Posted on 12/27/2004 12:05:03 AM PST by nickcarraway
In the most peaceful revolution since South Africa ended its apartheid regime by electing Nelson Mandela president in 1994, Ukraine has just elected opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko president of the former Soviet satellite republic. The victory comes for the pro-Western leader after a dirty campaign that saw him poisoned and only after hundreds of thousands of demonstrators filled the streets to protest voter-fraud. "We peacefully, beautifully, elegantly and without any drops of blood changed Ukraine," Mr. Yushchenko told cheering supporters.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
bump for a good victory
There was a contingent on FR that was doing a good job scaring me about Yushchenko's victory, with all the allegations that he's a puppet for Soros and the EU, etc.
I feel -much- better after reading this article.
Qwinn
Bump for a democratic Ukraine.
The contingent has been here for years. They've been capitalizing on our frustrations with Clinton and our revulsion at having our troops commanded by the UN and NATO for years. I'd be amused if I hadn't seen so many decent Americans on FR falling for it.
The contingent is about as patriotic as a Nepalese Maoist.
It's a solemn reminder: think for yourself and always mistrust anyone who criticizes America for anything we've done in the name of peace and freedom. You always have to ask if there's some sinister motivation. Usually there is.
Soros? He's dangerous, but even he worked to bring down the Iron curtain. Tossing around the word "Soros" isn't enough, or it shouldn't be. Tailgunner Joe has been uncovering some evidence that the Soros connection is pretty much a red herring.
Good morning America good friend! THANK YOU!!!!
ping Ukraina
America news
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1504&ncid=1504&e=13&u=/afp/20041227/ts_afp/ukrainevotesceneschedlead_041227042914
Orange celebration as Yushchenko claims 'clean' victory in Ukraine vote
KIEV, (AFP) - Jubilant Ukraine opposition supporters massed once again in Kiev's central Independence Square as their hero Viktor Yushchenko claimed victory in a landmark presidential vote rerun and proclaimed that their country was now both independent and free.
"This is a unique, clean political victory," the 50-year-old Yushchenko said as he addressed the crowd from a stage on the square.
"It is an elegant victory, where the people have demonstrated their might. The people stood up to what may be the most cynical regime in eastern Europe. And today the Ukrainian nation, the Ukrainian people, have won," Yushchenko told the cheering crowd.
"For 14 years we have been independent but not free," he said, adding that today Ukraine was both.
The square, the main rendez-vous point where hundreds of thousands of pro-Yushchenko protesters massed for weeks to proclaim their rejection of a November 21 election officially won by his opponent but riddled with fraud and later thrown out, began filling up soon after polls closed in the repeat election on Sunday.
In his address there in the early hours of Monday, Yushchenko again called on his supporters to remain in the square until he was officially certified as the winner of the election.
Fireworks erupted over some 50,000 people who had massed in the square late Sunday under a huge Christmas tree festooned in blinking lights, and although the size of the crowd fluctuated the sounds of car horns, music and fireworks could be heard in central Kiev through the night.
"I came here to celebrate our victory," said Andrei, who said he had come from the central city of Krivyi Rig to help make the revolution a reality and wanted to be present in the square.
The square itself has come to be known as "maidan" (pronounced MY-Don), a Ukrainian word that literally means "square" but that has become synonymous with the opposition "orange revolution" that has shaken this nation to the core 13 years after its independence from the Soviet Union.
Waving orange opposition flags and Ukraine's blue and yellow standard, the crowd danced and frequently broke out into the "Yu-shchen-ko!" chants that have become as common in Kiev as the orange color of his campaign.
Cars filled with Yushchenko supporters drove around Kiev, with people hanging out the windows, holding up orange flags and screaming "Yu-shchen-ko!" as the vehicles beeped the three honks to the rhythm of the chant.
Three exit polls gave the Western-leaning Yushchenko a commanding lead of 15 to 20 points over his pro-Russian rival, Viktor Yanukovich, whom Russian President Vladimir Putin (news - web sites) backed ahead of the November 21 election.
