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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Nationalists, Red Army Veterans Supporters Clash in Ukrainian Capital |
| 2005-10-15 |
| Thousands of Red Army veterans supporters clashed with Ukrainian nationalists on Saturday during competing rallies in downtown Kiev, Associated Press reported. Riot police and busloads of regular officers moved in to separate the groups, which had both gathered on the capitalâs main artery, Kreshchatyk, which is closed to traffic on weekends. There did not appear to be any major injuries or arrests made. No one answered the phone at Kiev police headquarters. The competing marches and fist fights came a day after aging partisans celebrated the 63rd anniversary of the founding of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, which fought against both Soviet soldiers and Nazis during World War II in a bid to create an independent Ukraine. The partisans held their big celebrations in western Ukraine, where support is higher, but some insurgents and hundreds of young Western Ukrainian nationalists rallied in the capital to demand that the partisans be recognized as WWII veterans â a move that would also entitle them to social and financial benefits. The Red Army supporters â waving red flags and chanting âGet out!â and âShame!â - marched in protest, as Soviet war songs played over loudspeakers. Hostility toward the partisans runs deep in Ukraine because they initially sought support from Nazis, believing the Germans would grant Ukraine independence. Under the Soviets, Ukrainian schoolchildren were taught that the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and its partisan force were enemies of the people who committed horrific atrocities alongside Nazi troops. Ukraine was overrun by the German Army before the Soviets drove them out. An estimated 7 million Ukrainians died in the fighting, and 2.4 million people were sent to Nazi concentration camps. Some 10,000 partisans are believed to still be living, but most are concentrated in western Ukraine. |
| Posted by:Anonymoose |