Averting police state chaos in Ukraine

Wisdom Quarterly; Will Englund and William Booth (washingtonpost.com, Feb. 21, 2014)

Anti-government protesters guard the perimeter of Independence Square, known as the Maidan, in central Kiev, Ukraine (Brendan Hoffman/Getty Images/WashingtonPost.com)

Interior Ministry members on fire, caused by molotov cocktails hurled by protesters, as they guard corrupt government offices, Feb. 18, 2014 (Reuters.com/Andrew Kravchenko/Pool)

US actress, Klitschko's partner (DM)

KIEV (Battle in Kiev) - Ukraine pulled back from the brink of chaos today when Pres. Viktor Yanukovych signed a deal with opposition leaders [led by Klitschko] to dilute his powers, form a caretaker government, and hold early elections. 

 

But the accord appeared likely to be a hard sell to the [tens of] thousands of demonstrators who vowed that nothing short of his ouster would get them off the streets.

Protesters guard bus holding captured police before letting them go home, as some object to the release, during demonstrations (Sergey Dolzhenko/European Press Photo Agency).

 

Yanukovych sign at pro-gov't rally (KP)

The agreement represents a remarkable, humiliating fall for Yanukovych, whose decision to turn away from [new] closer ties with the European Union and [back] toward Russia sparked protests [from Ukrainian citizens] that began here peacefully in November but turned increasingly violent [in response to police abuses].

Anastasia Vlasova (Kyiv Post)

The atmosphere remained tense late Friday in Independence Square [the Maidan], the epicenter of the protests.

Police bloodlust, Kiev (KP)

When one of the opposition leaders, former boxing champion Vitali Klitschko [who is married to American actress Hayden Panettiere], told the crowds this was the best deal they could get, one of the protesters grabbed the microphone and demanded that Yanukovych resign Saturday morning or face the wrath of the people.

 

“We will go with weapons,” said the protester, who leads one of the more militant groups in the square. “I swear it.”

 

Opposition leader

The pact, reached after Ukraine’s bloodiest week of street fighting, following all-night negotiations sponsored by European and Russian officials, calls for an immediate return to the 2004 constitution, which gives parliament, not the president, the right to choose a prime minister and most of the cabinet. More + PHOTOS

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