That projection was born out with early official returns which gave Yushchenko a comfortable 56 percent to 40 percent lead over Yanukovich with more than 60 percent of the country's voting precincts reporting their results.
"Putin hasn't congratulated Yanukovich yet because even Putin understands that you can't stop freedom," Mykola Tomenko, a deputy in Yushchenko's Our Ukraine coalition, told the cheering crowd, in reference to the congratulations the Russian leader sent Yanukovich after an earlier, contested ballot.
"We have to help people in former Soviet republics carry out their revolutions," Tomenko said to approving roars.
Nearly three weeks of demonstrations after the contested November ballot attracted broad support that stunned even the opposition and brought the capital to a virtual halt, as protestors blockaded key government buildings.
Santa Clauses with orange scarves walked around the plaza as the huge speakers mounted around a stage in the center blared songs that have become anthems of the "orange revolution".
Now as Poland has learned, Ukranians will learn that freedom comes with responsibility. Good luck, Ukranian people!
freedom comes at a price here its the freedom of both ukrainians central and western in one state. and freedom for ukrainians in southern and eastern ukraine in another.
LETS REJOICE as those two new countries celebrate their freedoms!
You're too pessimistic. There may be more potential for unity than you realize.
L
It's important to remember, when Yushchenko is called a "Liberal," that liberal has a different meaning in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Empire than it does in the West. "Liberal" in this case is somebody who supports capitalism, which is the exact opposite of what Western liberals want. Kudos to him for this victory; maybe the cost of it will make him change his earlier position on Ukraine's troops staying in Iraq.
Thank you
From America With Love (Ukraine's new first lady
knows what freedom really means) (John Fund)Excerpt:All this adds up to a rare opportunity for Mr. Yushchenko. Since its independence in 1991, Ukraine's 48 million people have seesawed between forming greater ties with the West or lurching back into becoming a vassal state of Russia. One out of six people are ethnically Russian. Still, a clear majority of voters now want the corrupt, pro-Moscow clique surrounding outgoing President Kuchma out of the government. Yulia Timoshenko, a charismatic ally of Mr. Yushchenko, says their time is up. She told reporters: "I think the key word for them in Sunday's exit polls was 'exit.' "
The challenge will be to move Ukraine towards a free-market economy. Mrs. Yushchenko makes clear that her husband makes all of his own political decisions, but she will no doubt be a valuable asset to him. "She is one of the brightest, most dedicated conservatives I have ever known," says Bruce Bartlett, a former official in the Treasury Department under the first President Bush. "Anyone who met Kathy quickly discovered that creating a free, successful Ukraine was her primary mission in life, to the exclusion of almost everything else."
Now the challenge facing Ukraine is to make the leap towards becoming a democratic society truly governed by the rule of law. Mrs. Yushchenko is realistic about the obstacles facing her husband and his team. "[Some] people are making a lot of money off the current system," she told ABC News. "The last thing they want is for the system to change and for the economy to be a free market economy where the general population benefits rather than a small group of people at the top."
Cynics may say that since Ukraine has never been a true democracy, reforming it will be impossible. But those are the same people who never predicted that hundreds of thousands of people would fill the streets of Kiev and other cities and force a new election. Nonetheless it happened. What happens next is now up to Mr. Yushchenko.
Please let me know if you want ON or OFF my Yushchenko vs. Yanukovych/Ukraine election ping list!. . .don't be shy.
All blessings and good things for the Ukraine. What an elegant speech, too.
Good morning to you! We're digging out...five or eight inches of snow. And you're delighting in the wonders of a free election and democracy at work! The Ukraine has traveled a long hard road to get here, so let's hope and pray the fruits of your labors are all you would wish. God speed and Happy New Year! Isn't the internet great!
__________________________________________
. .Ukraine has just elected opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko president of the former Soviet satellite republic.
Thanks for the pingO, MeekO!
Thank you :}}}}}}}}
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