kiev, ukraine | Some Ukrainian Jews are taking to the streets, joining fellow citizens in protesting what they see as a fraudulent election.
But leaders of Jewish organizations in Ukraine are trying to stay neutral amid the ongoing wave of civil protests that broke out last week after official results showed that the government-backed candidate, Viktor Yanukovich, defeated Viktor Yuschenko by 49 percent to 46 percent in the Nov. 21 vote for president.
Since that time, some 200,000 pro-Yuschenko protesters have rallied in the streets of Kiev, alleging the results were falsified. Yuschenko has called for new elections to be held next month, an idea that Yanukovich’s mentor, President Leonid Kuchma, endorsed Monday, Nov. 28.
Ukraine’s Supreme Court was scheduled to rule this week on Yuschenko’s petition seeking to overturn the election results.
Most observers believe Ukrainian Jews split their vote in the election, though there is no credible data on the matter.
But in Kiev and in cities throughout western Ukraine, some Jews took to the streets in support of Yuschenko.
Among those who gathered in Kiev’s Independence Square to bolster the opposition candidate were several younger Jews.
Sonya Illich, 21, a Jewish student from Kiev, said she favored Yuschenko “because he supports young people and democracy.
“Jewish life in Ukraine will be better under his presidency,” she added.
Yuschenko ran on a pro-human rights platform and is seen as favoring closer ties to the West. During the campaign, some worried that he was slow to criticize supporters who expressed anti-Semitic views.
Meanwhile, Jewish officials are trying to remain above the fray.
“The Jewish community is not taking sides in what’s going on, thank God,” said Josef Zissels, a longtime community leader in Kiev who backs Yuschenko.