Hrushevsky calls for citizen investigations
Feb. 4, 5:23 p.m., Vitaly Hrushevsky, the member of Party of Regions faction, who held a speech on Maidan Nezalezhnosti during the traditional Sunday rally on Feb. 2, said “people are fed up of the anti-constitutional propositions. “I came to Maidan on Sunday to thank all the activists. I also proposed them my plan. At least I think it’s good to make a group which will investigate those local politicians in city councils who abuse their power. And activists can do it now,” Hrushevsky said.
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Interior Ministry accuses Bulatov of not being helpful with investigation
Feb. 4, 4:36 p.m. On Feb. 3 the Interior Ministry of Ukraine posted some new information concerning the case of activist Dmytro Bulatov, accusing him of not being helpful with the investigation.
“Three investigators tried to question him, but he didn’t provide any significant details about the crime committed against him as a leader of the so-called “automaidan,” the Interior Ministry said. “This behavior suggests that he is not willing to cooperate with the investigation.”
“He couldn’t even describe distinguishing features of the criminals, who could be involved in the criminal offense,” said Oleg Tatarov, deputy chief of the Central Investigation Department of the ministry. “But the investigation is carried on, police are questioning witnesses, visitising neighbors apartments seeking the information that will help solve the case. — Brian Bonner
Parliament adjourns for the day
Feb. 4, 4:30 p.m. Just 25 minutes into the afternoon session of parliament, speaker Volodymyr Rybak shut it down, but not before Batkivshchyna Party leader Arseniy Yatseniuk told him that the reason parliament could not come to any compromise is due to the fact that the pro-presidential Party of Regions does not want to stabilize the situation in the country.
Yatseniuk also asked Rybak to resign. “I don’t see other way out of the situation,” Yatseniuk said, addressing Rybak.
Svoboda Party leader Oleh Tiahnybok also managed to get a few words in. He said the main thing for parliament now is to vote on time. “We also need to support constitutional reform, otherwise we may lose out on being a sovereign state. Also we should remember that military intervention is possible anytime,” Tiahnybok said.
For his part, Communist Party leader Petro Symonenko said that “all amendments to the constitution should be made in a legal way.”
“There is a serious threat – military squads are being formed, they have guns on Maidan, east and west are forming self-defense units,” he said during the afternoon session. “The opposition itself has started destroying the nation’s integrity. We need to cancel position of the president and vote for federalization of Ukraine.” — Olena Goncharova, Anastasia Forina
Parliament reconvenes following afternoon break; Klitschko urges solution to political gridlock
Feb. 4, 4:05 p.m. Parliament reconvened just after 4 p.m., following a more than four hour break. UDAR party leader Vitali Klitschko spoke first at the afternoon session, saying that lawmakers did not plan to register documents regarding voting for a new act that would return the country’s constitution to its 2004 state, which granted more powers to the government and parliament. But delays in doing this, he warned, in short order would increase the temperature of society.
“The country has a political crisis, we don’t have half a year to wait,” he said. “We have a clear idea how to do it, we have designed a political and legal solution. We needn’t look for differences, we need to find a solution.”
More than 130 journalists injured in Ukraine since November 2013
Feb. 4, 3:45 p.m. 136 journalists were injured at work since Nov. 21, according to the
Institute of Mass Information, which monitors, records and verifies
information about the suffered journalists, photographers and operators
at mass protest actions in central Kyiv and other cities of Ukraine. Only 80 journalists were injured in the last 2 weeks (from Jan 19 till Feb 2). — Olena Goncharova
UDAR: Klitschko meeting with Yanukovych at Presidential Administration
Feb. 4, 2:30 p.m. UDAR party leader Vitali Klitschko has gone to the Presidential Administration on Bankova Street to meet with Presient Viktor Yanukovych in hopes of persuading him to adopt the 2004 constitution of Ukraine, which lessens the power of the president, reports UDAR’s press service.
Before the meeting Klitschko told reporters that he would demand a meeting with the president if parliament fails to agree on the adoption of an act on returning the country to the constitution of 2004. Parliament did not vote on such an act during the morning session of parliament.
