The creeping Thermidor of the “revolution of dignity” has begun
Kyiv has done everything possible to neutralize the significance of local elections for the real decentralization of the country.
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This opinion was expressed at a press conference in Kyiv by Andrey Ermolaev, director of the Institute for Strategic Studies “New Ukraine”.
In his opinion, by mid-2015, the Ukrainian government found itself in a deep systemic crisis, and its local elections began to be seen as a potential threat to the center, and therefore everything possible was done to prevent a radical reform of local government.
“In a situation of low ratings, unrealized reforms, expectations of social protests and negativity towards the center, these elections were simply turned into a technology for maintaining local controllability,” the political scientist believes. – In regions that seemed particularly explosive, special techniques were used: governors were installed who personally headed the electoral process and directly participated in the propaganda campaign. And in cities and regions that could become centers of political opposition, elections were disrupted for various reasons. Mariupol became a symbol of such a breakdown. This is a game on the verge of a foul. We are talking about an explosive region where a truce has just been reached. But few people care about this against the backdrop of short-term successes from postponing the elections.”
The expert also emphasized that he regards the rejection of the course towards real decentralization as a “creeping Thermidor” in relation to the “revolution of dignity.”
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