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Protesters To March On Ukrainian Parliament

23 November 2004 -- Ukrainian opposition presidential candidate Viktor Yushchenko today called on supporters gathered in Kyiv's central square to march on parliament to protest official results from the runoff election.

"I ask you to peacefully and in an organized manner...start marching to the Ukrainian parliament. Glory to Ukraine. Glory to each and every one of you," Yushchenko said.

With 99 percent of the vote counted, Yanukovych has a nearly 3 percent lead over Yushchenko despite several exit polls showing Yushchenko had won. The Central Election Commission announced yesterday that Yanukovych is ahead of Yushchenko with nearly all the votes counted.

Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) said the runoff fell far short of European democratic norms. The official observer from the United States, Senator Richard Lugar, said there had been "concerted and forceful" fraud and the European Union called on Ukraine to review the election. However, Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Yanukovych on his victory.

Kyiv's city council rejected the official results along with four other sizable cities -- Lviv, Ternopil, Vinnytsia, and Ivano-Frankivsk. All recognize Yushchenko as president.

Mass Street Protests

The opposition has called an emergency parliamentary session today to demand the annulment of official results already rejected by several municipal governments.

During today's emergency session of the national parliament, Yushchenko's supporters aim to vote no-confidence in the election commission and annul the official results.

Yuliya Tymoshenko, a Yushchenko ally, says that if the parliament doesn't take action to solve the crisis, the opposition has no choice but to block roads, airports, and seize city halls.

Yushchenko has pledged a campaign of mass street protests to overturn the election results. Authorities say any lawlessness will be quickly put down.

Last night, activists spent the night in a tent camp on Khreshchatyk, Kyiv's main street.

Yanukovych has warned he has no intention of working with "individual politicians who call people to the barricades."

(Agencies)

Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org