Population Backlash in Donetsk
"We are here because Mariupol needs a peaceful sky above us. Tanks and guns have no place in our city."
Sergey Kulitsh, mill worker, Mariupol
"They must stop with this banditry so that there can be peace!"
"How much longer can this go on? We had a united country and now look what's happened."
Lina Sidoreko, Slovyansk
In Slovyansk, the local separatist leader, Vyacheslav Ponomarev, stood before 200 residents, who shouted at him that they want an end to the hostilities. Pistol on his belt, a Kalashnikov-toting bodyguard at his side, he shouted back, that he was prepared to pay compensation to repair damaged houses.
Vyacheslav Ponomarev, center, the
self-proclaimed mayor of Slovyansk, speaks to local citizens whose homes
were ruined in a shelling in Slovyansk, eastern Ukraine, Tuesday, May
20, 2014. On Tuesday, the rebels continued to exchange fire with
government forces on the outskirts of the eastern city of Slovyansk,
which has been the epicenter of clashes. Residents of Slovyansk sounded
exasperated and angry with both the warring sides. (AP Photo/Alexander
Zemlianichenko)
In Kyiv, in advance of the May 25 election, temporary lawmakers passed a memorandum guaranteeing Russian as the country's second official language. A proposed government decentralization was another initiative, in response to the demands from the east for greater autonomy.
While in Mariupol, workers at a steel mill owned by Ukraine's richest oligarch listened to him speak.
Rinat Akhmetov called for his workers to attend protests, vowing to challenge the insurgents who last week declared their independence in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions where 6.5-million Ukrainians live. "No one will frighten us, including those calling themselves a Donetsk People's Republic", promised Mr. Akhmetov.
The steelworkers his company organized last week to patrol alongside police in Mariupol had removed barricades, cleaned up the rebel-held areas, emptied the occupied buildings of the rebels and restored a semblance of order in the Black Sea port. A rebel leader in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, threatened to 'nationalize' Mr. Akhmetov's businesses to retaliate over his refusal to pay taxes to separatists.
Labels: Conflict, Secession, Ukraine
posted by Pieface @ Thursday, May 22, 2014
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