EuroMaidan Revolution
Alexander Feldman: The sad progression of the Ukrainian protest movement
Nationalists hold torches during a march in Kyiv on Jan. 1 as they mark the 105th anniversary of the birth of Stepan Bandera. Bandera was a Ukrainian politician and one of the leaders of Ukrainian national movement in western Ukraine. He headed the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN) He is considered a hero by many Ukrainians while Soviet propaganda vilified him as a Nazi supporter. AFP PHOTO/ SERGEI SPUTNIKS
From the moment of its spontaneous combustion on November 21, and for weeks thereafter, the mass protest encampment on Maidan Square in the center of Kiev, set up to oppose the Ukrainian government's decision not to sign a comprehensive free trade agreement with the European Union, appeared to represent the epitome of 21st-century European values. The varied activities of the vast, multi-ethnic crowd on the Square that quickly came to be called Euromaidan -- whether protest demonstrations, art exhibitions or musical concerts -- celebrated themes of democracy, pluralism and an end to government corruption.
