Odessa: A year ago, there was a chance to change everything

On March 3, 2014, I introduced the question of holding a referendum “On Creation of the Odessa Autonomous Republic within Ukraine” to the Odessa Regional Council. At that time, the majority of Odessa citizens still had no desire to separate, but wanted autonomy and more freedom – nobody wanted to obey the ultra-nationalists who illegally seized power in Kiev.

We then saw the solution to the problem in the holding of a referendum, which was to include autonomy for the Odessa region to establish its Constitution, elect its governor, reassign the police and administration (executive branch), elect the Council, and the right to use the Russian language. Also, to change to the principle of budgeting from the “bottom up,” instead of the existing method, where Kiev essentially takes 20-30 percent of the money intended for the Odessa region. 

The abstention painfully outraged the citizens of Odessa and I called upon the protesters to come inside the Regional Council and express their views to the deputies face-to-face. 

Then the Administration began its assault. I was sucked inside. Doors cracked, glass was broken, one of the fragments struck my leg forever leaving a scar — as a memory of this day…

Knowing that our peaceful protest movement would be drowned in blood two months later — it would have been different. 

But we did not know. We did not want bloodshed.

The historic moment was lost … but!!! 

But there will be many more of those moments and we must be fully prepared!

The struggle continues! We will definitely win!

Translated by Greg Butterfield