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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

The Left March - A Team or Fellow Travelers?

24 November, 1998 - 00:00

By Tetiana KOROBOVA, The Day
Although the CPU's Central Committee plenary session, held on November
14, was devoted to creative intelligentsia, it could not avoid the anticipated
issue of a presidential candidate. Based on the reports, the provinces
recommended that the next Communist Party congress discuss nominating Petro
Symonenko, and also a resolution was approved on the necessity to create
a so-called People's Opposition.

This shows not only that the Communist adhere to the tactics they have
chosen, or perhaps have been forced to chose. The party leader spoke on
this at the plenum: the name of the game is the Leftist block, a united
team, and a coalition candidate is secondary. Most probably, this is a
rather acceptable cover for the unsettled issue of putting up a single
candidate with the Socialists, who at their plenary session held earlier,
nominated, using the same formula of "recommendations", Oleksandr Moroz.
Then the Socialist leader also affirmed "the block comes first, candidate
second" principle. What is intriguing is that now it is difficult to figure
out how sincere the leftist leaders are, who attempt to convince everyone
of the "tactical" possibility to put up more than one Left candidate in
order to extend their range of influence on the electorate. Taking into
account that the Communists are widely using the results of a poll they
conducted for themselves (their Komunist newspaper interviewed its
readers on social issues), it is quite possible that will wind up throwing
up their hands: "An agreement is an agreement, but the people want Petro
Symonenko in power." We should also not exclude the possibility that the
Socialists, having their own substantiation, will do exactly the same.
Then the pessimism or optimism of those who do not believe that the Left
can come to terms, would be quite reasonable.

However, the key agreement between the Lefts is, obviously, still in
force: anybody but Kuchma.

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