BULLDOZERS AGAINST PROTESTERS

Authorities in Sevastopol have sent bulldozers to raise to the ground a mock anti-NATO outpost set up by young members of the Derzhava movement. The authorities mobilized bulldozers from many construction sites in the city to deal with the issue as soon as possible. They feared that president of the Ukraine Victor Yushchenko who announced his plans to visit Sevastopol would be hurt by seeing young people vigorously objecting to his pro-NATO policies. The outpost was installed at the so-called “Yalta Ring”, a fork at the highway by the entrance to the Sevastopol administrative territory. It is not yet known what happened to the protesters and what consequences they may face for expressing their anti-Yushchenko views. Several days ago the Sevastopol administration did not step in when a group of nationalistic youths tried to storm into the headquarters of the Russian Navy. The militants from the Ukrainian Students Brotherhood came from a number of provincial cities to stage a protest. Later, a Sevastopol court rejected a complaint by the militants and banned their violent protests in the city.