VIKTOR YUSCHENKO ASSUMES UKRAINE PRESIDENCY
24 January 2005
Poisoned, embattled opposition candidate, Viktor Yuschenko was sworn in as Ukraine's president in Kiev. Supporters donning orange as homage to the 17 days of public demonstrations which forced the revote, cheered the new president's inauguration. The event was attended by representatives and leaders of governments from around the world, inclucing outgoing US Sec. of State Colin Powell.
The event has been hailed by many governments, especially in Western democracies, as a major step toward serious democratization and redevelopment in post-Soviet Ukraine. Pres. Yuschenko has said he will make sure that pro-democracy reforms which were implemented in order to ensure the election was free of fraud and legitimate, and which gave new voice to Ukrainian citizens, will be made legally permanent. [For more: BBC]
POISONING OF VIKTOR YUSCHENKO CONFIRMED
18 December 2004
TCDD, the most toxic known dioxin, was used to poison the Ukraine opposition's candidate for that nation's presidency. New tests have confirmed that the shocking disfiguration clearly visible on the candidate's face, is the result of a deliberate, and possibly gradual and sustained poisoning.
TCDD was used in the toxic chemical weapon Agent Orange, and has been known for causing serious health-related repercussions. The quantity of the chemical found in Yuschenko's blood was 6,000 times higher than normal, cited as the second highest level ever found in the blood of a human being.
The Ukraine parliament will now reopen its investigation into the proven case of poisoning. A previous parliamentary investigation found that Yuschenko was suffering from a viral condition and other naturally-occurring diseases. It is not clear if the new investigation will also include analysis of precisely how the first process reached such highly erroneous conclusions.
The first claim of poisoning came in September, when Mr. Yuschenko sought treatment for extreme stomach pains. The poisoning has not stopped Mr. Yuschenko, who enjoys extensive public support through the popular movement known as the "Orange Revolution" which opposed an apparent government fraud in the first round November vote and which has adopted him as its candidate, from continuing to seek the presidency in the 26 December runoff election. [For more: BBC]
