Andrei Lubenski: The leader of Ukrainian “Yabloko” party under guard

According to Ukrainian Supreme Rada’s decision, one of the leaders of Yabloko party and its co-chairman Mikhail Brodski will receive a personal guard because of the danger to his life. The security service of Ukraine received a piece of information about a planned attempt on Mikhail Brodski’s life. The deputy was informed about it.

The presidium of the party’s political council made the following statement: "the attempt is directly connected with the exposure of the illegal activities of Vladimir Scherban, chairman of the Sumy city administration, and his subordinates, carried out by Mikhail Brodski." According to the statement, “menaces, blackmail, and persecutions of people disagreeable to the Sumy administration are usual things. The citizens threatened with discharge have to support Scherban. Independent businessmen are being detained on trumped-up charges. Activists of parties that are out of Scherban’s control are even being crippled in prison…” Yabloko said that to dismiss Scherban and to call him to account was not only Brodski’s task but the task of the whole party’s team. Therefore, even the physical annihilation of Brodski would not change much. The statement sounds hard to believe. The main Ukrainian liberal, Scherban, seems not to leave it without answer. The accusations are really serious… The Yabloko party hardly could be called an opposition power. However, Mikhail Brodski personally is an open opponent of the Ukrainian president. He supports the idea of the liquidation of the presidential institution and turning Ukraine into a parliament republic. On Sunday, when the information about the attempt became known, presidential TV channel UT-1 showed a topic directed against Brodski: as if he does not keep his promises and does not like the electorate… In other words, the election campaign seems to have started.

Andrei Lubenski PRAVDA.Ru Ukraine