea.
