Senior official claims "children" put in forefront of Kyiv protests
KYIV. Dec 14 (Interfax) - A senior Ukrainian Interior Ministry official claimed on Saturday that radical trends were on the rise among Ukrainian youth.
"On November 24 we stared investigating what is happening," the head of the ministry's investigative department, Mykola Chinchin, told a briefing. "Society is being radicalized, and use is being made of radical groups - Right Sector, Brotherhood, Trident, UNA-UNSO and others."
The police say they have been investigating 14 crime cases since November 24 in connection with mass protests in Kyiv.
Chinchin said the investigations had included raids during which explosives were found and plans by protest organizers were uncovered.
"We can see that the actions that are taking place have been planned in advance," he said, adding the police had been able to find out "who is responsible for what and who finances what."
"As a rule, there are children in the forefront - a masked person commits radical acts in relation to a police officer," Chinchin said in reference to people who, he claimed, were aged between 15 and 20, were vocational school or university students and were used by protest organizers.
Chinchin pointed out to parents of such people that their children were being used in radical actions and that this was an offense.
He did not name any of the radical activists who had allegedly been identified by police as instigators of violence and provocative behavior.
"As regards peaceful actions and peaceful assemblies, we don't have a single case of criminal proceedings," he said. "But when radical youth [are rioting], it is not a civil position but criminal offenses."
