When would a "color revolution" be in Donbas? Part 2

When would a "color revolution" be in Donbas? Part 1

How many are ready for the fight?

In September, 2015 the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology has conducted a telephone survey including in the "republics" Donbas in the course of which the question was asked: "What actions would you have preferred under foreign armed occupation of your town or village?" In "LPR" and "DPR" 17.7% of respondents chose the option "Participation in the civil resistance actions such as demonstrations, protests, marches, boycotts, strikes, civil disobedience".


The study was commissioned by request of the authors of the Manual on nonviolent resistance: "Center for Strategic Research" and "Agency of non-violent solutions".

Unarmed struggle of the Polish "Solidarity" against the regime implanted by the Soviet Union ended by an unconditional victory

- Even if it was not 17%, and 2%, we should still help them understand how to do it. We are not the governing body and do not coordinate anything. A man may then just say, "I did not know how to do it. I wanted but did not know ", - explains the need for that work its co-author, Pavel Zhovnirenko, the head of the "Center for Strategic Studies". - In the Soviet Union the "resistance" was just understandood as a "machine gun in the hands". Flyers at the outside. It was believed that an enemy could be overthrown only by armed force. We are talking about the fact that even a weak person may be a participant of the resistance movement.



Warming of the vineyard in the Crimea in the winter of 2014-15

Perhaps, therefore, a significant part of the brochure is a historical examples of the application of nonviolent struggle methods. Authors drew arguments in favor of the effectiveness of peaceful resistance in history of many countries.

They are the Indian struggle for independence by Mahatma Gandhi, and the South African struggle for black equality with Nelson Mandela at the head. And the examples closer to us.
The Soviets were unable to break during 8 months peaceful resistance in Czechoslovakia in 1968. And the unarmed struggle the Polish "Solidarity" in the 80's against the Communist regime implanted by the Soviet Union ended with an unconditional victory.

Dangerous maneuvers

People who are already struggling in Luhansk and Donetsk regions, and in the Crimea act by intuition, and, according to Ukrainian authors of the Manual, even use new methods of non-violent resistance.

- In the Crimea, it sounds the slogan "Glory to Ukraine! - Glory to the heroes!" There was such an occasion: people are sitting in the cafe, nobody knows each other, during a blackout the lights in cafe go out - and here "Glory to Ukraine!" sounds and the response "Glory to the heroes!" from all over the hall, - gives the example Pavel Zhovnirenko.

The brochure (it exists only in electronic form because it still can not be distributed in the occupied territories) include dozens of examples of peaceful protest. Personally, I would discuss that Donbas and Crimea patriots have discovered new techniques: in my opinion, all the examples are consistent with Sharp's classification. Nevertheless, the list concretizes the positions of the theorist of nonviolent resistance, and it is already valuable.

Pavel Zhovnirenko states that residents of the occupied territories participated in work upon the Manual. At the same time some suggestions seem quite risky to unconditionally advise them to everyone: hanging of Ukrainian flag, flyers distribution, graffiti.



A journalist Maria Varfolomeeva at the time of release of her 14-month captivity in "LPR"

- If a person draws an Ukrainian flag then he or she supports the "junta regime". And may be also a "spy". Well, once you stick up Ukraine, then, "you have friends in the battalions". With all the consequences. In addition, they could scrape in your correspondence in your computer or smart phone and then it will be easy for them to fabricate a charge, - explains Luhansk journalist Maria Varfolomeeva which has been held in captivity in "LPR" 14 months for some photos .

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