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Lugansk And Donetsk Vote For Self-Determination While Fighting Resumes Near Slavyansk

By Countercurrents

11 May, 2014
Countercurrents.org

Residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in east Ukraine have cast their ballots on May 11, 2014 in a referendum on whether the regions should declare sovereignty and break away from Kiev .

Reports by news agencies including RIA Novosti, Interfax, Itar-Tass and AP said:

Citizens of the two southeastern regions of Ukraine are being asked if they “support the Act of state self-rule” of Donetsk People's Republic or Lugansk People's Republic.

The election commission officials explained that the people are not choosing between staying within Ukraine and joining Russia , as widely reported, but instead are asked to support regions' right for political self-determination.

If a majority of voters answer “yes” on Sunday the regions will gain full moral right to officially state they do not accept what is happening in the country, anti-coup protesters say.

The combined population of Donetsk and Lugansk industrial regions, rejecting the legitimacy of the coup-installed Kiev authorities, stands at about 6.7 million in a country of 45 million.

About 1,471 polling stations in Lugansk region and around 1,500 in Donetsk region opened their doors for voters at 8:00 local time (05:00 GMT). The polling stations will close at 22:00 (19:00 GMT). The regions are seeking independence from central government in Ukraine .

Local self-defense forces have boosted security measures, fearing that Kiev could stage provocations to disrupt the self-determination vote. Security has been tightened around polling stations in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

“We sent additional self-defense units to polling stations and also to the most important social institutions,” a Lugansk self-defense leader, Aleksey Chmilenko, told Interfax. “So far everything is normal, there are no incidents.”

Almost simultaneously with the opening of polling stations, sounds of shooting and artillery fire were heard on the outskirts of Slavyansk , in the Donetsk region.

Slavyansk already witnessed mortar shelling of its outskirts by Ukrainian forces on the eve of the referendum.

Roman Lyagin, chair of the central election commission in the region, believes that a provocation has been planned and says that anti-government activists are ready for it.

More than 3 million ballot papers were printed for Donetsk region.

The organizers spent about 20,000 hryvnas (US$ 2,000) preparing for the vote in Ukraine 's industrial region, the heart of the country's coal-mining.

“The referendum will be considered valid whatever voter turnout will be,” Roman Lyagin, the head Donetsk election commission told reporters on Saturday.

About 30 international observers are monitoring the voting in Lugansk region, where about 1.8 million voters are expected to take part in the referendum.

“According to a survey, 83% of Lugansk residents are ready to support the Act of state self-rule of the People's Republic of Lugansk,” said Igor Shakhov, the head of the local election commission.

In Donetsk , western observers are not present at the polling stations, commission officials said, as nobody expressed willingness to oversee the vote in the turbulent region.

“We did not refuse anyone, there were no applications,” Lyagin said, adding though that over 470 international journalists are accredited in Donetsk .

The referendums, announced in March, are going ahead as planned despite Russian president Putin's call on pro-federalization activists to postpone them due to the deteriorating and unpredictable security situation in Ukraine .

The Kiev government and many western countries including the US , France and Germany are calling the referendums “illegal”. This camp urge dialogue between all conflicting parties in Ukraine , but are showing no readiness to stop the punitive military operation in the east of the country.

A checkpoint of the self-defense forces in Slavyansk has come under heavy gun and mortar fire, with explosions heard from the city. The attack comes hours before a regional referendum is due to begin.

Loud explosions and gunfire could be heard as mortar shelling of the checkpoint near Slavyansk resumed on Saturday night.

Self-defence forces expect that after artillery preparation, Kiev 's military and paramilitary units deployed nearby could storm the city.

Earlier on Saturday, according to the city's self-defense, a checkpoint near Andreevka village, which is close to Slavyansk , came under attack. This is close to an area where voting in the autonomy referendum has begun.

"They used mortars to shoot at us and fired mine shells," an anti-government activist told RIA Novosti. This is not the first time Andreevka comes under fire.

There was about 10 minutes of unceasing heavy fire coming from the local TV tower, which had earlier been occupied by Kiev forces.

Locals reported from Slavyansk the Ukrainian troops are allegedly deploying “Grad” missile systems on the outskirts of the city.

Self-defense forces have confirmed an assault took place.

“Yes, there is gunfire on the outskirts of the city, apparently heavy weapons. There are casualties on our side,” Slavyansk self-defense spokeswoman, Stella Khorosheva. At least 8 people got injured.

Earlier, Slavyansk “people's mayor” Vyacheslav Ponomaryov told the press that at least 20 people were killed and 30 wounded since the start of armed hostilities in the south-eastern Ukrainian city.

One of the injured is a nine-year-old boy was fired at from an automatic rifle while walking in the street on May 9, during the Victory Day Parade.

“Most likely, some [armed] group infiltrated the city. A boy was shot at. He sustained two gunshot wounds, which passed clear” through his body, Ponomaryov told journalists Saturday.

The boy's conditions is serious, but life is out of danger.

Self-defense forces have captured a few dozen adversaries, including soldiers as well as “enemies disguised as journalists” and covert operatives with explosives and other weapons, Ponomaryov said.

He stressed that if Kiev wanted to start a dialogue then the coup-imposed authorities should stop the aggression and withdraw the troops from the region.

 


 



 

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