Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009. The Orange Revolution was born after the corrupt presidential election of 2004. By many estimates, on some days they drew up to one million people to the streets, in freezing weather. The Orange Revolution (Ukrainian: Помаранчева революція, Pomarancheva revolyutsiya) was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter intimidation and electoral fraud. Image 10 years ago with the violent events of the Orange Revolution in Kiev in 2004. "[28], The 26 December revote was held under intense scrutiny of local and international observers. The Orange Revolution (Ukrainian: Помаранчева революція, Pomarancheva revolyutsiya) was a series of protests and political events that took place in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005, in the immediate aftermath of the run-off vote of the 2004 Ukrainian presidential election, which was claimed to be marred by massive corruption, voter intimidation and electoral fraud. As part of the Orange Revolution, the Ukrainian constitution was changed to shift powers from the presidency to the parliament. The personal feelings of Gen. Smeshko towards Yanukovych may also have played a role. This article surveys five state-backed violent strategies used in Ukraine’s 2004 elections: inciting regional and inter-ethnic conflict, assassinations, violence against the opposition, counter-revolution and use of the security forces. Please update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. [50][nb 2], Outright vote rigging diminished after the 2004 presidential election. Additional evidence of Yushchenko's popularity and at least partial support among the SBU officers is shown by the fact that several embarrassing proofs of electoral fraud, including incriminating wiretap recordings of conversations among the Yanukovych campaign and government officials discussing how to rig the election, were provided to the Yushchenko camp. The preliminary results, announced by the Central Election Commission on 28 December, gave Yushchenko and Yanukovych 51.99% and 44.20% of the total vote which represented a change in the vote by +5.39% to Yushchenko and −5.27% from Yanukovych respectively when compared to the November poll. The entire world recognised it, and international observers confirmed its results. Registered in England & Wales No. Unlike the bloodless Orange Revolution, these protests resulted in more than 100 deaths, occurring mostly between 18 and 20 February 2014. [15], In late 2002, Viktor Yushchenko (Our Ukraine), Oleksandr Moroz (Socialist Party of Ukraine), Petro Symonenko (Communist Party of Ukraine) and Yulia Tymoshenko (Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc) issued a joint statement concerning "the beginning of a state revolution in Ukraine". Glorious Revolution, events of 1688–89 that resulted in the deposition of English King James II and the accession of his daughter Mary II and her husband, William III, prince of Orange and stadholder of the Netherlands. When Yanukovych’s health began to fail, it was revealed that he was poisoned allegedly by the Ukrainian State Security Service. Protesters in the park in front of the Cabinet of Ministers This Election Commission announcement[30] cleared the way for Yushchenko's inauguration as the President of Ukraine. "The Transition to National Armies in the Former Soviet Republics, 1988–2005." [35] These conversations were likely recorded and provided to the opposition by sympathisers in the Ukrainian Security Services. In Kyiv the pro-Yanukovych demonstrators were far outnumbered by Yushchenko supporters, whose ranks were continuously swelled by new arrivals from many regions of Ukraine. The absence of clear institutional channels for a swift resolution, the increased politicization of the judiciary, and the use of selective justice against protestors, which strengthened the far right segment, all contributed to the tragic spiral of The fact that the constitutional court and parliament still had some autonomy proved to be crucial. A Circuit administrative court in Kyiv forbade mass actions at Maidan Nezalezhnosti from 9 January 2010 to 5 February 2010. The color orange symbolizes a brighter future, free of violence. [31] This event brought the Ukrainian Orange Revolution to its peaceful conclusion. The Mayor's office had requested this in order to avoid "nonstandard situations" during the aftermath of the 2010 presidential election. [14] Yanukovych was ousted from power four years later following the February 2014 Euromaidan clashes in Kyiv's Independence Square. Orange Revolution (English) It was just after 2 a.m. on November 22, 2004, when the call went out: “The time has come to defend your life and Ukraine. [49][50][51] President Yanukovych stated he moved "Day of Freedom" because of "numerous appeals from the public". [10] In the aftermath of the 2011 South Ossetian presidential election (in December 2011) and during the protests following the 2011 Russian elections (also in December 2011) the Ambassador of South Ossetia to the Russian Federation Dmitry Medoyev and Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Putin's supporters named the Orange Revolution an infamous foreknowledge for their countries. were able to use mobile phones and the Internet to coordinate election monitoring and mass protests.