The Revolution Is Purging the Ranks of Its Opponents

KIEV, Ukraine -- Viktor Yushchenko, the president of Ukraine, continued his introductions of new regional leaders yesterday with a short visit to Donetsk. Meanwhile, the arrival of the Orange Revolution in the regions is being accompanied by a radical purge of the old nomenklatura, which continues to suffer noticeable losses. At the same time, events in Ukraine are attracting increasing international attention. The presidents of the United States and Poland, George Bush and Aleksander Kwasniewski, discussed them yesterday, and Hilary Clinton and other influential U.S. congressmen are due to arrive in Kiev today.


Presidents Aleksander Kwasniewski and George Bush
Meanwhile, over the last several days, the Ukrainian capital has been watching how the broom of the Orange Revolution continues to sweep away the power structures of the old nomenklatura. On Wednesday evening, information that the new interior minister had fired Sergey Popkov, the infamous commander of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry's internal forces, appeared on the Ukrainian government website. We remind our readers that on November 28 of last year, by order of Lieutenant General Popkov, who held the position of deputy interior minister, several thousand special forces troops were put on the alert. The leaders of the Orange Revolution believe they were being sent to break up the meetings.

Yesterday, another revolutionary leader, Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Tomenko, showed the door to former heads of the state media, suggesting they voluntarily submit their resignations. The deputy prime minister advised them to “submit written notice of resignation from their positions in view of the sad history of relations between society and journalists, which was not limited to the election campaign.” Tomenko said that “the government will soon propose a qualitatively new information policy model, which will make government interference in media activities impossible.”

As it turns out, old staffers appointed to a new position may also not fit into the revolutionary reality. A curious thing happened with the appointment of Vitaly Oluiko as head of the administration of Khmelnytskyv Region. He had been on the job only four days, but the people of this western Ukrainian region actively disliked the fact that Oluiko had supported Yanukovich in the elections. As a sign of protest against this appointment, they set up pickets in Kiev at the buildings of the government and the president's secretariat and got their way. On Wednesday evening, Irina Gerashchenko, the president's press secretary, reported that after lengthy consultations, the president had accepted Oluiko's resignation.

At the same time, the administrative staff revolution also implies the formation of institutions that did not exist under the previous government. Vadim Rybachuk, the deputy prime minister for European integration, said yesterday that the office of state secretary, discredited by the former government, would be restored in Ukraine. In his words, the state secretaries should not change with a change in government. “They are specialists and experts who must function professionally. State secretaries will have no connection with the secretariat of Ukraine. And the president has mentioned this repeatedly.”

Meanwhile, the Orange Revolution remains at the center of international attention. Yesterday in Washington, Polish President Aleskander Kwasniewski and U.S. President George Bush congratulated one another on their contribution to the victory of democracy in Ukraine. “None of this would have happened without the participation of the United State,” Kwasniewski emphasized after talks with President Bush. “Without the role played by the United States, it would have been impossible to end the crisis in Ukraine and strengthen democracy in that country. This is a success for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, but it is also our common success.” “I was impressed by President Kwasniewski's leadership with respect to Ukraine. He showed impressive leadership,” Bush replied, adding that “the Ukrainian people benefited from this; the whole world appreciates it, and I also appreciate it.” According to Bush, the United States and Poland “will continue to discuss Ukraine further.”

For this purpose, an official delegation of the American Congress arrives in Kiev today, where it will meet with Yushchenko, Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko, and Vladimir Litvin, the speaker of the Supreme Rada. Republican John McCain is heading the delegation, which includes such well-known Democrats as Hilary Clinton and Joseph Lieberman. The talks are expected to include a discussion of ways of strengthening American–Ukrainian relations after the democratic elections in Ukraine.