A Kansas University assistant professor who helped monitor the disputed presidential election in Ukraine says he's sure it was rigged.
"It was a fraudulent election," said Erik Herron. "I didn't see it with my own eyes -- that's hard to do, obviously, because the people perpetrating the wrongdoing do a good job of hiding it. But the circumstantial evidence suggested, at the very least, fraud."
The result announced last Sunday -- a victory for Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych over his pro-Western challenger, Viktor Yushchenko -- triggered a week of growing street protests and legal maneuvers that could lead to a new election.
KU connection
Herron, director of KU's Center for Russian and East European Studies, monitored 10 polling places on behalf of the international Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
"I left here last Tuesday (Nov.16), I returned Wednesday night," Herron said, noting that at least three former KU students remain in Ukraine:
- Adrian John Erlinger is traveling and teaching English in Lviv.
- Maj. Patrick Crabb is a U.S. Army liaison to the Ukraine military in Kiev.
- Brian Frederick is teaching English at a private school in Kharkov.
Erik Herron, director of KU's Center for Russian and East European Studies, helped monitor recent elections in Ukraine, the results of which are now the subject of international concern.
"The Center for Russian and East European Studies has a strong emphasis on Ukraine, so there's a KU presence there," Herron said, adding, "I took some Jayhawk T-shirts to give as gifts to the people I worked with."
Disputed outcome
Since the Nov. 21 election, tens of thousands of people have gathered in the streets of Kiev and elsewhere to protest the disputed outcome.
Photo Gallery: Elections in Ukraine
Herron: Ukraine's Orange RevolutionThe supreme court in Ukraine on Thursday blocked final publication of the election results, stalling the formal inauguration of Yanukovich. Saturday, Ukraine's parliament declared the election invalid, raising the possibility a new vote could be held in the former Soviet republic.
Earlier in the week, Secretary of State Colin Powell said the United States would not recognize Yanukovich's victory without a full review of the electoral process.
Possible fraud
Herron, who speaks Russian, said he and an organization monitor from the Netherlands witnessed:
- Poll workers voting to discard questionable ballots for Yushchenko while counting those for Yanukovich.
- Though poll workers were supposed to be divided between Yanukovich and Yushchenko supporters, some polls appeared to be manned mostly by Yanukovich supporters.l Before election day, at least one polling station was closed when it was supposed to be open.
- In one small town, a group of surly young men dressed in black was allowed to loiter inside and outside a polling place in an effort to scare off Yushchenko voters.
An effigy of Ukraine Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych holds a sign reading "Bandit." The photo was taken by KU assistant professor Erik Herron Nov. 23 in Ukraine.
"Their presence was one of intimidation," Herron said. "It was a small town where everybody knew everybody else. It was pretty clear what was going on."
'Last chance'
In Ukraine, Herron said, many consider Yanukovich to be a "big thug. He's accused of having ties to organized crime. He has a criminal past. He's served time in jail."
Yushchenko's past, Herron said, appears to be scandal-free. "He seems like an honest politician," he said. "There's no record to suggest inappropriate, criminal or immoral activity."
Yushchenko has called for stronger ties with the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization, while Yanukovich has aligned himself with Russia.
While in Kiev, Herron said he asked several protesters, all of them wearing orange, pro-Yushchenko armbands or waving orange flags, to explain their allegiance.
"To a person, they all said 'This is our last chance to live a normal life' or 'I want my children -- or grandchildren -- to be able to live a normal life in a normal country,'" Herron said.
"What they mean by 'normal' is a government that's free of corruption," he said. "They want to live in a country where they at least have a shot at prosperity. They're tired of seeing the country's wealth being stolen by a small group of people."
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