[38][39]. The official ceremony took place in the Verkhovna Rada building on 23 January 2005 and was followed by the "public inauguration" of the newly sworn President at Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square) in front of hundreds of thousands of his supporters. There are also instances at the brink of Revolution and in the beginning that implied that there would be a violent element to this movement. On 1 December 2004, the Verkhovna Rada passed a resolution that strongly condemned pro-separatist and federalisation actions, and passed a non-confidence vote in the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, a decision Prime Minister Yanukovych refused to recognise. Some observers argued that this symbolic presidential oath might have been useful to the Yushchenko camp should events have taken a more confrontational route. In view of the threat of illegitimate government acceding to power, Yushchenko's camp announced the creation of the Committee of National Salvation which declared a nationwide political strike. The scale of the demonstrations in Kyiv was unprecedented. After a clear lack of faith in the government had been instilled in the Ukrainian population, Yushchenko's role had never been more important to the revolution. The Orange Revolution was the latest ‘people’s revolution’ to overthrow an incumbent government in a former communist country, coming shortly after the 2003 Rose Revolution in Georgia. Confronting the Truth: Examining the dynamics and mechanics of Truth and Reconciliation Commissions in South Africa, Peru, East Timor and Morocco. They were exposed to a lot of negativity from the Kuchmagate and therefore had very skewed visions about Kuchma and his ability to lead their country. The Orange Revolution. To learn about our use of cookies and how you can manage your cookie settings, please see our Cookie Policy. BBC News. Pg 14, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Russian military intervention (2014–present), 2011 South Ossetian presidential election, protests following the 2011 Russian elections, a bill criminalising gay "propaganda" in Russia, Ukrainian integration into the European Union, Customs Union of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, Ukraine's Orange Revolution: Causes and Consequences, The Colour Revolutions in the Former Soviet Republics: Ukraine, Ukrainian Politics, Energy and Corruption under Kuchma and Yushchenko, Savik Shuster: I’m the only thing to remain after "orange revolution", Putin calls 'color revolutions' an instrument of destabilisation, Ukraine is Not Russia:Comparing Youth Political Activism, "Yanukovich declared winner in Ukraine poll", "Viktor Yanukovych sworn in as Ukraine president", http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/1102303.stm, http://www.osw.waw.pl/en/publikacje/osw-studies/2005-07-13/orange-revolution-ukraine-attempt-to-understand-reasons, Understanding Ukrainian Politics: Power, Politics, and Institutional Design, Revolution in Orange: The Origins of Ukraine's Democratic Breakthrough, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Civil Resistance and Power Politics: The Experience of Non-violent Action from Gandhi to the Present, Ukraine 2004: Informal Networks, Transformation of Social Capital and Coloured Revolutions, Yanukovych says presidential election scenario of 2004 won't be repeated in 2010, Official CEC announcement of results as of 10 January 2005, BACK CHANNELS: A Crackdown Averted; How Top Spies in Ukraine Changed the Nation's Path, "How Yanukovych Forged the Elections. You are are free republish it so long as you do the following: You have to credit us. [citation needed] In such a scenario, this "presidential oath" Yushchenko took could be used to lend legitimacy to the claim that he, rather than his rival who tried to gain the presidency through alleged fraud, was a true commander-in-chief authorised to give orders to the military and security agencies. "[43] According to him, this is one of the great achievements of the Orange Revolution. On 8 December 2004 the parliament amended laws to provide a legal framework for the new round of elections. However, as it was clear that neither nominee was close enough to collecting an outright majority in the first round, challenging the initial result would not have affected the final outcome of the round. This murder sparked a movement against Kuchma in 2000 that can be seen as the origin of the Orange Revolution in 2004. The Orange revolution took place from late November 2004 to January 2005, and primarily took place in Kiev, Ukraine. Lehrke, Jesse Paul. Although Yushchenko entered into negotiations with outgoing President Leonid Kuchma in an effort to peacefully resolve the situation, the negotiations broke up on 24 November 2004. The court decided that due to the scale of the electoral fraud it became impossible to establish the election results. By employing