Referendum on state system will help maintain integrity of Ukraine - Communist party leader
Kyiv, April 14 (Interfax) - A referendum on the state system of Ukraine demanded by the residents of the southeastern regions of the country will help maintain the country's integrity, Petro Symonenko, a presidential candidate and leader of the Ukrainian Communist Party, said.
"The last opportunity to maintain the integrity of Ukraine is to give up the illusions of the use of force to resolve the issue and hold a referendum, which is demanded by the people of the southeastern regions of the country," the Ukrainian Communist Party's press service quoted Symonenko as saying on Monday.
Symonenko said people will not necessarily choose the federalization of Ukraine at the referendum. "However, if it is not held, there will definitely be a civil conflict, like the conflict in Syria," he said.
When Crimea raised the question of a referendum, the Ukrainian administration ignored the demands made by the people of Ukraine and responded by opening criminal cases and threatening to disband the Supreme Council of Crimea, he said.
Symonenko said that the Communist Party then toughly criticized the short-sighted and irresponsible policies of the administration, warning that it would result in Ukraine losing Crimea.
"The current administration doesn't want to learn from its own mistakes. It was the current administration, which was in the opposition in October-November 2013, that banned a referendum initiated by the Communists. Although we warned them then that disrupting a referendum would lead to a tough political crisis and bloodshed in the country. Today we see that the Communists were absolutely right," Symonenko said.
Symonenko said ignoring the demands made by the eastern regions will lead to even graver consequences, "a civil conflict and a final division of the country."
"The attempts to resolve a political crisis using violence is a crime against people. And this crime will have no statute of limitations. If blood is shed in the eastern regions, it will be the responsibility of the current administration, not its overseas advisers, that will be held responsible for its commands to use troops against their own people," he said.
Symonenko said the current administration should stop dividing Ukrainians when speaking about the integrity of the country and the unity of the people of Ukraine and should do everything to save the country from division "because the countdown has begun."
