Ukrainians defy ban to push for early polls
2 Dec 2013 6:31 AM IST
The ex-Soviet nation of 46 million was thrown into its deepest crisis since the 2004 pro-democracy Orange Revolution when Yanukovych snubbed EU leaders at a Vilnius summit Friday and opted to keep Ukraine aligned with its former master Russia.
The government’s decision - first announced a week before the EU meeting - sparked mass demonstrations that turned violent in the early hours of Saturday when hundreds of rubber baton-wielding police drove about 1,000 protesters off Kiev’s focal Independence Square.
A few hundred of them spent the night at the nearby Mikhailovsky Monastery burning wood in metal barrels to ward off the freezing temperature and receiving food from the monastery’s monks. They vowed to form a ‘national resistance task force’ and called for early elections as well as a countrywide strike, including daily rallies aimed at blocking the entrance to the Ukrainian government seat in the capital. On Sunday, thousands rallied again - many chanting ‘Shame!’ and ‘Revolution!’ while waving gold and blue EU flags - gathering at Kiev’s central park before marching toward the city’s iconic Independence Square. They were defying a ban suddenly imposed by Kiev’s main administrative court on all protests on the square and its surrounding streets until 7 January.
Reporters saw dozens of police officers give way as the crowd overwhelmed the area and knocked down metal barriers surrounding a huge Christmas tree that authorities had put up in the square Saturday.
Police chief Steps down
Saturday’s police crackdown sparked a new round of Western condemnation of the Ukrainian government but was met with notable silence by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin.
US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki called on Kiev authorities to respect Ukrainians’ right to free expression and assembly, which are ‘fundamental to a healthy democracy,’ State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle also issued a strongly-worded statement saying: ‘I vigorously call on the Ukrainian government to ensure freedom of assembly and to protect the peaceful demonstrators from any kind of intimidation and violence.’
The government’s decision - first announced a week before the EU meeting - sparked mass demonstrations that turned violent in the early hours of Saturday when hundreds of rubber baton-wielding police drove about 1,000 protesters off Kiev’s focal Independence Square.
A few hundred of them spent the night at the nearby Mikhailovsky Monastery burning wood in metal barrels to ward off the freezing temperature and receiving food from the monastery’s monks. They vowed to form a ‘national resistance task force’ and called for early elections as well as a countrywide strike, including daily rallies aimed at blocking the entrance to the Ukrainian government seat in the capital. On Sunday, thousands rallied again - many chanting ‘Shame!’ and ‘Revolution!’ while waving gold and blue EU flags - gathering at Kiev’s central park before marching toward the city’s iconic Independence Square. They were defying a ban suddenly imposed by Kiev’s main administrative court on all protests on the square and its surrounding streets until 7 January.
Reporters saw dozens of police officers give way as the crowd overwhelmed the area and knocked down metal barriers surrounding a huge Christmas tree that authorities had put up in the square Saturday.
Police chief Steps down
Saturday’s police crackdown sparked a new round of Western condemnation of the Ukrainian government but was met with notable silence by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s Kremlin.
US State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki called on Kiev authorities to respect Ukrainians’ right to free expression and assembly, which are ‘fundamental to a healthy democracy,’ State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said. German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle also issued a strongly-worded statement saying: ‘I vigorously call on the Ukrainian government to ensure freedom of assembly and to protect the peaceful demonstrators from any kind of intimidation and violence.’
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