varying combinations of persuasion and deterrence tailored to the particular institutions … But the implications of that victory--throughout the region and the world--will be fully understood only in the years to come. In 2004, Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych was declared the winner of the presidential elections. The 2004 presidential election in Ukraine eventually featured two main candidates: The election took place in a highly charged atmosphere, with the Yanukovych team and the outgoing president's administration using their control of the government and state apparatus for intimidation of Yushchenko and his supporters. We use cookies to improve your website experience. [1] The results of the election were thought to be fraudulent and considered "a nail in the coffin" of the preceding events. The parliament also approved the changes to the Constitution, implementing a political reform backed by outgoing President Kuchma as a part of a political compromise between the acting authorities and opposition. Pora! But it was an important symbolic gesture meant to demonstrate the resolve of the Yushchenko campaign not to accept the compromised election results. So the complaints were not actively pursued and both candidates concentrated on the upcoming run-off, scheduled for 21 November. For question on ultimate source of orders and mobilisation details see Lehrke, Jesse Paul. [13][66][nb 3] In 2016 the Russian newspaper Izvestia claimed The communists left the alliance: Symonenko opposed the idea of a single candidate from the alliance in the Ukrainian presidential election of 2004; but the other three parties remained allies[17] until July 2006. We prefer with a note at the top of the article that says it originally appeared on Waging Nonviolence with a link back to the original page where it appeared. The Orange Revolution was mainly based in Western and Central Ukraine and revealed a deep cultural‐political divide in Ukraine. The Communists also supported these measures. [32], Viktor Yushchenko (Final round) – percentage of total national vote, Viktor Yanukovych (Final round) – percentage of total national vote. Many of the government officials who were on his side went on to fully support the election campaign of Yushchenko and well as his ideas in general. ], During the elections campaign of the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election the Party of Regions' campaign focused heavily on (what they called) the coach and ruins of 5 years of orange leadership. Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab. According to one version of events recounted by The New York Times,[33] Ukrainian security agencies played an unusual role in the Orange Revolution, with a KGB successor agency in the former Soviet state providing qualified support to the political opposition. [2] This research (also) showed that Ukrainians in total had a less positive view on the Orange Revolution in 2007 than they had in 2005. Orange did not have any prior ideological connotation. The pact included a promise by Viktor Yushchenko to nominate Tymoshenko as Prime Minister if Yushchenko won the October 2004 presidential election.[19]. [42] Photo about Kyiv - Ukraine - December 2004. Storming the Bastille on July 14 th 1789, which some scholars consider the start of the Revolution, exhibits erratic and violent behavior. Yushchenko was declared the official winner and with his inauguration on 23 January 2005 in Kyiv, the Orange Revolution ended. (2007) The Role of Digital Networked Technologies in the Ukrainian Orange Revolution. "Ukrain's 'Orange Revolution' of 2004: The Paradoxes of Negotiation." Supreme Court of Ukraine decision regarding the annulment of 21 November vote. During this time Ukrainians were impatient while waiting for the economic and political transformation. [34] The SBU (Security Service of Ukraine, a successor to the KGB in Ukraine) warned opposition leaders of the crackdown. This new wave of younger people had different views of the main figures in Ukraine. [18] (In the autumn of 2001 both Tymoshenko and Yushchenko had broached the idea of setting up such a coalition. [11][63][64] Putin also claimed that the organisers of the Russian protests in December 2011 were former (Russian) advisors to Yushchenko during his presidency and were transferring the Orange Revolution to Russia. The Orange Revolution and U.S. Policy At a pivotal moment in their nation’s history, the Ukrainian people rejected a stolen election and chose freedom, democracy, and the rule of law over corruption and intimidation. The people criticized the election results and wanted to take a stand against the corrupt politics of Ukraine. [29] The Yanukovych team attempted to mount a fierce legal challenge to the election results using both the Ukrainian courts and the Election Commission complaint procedures. eds. The protests were prompted by reports from several domestic and foreign election monitors as well as the widespread public perception that the results of the run-off vote of 21 November 2004 between leading candidates Viktor Yushchenko and Viktor Yanukovych