CNN World: Ukrainians Step Up Pressure on Kuchma
02/11/2001 | Broker
Ukrainiains step up pressure on Kuchma
Kuchma has denied involvement in a journalist's disappearance
February 11, 2001
Web posted at: 1449 GMT
KIEV, Ukraine -- Thousands of demonstrators have marched through the Ukrainian capital to demand the resignation of President Leonid Kuchma.
About 5,000 people joined the rally in Kiev on Sunday, calling for Kuchma to quit over allegations of involvement in the disappearance of a journalist.
Heorhiy Gongadze went missing in September 2000 in what many Ukrainians describe as a political case and a decapitated body, believed to be his, was found in November.
The latest protests came one day after Kuchma sacked the head of his security service and the chief of the state bodyguard service.
A former Kuchma bodyguard in the State Guard Department has unveiled audio recordings of what he said were conversations between the president and his top aides, in which Kuchma is said to urge action against Gongadze
Kuchma and security officials have denied any involvement.
The tapes, made public by opposition Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz, have sparked anti-Kuchma demonstrations across Ukraine that led to the mass protests this week.
The latest demonstration came as Kuchma flew to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Dnipropetrovsk, 350 km (200 miles) southeast of Kiev.
Anti-Kuchma protests have spread across the country
The talks on Monday are expected to focus on energy issues -- Ukraine owes more than $1.4 billion to Russia.
The Gongadze case has scandalised Ukraine and alarmed foreign governments and investors -- many are increasingly wary of putting money into the impoverished former Soviet republic until the political situation stabilises.
The disappearance prompted the European Union to call for a full inquiry into the incident, saying Ukrainian authorities had so far failed to investigate the case thoroughly.
Ukraine is struggling to find its economic feet amid a mass of debt and widespread fraud.
The Gongadze case has developed into the biggest political scandal in Ukraine in a decade, although political analysts doubt whether Kuchma's grip on power is slipping.
Several major multinationals have put investment and recruitment plans on hold to await Kuchma's fate. Some are pulling expatriate staff out of the capital, members of a European trade delegation to Ukraine said this week.
Kuchma has denied involvement in a journalist's disappearance
February 11, 2001
Web posted at: 1449 GMT
KIEV, Ukraine -- Thousands of demonstrators have marched through the Ukrainian capital to demand the resignation of President Leonid Kuchma.
About 5,000 people joined the rally in Kiev on Sunday, calling for Kuchma to quit over allegations of involvement in the disappearance of a journalist.
Heorhiy Gongadze went missing in September 2000 in what many Ukrainians describe as a political case and a decapitated body, believed to be his, was found in November.
The latest protests came one day after Kuchma sacked the head of his security service and the chief of the state bodyguard service.
A former Kuchma bodyguard in the State Guard Department has unveiled audio recordings of what he said were conversations between the president and his top aides, in which Kuchma is said to urge action against Gongadze
Kuchma and security officials have denied any involvement.
The tapes, made public by opposition Socialist Party leader Oleksandr Moroz, have sparked anti-Kuchma demonstrations across Ukraine that led to the mass protests this week.
The latest demonstration came as Kuchma flew to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Dnipropetrovsk, 350 km (200 miles) southeast of Kiev.
Anti-Kuchma protests have spread across the country
The talks on Monday are expected to focus on energy issues -- Ukraine owes more than $1.4 billion to Russia.
The Gongadze case has scandalised Ukraine and alarmed foreign governments and investors -- many are increasingly wary of putting money into the impoverished former Soviet republic until the political situation stabilises.
The disappearance prompted the European Union to call for a full inquiry into the incident, saying Ukrainian authorities had so far failed to investigate the case thoroughly.
Ukraine is struggling to find its economic feet amid a mass of debt and widespread fraud.
The Gongadze case has developed into the biggest political scandal in Ukraine in a decade, although political analysts doubt whether Kuchma's grip on power is slipping.
Several major multinationals have put investment and recruitment plans on hold to await Kuchma's fate. Some are pulling expatriate staff out of the capital, members of a European trade delegation to Ukraine said this week.