Only six parties and blocs got to the new Ukrainian parliament

The day before yesterday, ex-Ukrainian Prime Minister and leader of Our Ukraine bloc, Viktor Yuschenko was stung by bees, this was why yesterday, he appeared before journalists with swollen face, as if after having cried at night. He looked very tired, however his bloc was leading. According to him, he did not expect that the election would be so dirty, that the power would use such rough methods. During the pre-election race, in almost a half of Ukrainian regions, he was refused from possibility to appear in local TV channels. In many cities, clubs and palaces of culture were closed just before his arrival there as if from technical reasons. Though, the biggest “gift” was presented to him by east-Ukrainian regions, when in ballot-papers, just opposite Our Ukraine bloc, a stamp stood “dropped out.” There are also many examples, when suddenly electricity was cut off during calculation of votes, while afterwards it turned out that there were more ballets, than the number of registered voters. It looks like somebody threw at that time some more ballets supporting pro-presidential For United Ukraine bloc. At this election, one more loophole could be used to promote a necessary candidate. For example, the day before yesterday, in Kiev election district number 218, such phenomenon could be observed. Since morning, buses with people drove up to the election districts. The people who sit in the buses arrived from some Ukrainian settlements and had ballets they took from their settlements about them. Therefore, they had right to vote for a candidate in any district they liked. While they, and there were 5,000 of them, preferred to vote namely in the 218th district. All of them voted for the same candidacy – Sofia Zhukhovitskaya. She was one of the representative of Victory church. To secure her victory, her faithful parishioners came to Kiev. First, this could ruin the whole election process in the district. Already at noon, it turned out that there were no ballets in the districts at all. Therefore, the voters who came to the district could not vote. And besides, who could have supposed, that the believers would carry out such pilgrimage. Apropos, that was not the only example of “know-how” like that in the election. Similar things took place in two more election districts. However, with a smaller number of won votes. There is information, that all candidates of the 218th election district addressed to the Central Election Committee and to the court, asking to expel pani Sofia from the election race. Though such things cannot be done so fast. In other words, not only the election’s results, but the election itself is now under question in 218th district. In the meanwhile, the Communist Party’s leader Petr Simonenko said yesterday, that Communist Party of Ukraine intended to raise the question of impeachment of President Kuchma. The main communist for the first time said that to achieve its aim, the faction was ready to enter one bloc with Our Ukraine of Viktor Yuschenko and Yulia Timoshenko’s bloc, not saying about the socialists. In other words, communists neglect ideological discords for the sake of the aim. While this aim is, according to them, turning Ukraine into parliamentarian republic. As if the last stimulus for this was the fact that the power fully used so-called administration resource. As a result, communists managed to present their candidates only in four election districts of 225, the Socialist Party only in one district, Our Ukraine bloc – in 33 district, while For United Ukraine bloc occupied almost 70 parliamentary places. The rest places belong to so-called independent candidates, while most of them are For United Ukraine people. According to some information, Ukrainian bankers were satisfied with the election’s results most of all. There are many of them, who passed to the parliament in Viktor Yuschenko’s bloc and in majority districts. According to the chairman of the Central Election Committee, Mikhail Ryabets, only six parties and blocs will pass to the parliament. While the rest of parties hardly have such a chance.

Alexandr Gorobets PRAVDA.Ru Kiev Ukraine

Translated by Vera Solovieva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/04/01/39100.html