Posted on 08/02/2014 10:26:50 AM PDT by McGruff
Ukraine’s president, Petro Poroshenko, has blasted the country’s parliament as a “fifth column which cannot recognize the Lugansk and Donetsk People’s Republics as terrorist groups.” The country is in need of snap parliamentary elections, he added.
Kiev scraps government, initiates early parliamentary election
“I don’t know how to work with the parliament where half of the Verkhovna Rada [parliament] does not vote to recognize the Lugansk People’s Republic and Donetsk People’s Republic as terrorist organizations,” said Poroshenko, Ukraine’s local media reported.
“I don’t know how to work with the parliament where the majority of people represent a ‘fifth column’ which is controlled from abroad, whole factions. And the danger of this is only rising,” he added.
Poroshenko’s reference to a “fifth column” is a strong term in the current situation, as it originates from the Spanish Civil War, where Franco’s fascists literally sent a “fifth column” of spies and provocateurs to try to capture Madrid from inside the city. Nowadays, the term has come to be used more widely, to refer to any group of people who undermine a larger group —such as a nation or a besieged city — from within.
On July 22, the Ukrainian parliament voted to recognize the crash of Malaysia Airlines MH17 plane near the eastern city of Donetsk as a terrorist attack, and called on the world to include the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, which controls the area, and the Lugansk People’s Republic, on their list of terrorist organizations. However, such a definition apparently failed to materialize in Ukraine.
On top of the humanitarian crisis in the east, Ukraine has suddenly been plunged into political turmoil. The country is facing snap elections after the ruling coalition was dissolved July 24.
Poroshenko told the media he would work to hold the elections earlier, “whatever the law” and “whatever the circumstances.” One of his main targets is the Communist Party, which was outlawed at the same time as the coalition collapsed.
The Communists had been vocal critics of many of Kiev’s current policies, including the military crackdown on dissenting eastern regions, the failure to investigate mass killings in Odessa and Kiev, and painful austerity measures required for Ukraine to receive Western loans.
“I am proud that during my presidency the Communist faction ceased to exist,” Poroshenko declared Friday night, adding that after the elections the party will be democratically erased from “Ukraine’s political map.”
Experts see the shrinking political field in Kiev as an attempt to purge elites and basically shape a convenient parliament. “When President Viktor Yanukovich was overthrown on February 21, the parliament voted back new powers in terms of going back to the 2004 constitution,” John Laughland from the Institute of Democracy and Cooperation in Paris, told RT. “Now the new president, Poroshenko, discovers that this new constitution doesn’t suit him, he needs to purge the parliament, he needs to stigmatize people who don’t agree with his policies as fifth columnists.”
He kinda sounds like Obama. Wants to be a dictator.
Or Putin.
Maybe he should go golfing.
No. The remaining corrupt old line Putin MPs in the Rada remind me of Democrats in Congress. They serve an external interest.
Putin.
The results of the new elections will tell the story. Which is of course why Yats resigned.
Russia Today reporting is targeted to Americans in order to influence them. They often report outright lies, but even when reporting factual lies they often add little lies and omissions to manipulate you and make you believe something that is not true. This news piece seems to be twisted and tailored into making Poroshenko resemble Obama in his stupid speech yesterday.
There really is no use in reading Russia Today articles if you want information. You are taking the trouble of going to their web-page so they could manipulate you and lie to you.
What parts of this article are you disputing? Be factual and specific, please.
The beauty of the Internet is that it has exposed the lie that you can find “objective journalism” from any source. Everyone has an agenda. Of course RT is a propaganda organ, but so is the NY Times.
By reading many sources readers can decide for themselves what, if any, truth is at the core of the various spins presented. It’s called “critical thinking” and used to be a key part of a real education. Since that’s no longer taught in schools, thanks to the Internet the general public now has the opportunity to engage in a first-rate self-study course in this discipline every time they visit a “news” web site.
There has been trouble brewing in the RADA for a while.
They have pretty much refused to vote for the IMF-required austerity measures, And even Yatsenyuk has said they are more interested, as a whole, in buying votes and goodies, than they are in securing the IMF funding.
With the troubles in the west of Ukraine growing in intensity, it’s not going to get any better, IMO.
There are now protests against conscription and austerity involving thousands in Ruthenia amongst the Hungarian minority, as well.
“What parts of this article are you disputing? Be factual and specific, please.”
That should be.... interesting.
I am challenging the use of Russia Today as a source. Reputation of a news source is one of their most prized possession and Russia Today has absolutely destroyed their reputation with their systematic lying.
I believe dismissing them based on their horrible track record is an acceptable behavior.
“I am challenging the use of Russia Today as a source.”
Funny that...
I don’t see you doing the same to postings from Ukrinform, Censor,net, Tymchuk’s Facebook page, Kiev Post, MSNBC, etc.
It seems to be only news sources, including Russian ones, that report non-Kiev approved material.
Now why would that be, do you suppose? You aren’t a hypocrite, are you?
That’s non responsive. Perhaps you have another source that describes what’s happening with the Kiev government.
Why do all these stories about Kiev in disarray come from Russian government media?
I was specifically talking about Russian government disinformation agencies. Don't try to dilute it here. Russian News sources you seem to love so dearly are directly controlled from Kremlin and part of their coordinated disinformation war. After being caught lying so many times they don't deserve more than other notorious liars like The Nation or Counter Punch.
What part of the "new" (2004) Ukrainian Constitution is Poroshenko objecting to. Laughland makes no mention of that.
Perhaps you can explain. Be factual and specific, please.
“Russian News sources you seem to love so dearly”
That’s good, another strawman.
What gives you the impression that I “love” Russian News Sources? Posting them as balance perhaps, against the obviously biased pro-Ukrainian ones? (that I just don’t hear you whining about.)
You are being a hypocrite. Again...
If you are looking for recommendations, then http://www.interpretermag.com/ seems to be pretty good in English language. Also http://windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/ - a blog by Paul Goble (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_A._Goble).
There's gonna be a few dead Parliamentarians in the coming weeks, all "fifth columnists".
“Why do all these stories about Kiev in disarray come from Russian government media?”
You didn’t think Kiev-controlled media is going to report about any discord, do you??
Even the expulsion of the elected Communist Reps in the Rada, and the murder of one of the aides, was covered up, or buried in propaganda.
“There’s gonna be a few dead Parliamentarians in the coming weeks, all “fifth columnists”.”
There is something going on, and it’s big, IMO...
Kiev is out of money, running out of aircraft, and the South Pocket is coming apart, (but the rebels don’t have the strength to eliminate it), and Kiev doesn’t have the strength/supplies to do anything other than bombard the cities, it seems.
The growing unrest in the west is likely becoming a big issue, as well.
The “Big offensive” has been beaten back, and Kiev is resorting to replacing the modern equipment they started the war, with much older stuff that had been sitting in the depots for 30 years, such as T-72’s, and series 1 BMP’s. There have even been a couple of Tweets about digging up the Chernobyl “Equipment Graveyard”, looking for usable Mil-28 parts.
The war is getting more vicious, with reports of several atrocities now, such as Kiev launching an attack under a flag of truce, and torturing/murdering POW’s, and Strelkov’s declaration that some Kiev officers are to be shot on sight, and not taken prisoner, as justification.
It seems that Kiev is running out of steam, and becoming more desperate. The Ballistic Missile launches show that pretty clearly. And Winter is still coming, with not enough gas stored to get through it.
As I have said for a couple of weeks, if Kiev is going to end this, outside of a negotiated settlement, they have to do it soon, or the Social Unrest will result in another Maidan, this time with lots of guns.
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