were rigged by the authorities in favour of the latter. [7] Nationwide,[8] the revolution was highlighted by a series of acts of civil disobedience, sit-ins, and general strikes organized by the opposition movement. [9] The nationwide protests succeeded when the results of the original run-off were annulled, and a revote was ordered by Ukraine's Supreme Court for 26 December 2004. "Ukraine is a European democratic country", said Yushchenko in a sort of political will at the polling station. It was based on a "competitive authoritarian regime" that is considered a "hybrid regime", allowing for a democracy and market economy to come to life. By the Constitution of Ukraine, the non-confidence vote mandated the government's resignation, but the parliament had no means to enforce a resignation without the co-operation of Prime Minister Yanukovych and outgoing President Kuchma. By closing this message, you are consenting to our use of cookies. Ukraine:Has Yushchenko Betrayed The Orange Revolution? It not only undermined the peoples' respect for Kuchma as a president, but also for the elite ruling class in general. This was a non-violent revolution that overthrew a very violent occupation. The Orange Revolution was supported by Pora. After the election, Yanukovych's party again was the largest, but Tymoshenko's finished far ahead of Yushchenko's for second place. [37] Analysts believe that the Internet and mobile phones allowed an alternative media to flourish that was not subject to self-censorship or overt control by President Kuchma and his allies and pro-democracy activists (such as Pora!) Yuschenko was on the same level as his constituents and presented his ideas in a "non-Soviet" way. At the same time, there was no actual revolution because no violent uprisings occurred, but William of Orange and his wife, Mary, came to rule peacefully. Oxfordshire, UK: Routledge (2013). Berkman Center Research Publication. During a January 2013 debate in the Russian, Andrew Wilson, "Ukraine's 'Orange Revolution' of 2004: The Paradoxes of Negotiation", in. [41] Incumbent President Viktor Yushchenko got 5,5% of votes during the election. [2] Beginning on 22 November 2004,[22] massive protests[nb 1] started in cities across Ukraine:[22] the largest, in Kyiv's Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Independence Square), attracted an estimated 500,000 participants,[5] who on 23 November 2004, peacefully marched in front of the headquarters of the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament, many wearing orange or carrying orange flags, the colour of Yushchenko's campaign coalition. "Transitions from Postcommunism. These accusations were reinforced by similar allegations, though at a lesser scale, during the first presidential run of 31 October. In November 2009 Yanukovych stated that although his victory in the elections was "taken away", he gave up this victory in order to avoid bloodshed. In response, Yushchenko's opponents denounced him for taking an illegitimate oath, and even some of his moderate supporters were ambivalent about this act, while a more radical side of the Yushchenko camp demanded him to act even more decisively. many revolutions are mostly violent, there is an example of The Glorious Revolution. Viktor Yushchenko (first round) – percentage of total national vote, Viktor Yanukovych (first round) – percentage of total national vote, Viktor Yushchenko (second round) – percentage of total national vote, Viktor Yanukovych (second round) – percentage of total national vote, Protests began on the eve of the second round of voting, as the official count differed markedly from exit poll results which gave Yushchenko up to an 11% lead, while official results gave the election win to Yanukovych by 3%. The state of Ukraine during the 2004 presidential election is considered an "ideal condition" for an outburst from the public. Since no candidate had won more than 50% of the cast ballots, Ukrainian law mandated a run-off vote between two leading candidates. His premiership ended in late 2007 after Yushchenko had succeeded in his months-long attempt to dissolve parliament. Because of Kuchma's scandalous behaviour, he lost many of his supporters with high ranking government positions. [2] It has been suggested that since the Orange Revolution was impactful enough to interest people of all ages it increased the overall unity of Ukraine. [original research? "[67][nb 4], In Russian nationalist circles the Orange Revolution has been linked with fascism because, albeit marginal, Ukrainian nationalist extreme right-wing groups and Ukrainian Americans (including Viktor Yushchenko wife, Kateryna Yushchenko, who was born in the United States) were involved in the demonstrations; Russian nationalist groups see both as branches of the same tree of fascism. Young Ukrainian voters were extremely important to the outcome of the 2004 Presidential election. It was called the Singing Revolution because of … Apparently (in particular) the Party of Regions, All-Ukrainian Union "Fatherland" and Svoboda had applied for a permit to demonstrate there. ", Goldstein, Joshua. Yanukovych was officially certified as the victor by the Central Election Commission, which itself was allegedly involved in falsification of electoral results by withholding the information it was receiving from local districts and running a parallel illegal computer server to manipulate the results. Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine. Problems of Post-Communism: Vol. [26], In total 18.4% of Ukrainians have claimed to have taken part in the Orange Revolution (across Ukraine).[2]. The Progressive Socialist Party's Natalia Vitrenko, who won 1.53% of the vote, endorsed Yanukovych, who hoped for Petro Simonenko's endorsement but did not receive it.[20]. These came into effect in 2006 during which Yanukovych's Party of Regions won the parliamentary election, creating a coalition government with the Socialists and the Communists under his leadership. Wilson, Andrew. The Orange Revolution had enough popular impact that it interested people of all ages. The orange revolution may not necessarily spread, but people will persist in their struggles against tyranny. It has even been suggested that the Orange Revolution was the first example of an Internet-organised mass protest. In September 2004 Yushchenko suffered dioxin poisoning under mysterious circumstances. James II was trying to overtake power in the country without Parliament, but did not succeed because he ran out of money. Especially p. 185-199 but also p. 152-159 for background. Image of europe, maidan, deputies - 83100772 activists were arrested in October 2004, but the release of many (reportedly on President Kuchma's personal order) gave growing confidence to the opposition.[21]. At the same time, local officials in Eastern and Southern Ukraine, the stronghold of Viktor Yanukovych, started a series of actions alluding to the possibility of the breakup of Ukraine or an extra-constitutional federalisation of the country, should their candidate's claimed victory not be recognised. [27] This decision was seen as a victory for the Yushchenko camp while Yanukovych and his supporters favoured a rerun of the entire election rather than just the run-off, as a second-best option if Yanukovych was not awarded the presidency. [62], During Alexander Lukashenko's inauguration (ceremony) as President of Belarus of 22 January 2011 Lukashenko vowed that Belarus would never have its own version of the Orange Revolution and Georgia's 2003 Rose Revolution. (See: This page was last edited on 7 January 2021, at 19:26. Ukraine - Ukraine - The Orange Revolution and the Yushchenko presidency: The presidential election of 2004 brought Ukraine to the brink of disintegration and civil war. The Singing Revolution is the name given to the step-by-step process that led to the reestablishment of Estonian independence in 1991. On 3 December 2004, Ukraine's Supreme Court finally broke the political deadlock. The Cassette Scandal sparked the public's desire to create a social reform movement. [48] This date was moved to 22 January (and merged with Unification Day) by President Viktor Yanukovych late December 2011. Later, the colour gave its name to an entire series of political labels, such as the Oranges (Pomaranchevi in Ukrainian) for his political camp and its supporters. [19]), On 2 July 2004 Our Ukraine and the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc established the Force of the People, a coalition which aimed to stop "the destructive process that has, as a result of the incumbent authorities, become a characteristic for Ukraine" - at the time President Leonid Kuchma and Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych were the "incumbent authorities" in Ukraine. Image 10 years ago with the violent events of the Orange Revolution in Kiev in 2004. Yushchenko's supporters originally adopted orange as the signifying colour of his election campaign. 2004 – The Orange Revolution in Ukraine, followed the disputed second round of the 2004 presidential election and led to the annulment of the result and the repeat of the round—the leader of the opposition Viktor Yushchenko was declared President, defeating Viktor Yanukovych. [57][58][59], A 2007 research revealed that opinion about the nature of the Orange Revolution had barely shifted since 2004 and that the attitudes about it in the country remained divided along the same largely geographical lines that it had been at the time of the revolution (West and Central Ukraine being more positive about the events and South and Eastern Ukraine more cynical (seniors also)). Were not actively pursued and both candidates concentrated on the same level as his constituents and his! To establish the election, many complaints emerged regarding voting irregularities in of! The ideals of the Orange Revolution, these protests resulted in more than 100 deaths occurring! Class in general because of Kuchma 's scandalous behaviour, he lost many of his arrived... Participated showed an increasing sense of nationalism that was in power before Orange! Power in the autumn of 2001 both Tymoshenko and Yushchenko had succeeded in months-long... 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