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On Monday, September 16th
a picket of Ukrainian Embassy took place in Washington, DC as part of the
event “Requiem 2002: Face the Truth.” Nearly twenty activists and members
of the Forum of Ukrainian Students of America began this event at 11AM
local time. They collected signatures for an address to Ukrainian
diplomats, lighted candles, and honored with a minute of silence the
memory of Georgiy Gongadze and all those Ukrainian journalists, civil and
political activists, who died in Ukraine after it became independent.
Picketing was peaceful and without any restrain from local authorities.
At the beginning of the
protest, its participants were surprised at the considerable number of
local police that arrived at the picket supposedly to protect the
diplomatic representation of Ukraine from “several hundred radically
oriented extremists.” According to one of the policemen who spoke with
the protesters, that was the information given to the capitol’s police by
the Embassy.
As Serhiy Kudelia, the
leader of the Forum of Ukrainian Students of America, and an organizer of
the picket, noted, the appropriate law enforcement agencies of Washington,
DC were notified long in advance about the time, goals and location of the
picket. There were no prohibitions or objections to the protest in front
of the Ukrainian embassy from the American authorities. Moreover,
according to a local law provision on civil and political action in
Washington, no permit is necessary for a protest that is orderly, does not
block traffic and includes less than one hundred participants.
Banners that read
“Freedom of Speech to Ukraine!” “Words Kill,” “Protect the Journalists –
Save the Truth!” “Kuchma, you can’t Handle the Truth!” were displayed at
the picket. Its participants protested against sabotage of investigations
of crimes against journalists as well as political and civil activists by
the Ukrainian government. Picketers showed their solidarity with
Ukrainians through the world in defending their rights and freedoms.
At the end of the picket
Serhiy Kudelia furnished the Embassy with an address to the Ukrainian
diplomats by the organizing committee of “Requiem 2002: Face the Truth”
and by participants of the picket. It urges Ukrainian diplomats to “tell
the truth and to serve the people of Ukraine over its corrupt and
discredited government.” The General Consul of Ukraine in the U.S.
Valentyn Nalyvajchenko received the letter. A television program “Window
into America,” filming crew of Ukrainian TV channel “Inter,” and reporters
of radio stations “Voice of America” and “Radio Free Liberty” were present
at the event near the Ukrainian Embassy in the capitol of the U.S.
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