Roman Travin: “Free” elections on May 25 - agitators with batons, observers in balaclavas
“It has been said more than once that calling presidential elections is more than doubtful from a legal point of view. But even from the point of view of elementary logic, any sane person has a lot of questions.
For example, how can normal elections be held in a country where, according to a common joke, “agitators” no longer even carry batons, but with machine guns? Observers will probably be wearing balaclavas? Because I can’t really imagine: who, even from the generally harmless Kyiv authorities Dobkin, will agree to be an observer in Lvov or from the same Yarosh in Donbass? And if he agrees, what will he be able to influence?
How can normal elections be organized in a country in which, in fact, there is a civil war, and the capital’s authorities do not control a significant part of the territory? How can elections be held if none of the candidates is able to conduct a full-fledged campaign throughout the country? What if armed people are breathing down the necks of all members of election commissions from precinct stations to the Central Election Commission?
Therefore, in my opinion, it is quite obvious that on May 25 the task is not to find out the will of the citizens, but to at least somehow legitimize the people who came to power as a result of the coup d'etat.
In parallel, we see a campaign to discredit the leaders of the Donetsk People's Republic.
This is one of the elements of the information war currently being waged in Ukraine. All major Ukrainian media were at least loyal to the Euromaidan and the coup d'etat that followed it, and in a number of cases openly participated in its organization. Therefore, it is not surprising that any mention of DPR representatives there is always made in a negative way.
It must be remembered that even within the framework of election campaigns, incriminating evidence appears on all any significant politicians, and in some cases, the headquarters of competitors carry out systematic work to discredit opponents using a very wide range of means. Therefore, it is clear that all these means will be used against the leaders of the DPR, and perhaps on a much larger scale than now.
However, a campaign aimed at discrediting a person indicates that this person has influence on the situation and poses a danger to the customer of the campaign. Otherwise, no one would waste resources on information warfare.
In Kyiv they understand that not so long ago the term “Novorossiya” was used only by historians and a small group of political experts and public activists. Today it is quite obvious that it has “gone to the masses”, and this “brand” is gaining popularity among residents of the South-East. So, as an idea or concept, Novorossiya definitely has prospects.
As for the state entity with this name, the creation of which the leaders of the DPR and LPR announced not so long ago, it is too early to make any forecasts, and there are still far more questions than answers. After all, it is obvious that along this path there will be a lot of complex problems, how and who will solve them is not yet clear.
However, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the point of no return has already been passed with Lugansk and Donetsk, and that people there will no longer put up with the Kyiv government in its current edition.
Moreover, Kyiv’s categorical reluctance to make any real concessions to the south-eastern regions, reliance on the military option and a large-scale information campaign against dissidents will inevitably cause and is already causing symmetrical responses. Discontent is growing not only in Donbass or Lugansk, but also in other regions, and I think the creation of Novorossiya will be watched very closely there.
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