Nov 25, 2004
Ukraine: The Other Side of the Story
The British Helsinki Human Rights Group carries many fascinating stories at its website. These include the preliminary report of the BHHRG's observers on the controversial second round of the Ukrainian presidential elections. This report challenges the widely-disseminated media image of government-sponsored fraud at the expense of an untainted opposition on the basis of first-hand reporting.
The report concludes thus:"In spite of concerns, BHHRG finds no reason to believe that the final result of the 2004 presidential election in Ukraine was not generally representative of genuine popular will. The election featured a genuine choice of candidates, active pre-election campaigns, and high voter participation. It is clear that Ukrainian opinion was highly polarized. That meant many people backing a losing candidate would find it difficult to accept a defeat. Foreigners should not encourage civil conflict because the candidate on whom they have lavished expensive support turned out to be a loser."
I wish to thank Antiwar.com for the link.