BBC: Ukraine Protests Grow
02/11/2001 | Broker
Sunday, 11 February, 2001, 04:11 GMT
Ukraine protests grow
Protesters want Mr Putin to cancel his visit to Ukraine
Opponents of the Ukraine President, Leonid Kuchma, are stepping up their campaign of demonstrations demanding that he resign over his alleged involvement in the murder of a campaigning journalist.
Heorhiy Gongadze, known for his criticism of the government, was abducted and killed last year.
President Kuchma says he was not involved but there have been allegations that a tape recording exists which suggests his complicity.
Mr Kuchma has resisted demands to resign
Thousands of demonstrators have converged on the capital, Kiev, from all over the country and further big protests are expected on Sunday.
The president has sacked senior security advisors in the face of these demonstrations, but a BBC correspondent says the real target of the protests is Mr Kuchma himself.
The political turmoil comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin prepares to visit the country.
Mr Kuchma's office was bugged by bodyguard Mykola Melnichenko.
The tapes were obtained by opposition Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz, who said the recordings showed Mr Kuchma had ordered the killing of the journalist.
Mr Kuchma has acknowleged that it is his voice on the tape, but claims that it has been edited to change what he said.
Opposition parties have organised anti-Kuchma street marches
On Saturday, he sacked the head of the security service, Leonid Derkach, and the chief of the presidential bodyguard, Volodymyr Shepel.
Demonstrators had demanded Mr Derkach be sacked, but they are unlikely to be satisfied with his replacement, Volodymyr Radchenko, whose background is in the Soviet KGB.
Mr Shepel will be replaced by Valeriy Strogov, currently the interior ministry chief in the western Lviv region.
The sackings could spur the protesters on to press harder for their ultimate aim - the removal of Mr Kuchma, and a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr Gongadze's death.
Despite the widespread protests, reports on Ukrainian television have said there are no plans for a state of emergency.
Mr Putin, who is due to meet with Mr Kuchma on Sunday and Monday in southern Ukraine, said the developments in the country were signs of an "internal political struggle".
Ukraine protests grow
Protesters want Mr Putin to cancel his visit to Ukraine
Opponents of the Ukraine President, Leonid Kuchma, are stepping up their campaign of demonstrations demanding that he resign over his alleged involvement in the murder of a campaigning journalist.
Heorhiy Gongadze, known for his criticism of the government, was abducted and killed last year.
President Kuchma says he was not involved but there have been allegations that a tape recording exists which suggests his complicity.
Mr Kuchma has resisted demands to resign
Thousands of demonstrators have converged on the capital, Kiev, from all over the country and further big protests are expected on Sunday.
The president has sacked senior security advisors in the face of these demonstrations, but a BBC correspondent says the real target of the protests is Mr Kuchma himself.
The political turmoil comes as Russian President Vladimir Putin prepares to visit the country.
Mr Kuchma's office was bugged by bodyguard Mykola Melnichenko.
The tapes were obtained by opposition Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz, who said the recordings showed Mr Kuchma had ordered the killing of the journalist.
Mr Kuchma has acknowleged that it is his voice on the tape, but claims that it has been edited to change what he said.
Opposition parties have organised anti-Kuchma street marches
On Saturday, he sacked the head of the security service, Leonid Derkach, and the chief of the presidential bodyguard, Volodymyr Shepel.
Demonstrators had demanded Mr Derkach be sacked, but they are unlikely to be satisfied with his replacement, Volodymyr Radchenko, whose background is in the Soviet KGB.
Mr Shepel will be replaced by Valeriy Strogov, currently the interior ministry chief in the western Lviv region.
The sackings could spur the protesters on to press harder for their ultimate aim - the removal of Mr Kuchma, and a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr Gongadze's death.
Despite the widespread protests, reports on Ukrainian television have said there are no plans for a state of emergency.
Mr Putin, who is due to meet with Mr Kuchma on Sunday and Monday in southern Ukraine, said the developments in the country were signs of an "internal political struggle".