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Unrest Reported at Ukrainian Polling Place

Posted on: Sunday, 21 November 2004, 12:00 CST

KIEV, Ukraine - Ukrainians cast ballots Sunday in a presidential run-off pitting a Western-leaning reformer against the Kremlin-praised prime minister, a vote that has already shown signs of unrest.

A police officer assigned to a voting station east of the capital was killed after being hit on the head, election commission chairman Serhiy Kivalov told reporters, according to Ukrainian news agencies. The death was under investigation.

Departing President Leonid Kuchma, in a nationally televised address on the eve of voting, declared "there will be no revolution," a clear warning to opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko and his supporters.

Yushchenko has called for a massive downtown rally on Sunday to conduct a "parallel vote count," a tacit expression of suspicions that the vote will be rigged for his opponent, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, who is supported by Kuchma.

The Interfax news agency reported that attackers injured several people at Yuschenko headquarters in the city of Luhansk.

Yushchenko's detractors contend he aims to foment unrest as a tactic to seize power. They point to a protest last month at the elections commission headquarters that turned into a melee.

A trickle of voters, heavily bundled up against the early winter cold, slipped their ballots into a glass box at a voting station inside Kiev's Conservatory. They were outnumbered by international observers, but many still said they feared the election would be unfair.

"Look at how this campaign has been conducted," said Nikolai Ponomarenko, 43, who said he voted for Yushchenko.

Yanukovych cast his ballot alongside his wife. "I believe that reason will prevail, and the deliberation and tolerance of the Ukrainian people will do their part," Yanukovych said.

In an apparent show of force, police deployed dozens of police in full riot gear, four water cannons, at least three armored personnel carriers and another five vehicles within the Central Election Commission's compound.

Arriving with his family to cast his ballot at a Kiev polling station, Yushchenko was greeted by more than 300 supporters, many wearing something orange - his campaign color - and shouting his name.

"I am sure there will be some falsifications but it will not be enough to falsify the final results of the election," Yushchenko told journalists.

The vote comes after months of tension that included allegations by the opposition of official interference, claims that Yushchenko was poisoned and a cliffhanger first-round vote.

Sunday's runoff could determine whether the ex-Soviet republic of 48 million pursues closer integration with the West or comes more into the Kremlin's sphere of influence.

But in the weeks leading up to the vote, such broad policy issues have been overshadowed by concerns about whether the voting will be free and the ballots counted accurately. International figures, including President Bush, called on Ukrainian authorities for a credible vote.

"You play a central role in ensuring that Ukraine's election is democratic and free of fraud and manipulation," Bush said in a letter delivered Friday to Kuchma, who is not seeking a new term. "A tarnished election, however, will lead us to review our relations with Ukraine."

Yushchenko's critics frequently label him as an American puppet who could be unduly influenced by his U.S.-born wife, and a nationalist capable of splitting Ukraine and alienating the country from Russia, Ukraine's key trade partner and main energy supplier. He says he wants to push the country to greater integration with Western Europe and he has suggested seeking NATO membership.

Yanukovych has been strongly praised by Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of the vote and is expected to pursue close ties with Moscow.

Ukraine has a large contingent of soldiers in Iraq, but both Yanukovych and Yushchenko support withdrawing them.

The Oct. 31 first round was marked by complaints of voting irregularities and intimidation. The Central Elections Commission took 10 days to announce the results, raising questions about its procedures.

The final count showed Yushchenko barely ahead of Yanukovych, each with slightly more than 39 percent of the vote, even though all previous partial tallies had put Yanukovych ahead. Yushchenko dominated in the capital and the Ukrainian-speaking west, while Yanukovych's support base was strong in the Russian-speaking east.

Yushchenko's campaign has continued to complain its supporters are being intimidated and warned of possible vote-rigging preparations. Yanukovych's staff said Saturday it had received reports of voter list irregularities and claims that pens with disappearing ink were being distributed, the news agency Unian reported.

Source: Associated Press/AP Online

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