Liberty Minute February 26 2014

Like many other countries cobbled together from disparate cultural elements, Ukraine has been held together through force, and its population ruled by competing bands of gangsters. Speaking in broad geographic terms, residents of western Ukraine seek a closer relationship with the European Union, and those living in the eastern part of the country have a greater affinity for Russia.

The recent upheaval in Ukraine, which was funded and fomented by Washington and allies in Europe, overthrew Prime Minister Yanukovich, who was predictably corrupt but had been legitimately elected. U.S.-backed elements in the Ukrainian parliament are calling for the UN?s International Criminal Court to prosecute Yanukovich for allegedly ordering police snipers to kill an estimated 100 protesters during the recent demonstrations.

At the same time, Olexander Turchynov, who has been appointed interim president by the parliament, has begun organizing a crackdown on what he calls ?separatist? elements in areas with large ethnic Russian populations.

Rather than consolidating power through bloodshed, the Ukrainian government should recognize the right of ethnic Russian separatists to secede. Twenty years ago, the Czech Republic and Slovakia agreed to an amicable separation, thereby helping those countries avoiding the tragic violence that descended on other nations in the region. Ukraine could profit from that example.

Let us take back the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free.