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The opposition signed an agreement only to break it the next morning. How could anyone trust the new leaders of the country if this is how they ascend to power?

The opposition signed an agreement only to break it the next morning. How could anyone trust the new leaders of the country if this is how they ascend to power? Maybe they can trust the elected new leaders after free and fair elections are delivered as Ukrainian MPs have voted to hold early presidential elections on 25 May? It's right to be apprehensive and perhaps even suspicious in the case of the violent overthrow of a government, because things can easily spiral out of control or be taken over by a faction, but it doesn't always end in tragedy or dictatorship. I'd say the fact that demonstrators have left the parliament to pass laws and proclaim new elections is a good sign.

kombine 13y ago
The thing is that the president, that had just been overthrown was elected on "free and fair elections". I am watching the live stream from Maidan right now, and people from the stage say that the age of dictatorship is finally over. Noone seems to remember that at the first Maidan in 2004 people had similar euphoria. I am worried that perhaps in another 10 years we will see a new dictator being thrown over by the angered crowd...
- grey-area 13y ago
  free and fair elections That is disputed and there is much talk of rigged elections, but I don't know enough about the elections to have an opinion. Let's see if things proceed peacefully and democratically from this point on - the lack of looting and the organisation do bode well compared to say the uprising in Egypt, and the regime lost my sympathy when police used assault weapons and snipers against lightly armed civilians (the people shot did not have guns, some were medics). When the choice is between an oligarch or a dictator it is not a great one, but the choices in western democracies are similarly limited. I am worried that perhaps in another 10 years we will see a new dictator being thrown over by the angered crowd... Quite possible. I completely understand and sympathise with your ambivalence; western news sources are perhaps a bit too triumphant and hubristic over a complex and violent situation, as long as the outcome suits their geopolitical biases (EU/West good, Russia bad), and Russian media is even more limited by state control.
  - geoka9 13y ago
    > That is disputed and there is much talk of rigged elections, but I don't know enough about the elections to have an opinion. The presidential elections were "certified" by international observers. So I think it's fair to say that they were fair. However, after becoming president, Yanukovich had the Constitutional Court change the Constitution and make Ukraine a presidential republic, consolidating in his hands a lot of power presidents in Ukraine were not supposed to have. He reportedly used that power to rig the parliamentary elections and gain complete control of the Parliament.
    - Mikeb85 13y ago
      > He reportedly used that power to rig the parliamentary elections and gain complete control of the Parliament. However this can also be disputed since the PoR had previously gained the most votes in parliamentary elections even when Yushchenko was in power... It's not like the PoR was unpopular. And of course Yanukovych also won the presidential elections when the opposition was in power.
- deleted 13y ago
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kombine 13y ago

The thing is that the president, that had just been overthrown was elected on "free and fair elections". I am watching the live stream from Maidan right now, and people from the stage say that the age of dictatorship is finally over. Noone seems to remember that at the first Maidan in 2004 people had similar euphoria. I am worried that perhaps in another 10 years we will see a new dictator being thrown over by the angered crowd...

grey-area 13y ago
free and fair elections That is disputed and there is much talk of rigged elections, but I don't know enough about the elections to have an opinion. Let's see if things proceed peacefully and democratically from this point on - the lack of looting and the organisation do bode well compared to say the uprising in Egypt, and the regime lost my sympathy when police used assault weapons and snipers against lightly armed civilians (the people shot did not have guns, some were medics). When the choice is between an oligarch or a dictator it is not a great one, but the choices in western democracies are similarly limited. I am worried that perhaps in another 10 years we will see a new dictator being thrown over by the angered crowd... Quite possible. I completely understand and sympathise with your ambivalence; western news sources are perhaps a bit too triumphant and hubristic over a complex and violent situation, as long as the outcome suits their geopolitical biases (EU/West good, Russia bad), and Russian media is even more limited by state control.
- geoka9 13y ago
  > That is disputed and there is much talk of rigged elections, but I don't know enough about the elections to have an opinion. The presidential elections were "certified" by international observers. So I think it's fair to say that they were fair. However, after becoming president, Yanukovich had the Constitutional Court change the Constitution and make Ukraine a presidential republic, consolidating in his hands a lot of power presidents in Ukraine were not supposed to have. He reportedly used that power to rig the parliamentary elections and gain complete control of the Parliament.
  - Mikeb85 13y ago
    > He reportedly used that power to rig the parliamentary elections and gain complete control of the Parliament. However this can also be disputed since the PoR had previously gained the most votes in parliamentary elections even when Yushchenko was in power... It's not like the PoR was unpopular. And of course Yanukovych also won the presidential elections when the opposition was in power.
deleted 13y ago
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