Translated material
Maidan-2
The Ukrainian opposition, with the approval of the president, presented an ultimatum to the government
Yesterday, the “orange” opposition represented by the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc (BYuT) and the presidential “Our Ukraine”, having read out a manifesto on overcoming the political crisis , left the Rada. They will not return to parliament until the ruling Anti-Crisis Coalition, which has “usurped power,” fulfills their demands, Ms. Tymoshenko promised.The opposition is calling on President Viktor Yushchenko to veto all laws that the coalition passes in its absence. At the same time, the “orange” reserve the right to “adequate actions” outside the walls of the Rada. “The departure of the opposition does not provide an opportunity to block the work of parliament. 248 deputies remained in the hall, whereas to block the work of the Rada there should be less than 226,” Ukrainian political scientist Vladimir Malinkovich told Vremya Novostei.
The confrontation began in the morning. As soon as dawn broke, supporters of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych surrounded the presidium and parliamentary rostrum, fearing the opposition would disrupt the meetings. Timoshenko's supporters rushed to the electrical panel to turn off the electricity if necessary. A competition broke out to “occupy” the premises of the Rada; even the toilets were blocked, for which the fiery oppositionist Tymoshenko shamed her ideological opponents. “The gang in power in Ukraine will not rule!” - she promised.
On Monday, the opposition signed a 17-point manifesto on joint patriotic actions. According to Ms. Tymoshenko, the authorities are about to sign an agreement on the Common Economic Space, sharing Ukrainian sovereignty with Russia. Parliament and the government, according to her, are surrounded by “Kuchma’s children” who are “unfolding powerful corruption schemes.” The BYuT leader is confident that the ruling coalition is preparing a “coup d’état” by using bribery to “put together a group of 300 votes in order to change the constitution.”
The opposition stated that the political reform, which curtailed presidential powers, gave rise to chaos. The people must put an end to the dispute about the powers of government bodies by determining the form of government in a referendum. The “Orange” demanded that the coalition recognize the president’s right to shape foreign policy, as well as dismiss Interior Minister Vasily Tsushko and Prosecutor General Alexander Medvedko, who allowed the politicization of security forces. “Orange” demands “to remove from consideration all bills aimed at the collapse of the state system,” and also to switch to direct gas agreements with Russia and the Central Asian republics, breaking contracts with intermediaries. Yushchenko approved the draft joint statement of the “orange”, but did not sign it.
Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych called these demands “politicking and populism.” He accused the “orange” of intending to “come to power at any cost, ignoring the laws and the constitution.” At the same time, he promised that the coalition and the government would consider the opposition's manifesto, giving an answer on each point. First Deputy Prime Minister Mykola Azarov called Tymoshenko’s statement on the Common Economic Space “lies” and “horror stories,” since during the seven months of the government’s work, “there was not a single meeting of the high-level group.” Speaker Alexander Moroz promised that the opposition’s “scam” to adopt a new version of the constitution in a referendum would not be implemented, since this would be a violation of the country’s fundamental law. In turn, the prime minister refused to even consider the issue of resigning the security forces. “It’s the donut that gives you the hole, not Sharapov,” the prime minister angrily quoted the hero of the cult film, Sergei Govorukhin.
The deputy head of the “regionals” faction in the Rada, Vasily Kiselyov, believes that at the next meeting of the speaker, the president and the prime minister, the conflict will be resolved. But at the same time, he stated that he had documents proving the opposition’s intention to hold a new revolution in the spring. Yesterday Tymoshenko indeed did not rule out the possibility that the opposition would take people to the streets. Rada deputy Nikolai Katerynchuk confirmed that Our Ukraine and BYuT will assemble a new Maidan at the end of May. Former presidential adviser Yuriy Lutsenko told the media yesterday that he “has documents on the preparation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for possible protests - the purchase of helmets, body armor, gas masks and water cannons.”
“A new Maidan may take place, but it will be a caricature of the old one,” says socialist deputy Ivan Bokiy. “The opposition is deliberately whipping up passions,” Vladimir Malinkovich is sure. -- Tymoshenko is in a hurry to destabilize the situation, playing on Yushchenko's presidential ambitions, since her rating will fall. There is economic growth, the problem with utility tariffs has been mitigated, so there are no social prerequisites for a revolution.” The interlocutor of Vremya Novostey believes that the opposition could bring 100 thousand people to the Maidan and try to provoke unrest. However, most likely, people will “demonstrate and leave”; the Maidan of 2004 will not be repeated, since many are disappointed with the results of the “Orange” revolution.
“The Maidan will take place,” Ukrainian political scientist Viktor Kaspruk told Vremya Novostey. “Events in the Rada precede the opposition’s spring offensive.” At the same time, Mr. Kaspruk believes that the “orange” elite will not receive mass support if it does not give clear guarantees of raising social standards to the general population by concluding a symbolic pact with the people.