“If we cannot find a common stance here at parliament, I believe that this issue should be discussed with the person who makes decisions directly and has all powers. This is President Yanukovych,” Klitschko said earlier. — Christopher J. Miller
Foreign Ministry summons German ambassador to discuss possibility of sanctions
Feb. 4, 1:28 p.m. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine has summoned the German Ambassador Christoph Weil for “an objective assessment” of the process his country might go through should it impose sanctions against Ukrainian government officials, reports Ukrainska Pravda. The Foreign Ministry’s move comes after German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told The Guardian that sanctions should be used as a threat against Ukraine. — Christopher J. Miller
Former defense minister urges EU to impose sanctions against government officials
Feb. 4, 1:22 p.m. Former Minister of Defense Anatoliy Hrytsenko, also the leader of the All-Ukrainian Public Organization Civil Position, wrote on Facebook today that he spoke to journalists about his appeal to European diplomats and lawmakers to impose sanctions against high-ranking members of Ukraine’s government.
“I told the truth about our Maidan, because I see that some people in Europe have developed not entirely correct assessments, hence – not always have considered proposals and actions to resolve the conflict,” he wrote. “I showed them compelling evidence as to why they should place Azarov,who fled to Austria with his family, under house arrest in Austria, and why his (and his family’s) firms and accounts in Austrian banks should be immediately blocked. Stop talking about European values – prove that you practice them!” — Iryna Yeroshko
Spilna Sprava leader says government’s amnesty law pointless
Feb. 4, 1:09 p.m. Oleksandr Danylyuk, the leader of militant group Spilna Sprava, who is now in exile in London, writes on Facebook that he believes amnesties are pointless.
“They will not prevent further repressions, especially when abductions and murders are conducted outside the legal framework. We are dealing with manic serial killers, and cannot peacefully coexist with them. The attempts to split the difference by limiting the number of victims of these cannibals isn’t just abnormal, but also senseless, because it does not give society the real enforcement mechanism to make these cannibals stick to these agreements.” — Brian Bonner
Commander of Interior Ministry troops makes appeal to personnel
Feb. 4, 1:06 p.m. Commander of Interior Ministry troops of Ukraine Lieutenant General Stanislav Shulyak has made an appeal to his troops, urging them not to allow opposition politicians to influence them, according to a statement posted on the Interior Ministry website.
“Recently you have convincingly demonstrated that you will stay true to the Ukrainian people,” Shulyak began. “But opposition politicians’ ingenuity in choosing methods of influence knows no bounds.”
According to Shulyak, the opposition has used “unabated threats to the internal management of the troops, online publications which published personal details of military personnel and their home addresses and phone numbers” in attempts to persuade them to change sides in the more than two-month political standoff.
“Unable to reach their goal, the opposition even resorted to attempts to influence through bribery,” he added, saying that the opposition had promised to multiply the troops’ salaries by 10 to 20 times should they come to their side.
“Before you start a conversation with (the opposition), think…” Shulyak said. “Remember how a week ago they criticized the draft budget, accusing the government as… increasing its funding for law enforcement agencies, including the Internal Troops? Now they are ready to offer you a lot of money, which is unrealistic. Do not believe such a proposal.”
“Is it possible to enter into an agreement with someone who has called and continues to call for the killings of you and your families? Each of you is able to understand himself, on whose side lies the truth. Here at Hrushevskoho (Street) you’ve seen enough to have your own independent opinion. I believe in your ability to discern truth from insidious deception.” — Christopher J. Miller
AutoMaidan announces regular night patrols to combat rising threat of arson
Feb. 4, 12:50 p.m. AutoMaidan, the roving protest-on-wheels sector of the larger anti-government EuroMaidan protest movement, announced via Twitter that it would begin regular nightly patrols around Kyiv to combat the rising threat of arsons against protesters’ vehicles, reports Ukrainska Pravda. Several vehicles of EuroMaidan activists, including the vehicle of one who works for the Canadian Embassy in Kyiv, have been burned over the course of the past week alone. — Christopher J. Miller
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