Separate and rule

On March 28, in the next appeal to the people, Viktor Yanukovych called for a referendum in each region of Ukraine

Viktor Yanukovych after the so-called “press conference” in Rostov-on-Don March 11, 2014

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine quickly responded and opened a criminal case against the detached president under Article 109 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: “Calls to overthrow the constitutional system”. The article provides for the conclusion of up to five years in prison.

“As a president who with you with thoughts and soul, I urge every sane citizen of Ukraine: do not let the impostors use you! Require a referendum on determining the status of each region in Ukraine, ”Yanukovych said.

Instead of early presidential elections, Yanukovych proposed to conduct an all -Ukrainian referendum in order to “stabilize the political situation and preserve the sovereignty and integrity of Ukraine”. In addition, he asked the “Party of Regions” to remove the status of an honorary chairman from him and exclude from his composition.

“Yanukovych is not a factor in Ukrainian policy, he is a tool of Russian politics. Through it, Russia is trying to implement its plans to turn Ukraine into a confederation, ”said Vladimir Fesenko, Ukrainian political scientist and head of the Center for Applied Political Research. - The Russian government seeks to crush Ukraine, so Yanukovych made a similar initiative. But this is impossible in the legal field. This is a constitutional issue, at the regional level such issues are not resolved. Moreover, in the legislation of Ukraine there is no law on local referenda yet. ”

According to Fesenko, today Yanukovych does not play any role in Ukrainian politics. “Why did he ask him to exclude him from the party? Probably, rumors reached him that at the upcoming Congress of the “Party of Regions” they were going to exclude him from there. What weight can a politician have if even his own party refuses him? ”, The political scientist notes.

The Deputy General Director of the Center for Political Technologies, Alexei Makarkin, believes that the new statement of Viktor Yanukovych is a signal to those activists who advocate association with Russia.

“The fact that Yanukovych is leaving the Party of Regions is a confirmation that he was not able to attract the Ukrainian elite to his side,” says Makarkin. “The elites want to expand their powers, to be represented in the Ukrainian government, they need guarantees that they will retain their assets regardless of who will win the presidential election.”

“Since Russia does not recognize the current Kyiv authorities, she needs Yanukovych as a certain symbol,” continues Makarkin. - Russia would like to have an influence in Ukraine, for this it uses this figure. So games with Yanukovych will continue further, ”he added.

Photo: Sergey Pivovarov, RIA News