“Putin, Hands Off Ukraine”

Protests Continue in Toronto

By Myroslava Stadnyk

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Toronto – Followed by last week’s march “For Our Brother and Sisters,” concerned members of the Ukrainian community held another two demonstrations by the Russian consulate – located on Church and Bloor – condemning President Vladimir Putin’s interference and pressure on internal affairs of Ukraine.

The protesters converged Thursday Feb. 13 and the following Sunday afternoon Feb. 16 under banners, flags and united in Ukrainian songs. They chanted: “Freedom and democracy for Ukraine! Putin, keep your hands off Ukraine!”

“We are continuously gathering to demonstrate that we do not support Russian intervention. In fact, we are outraged that Russia openly encourages Ukraine’s governing authorities to use brutal force to suppress human rights and freedoms.” – explained one of the activists.

As a reminder, last week Sergei Glazyev (an adviser to President Vladimir Putin) expressed that Russia will intervene to guarantee the security of Ukraine. Glazyev did not specify what action Russian might take. However, in his comments, the Kremlin official strongly supported using force if necessary to put an end to protest movement in Ukraine.

“Russia is likely to send troops to Ukraine – and some of them are probably already there” – said Dzvinka Rogovaia, who has regularly taken part in the Toronto anti-government protests starting November.

“We need to speak up in order to prevent Russian lethal intervention, and urge the Ukrainian government to find resolution to the country’s political crisis in a democratic way – through President Yanukovych’s resignation” – she added.

The organizers of the anti-Putin protests in Toronto announced that they will continue picketing the Russian consulate in the coming weeks (for more information, please visit: www.euromaidancanada.ca). Their hope is that the Ukrainian Canadian community continues to ask the Canadian government to implement measures to help the situation in Ukraine. They also thank everyone who supports them in the fight for Ukraine’s freedom and prosperity.

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Demonstrators protest at the Russian Consulate in Toronto