"Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable." - John F. Kennedy
You'd think oppressive leaders would learn that lesson by now. But no, it seems we're more likely doomed to repeat it in cycles, over and over again. I wonder what those politicians who come up with the idea of "hey, let's make protesting virtually impossible. That will all our problems!".
They need to understand that protesting is that an effect of a cause. If the cause isn't fixed, those issues and frustrations the people have won't just go away. They will build up, until they explode.
I don't mean to get personal, but your post is surprisingly content-free. Everyone in the pro-government party understands what this protest is about. Yanukovich may be portrayed as non-intellectual, but he has read his Machiavelli and knows how to maneuver. In addition, he has an equally ardent, albeit much less vociferous voter base as the opposition, plus a network of government-connected oligarchs who run the show from behind the scenes. In this case, the future of the country has a clear schism. You cannot simultaneously sign a pact with Russia while opening the door to European market. It's one or the other, black or white, as made clear by Mr. Putin.
You'd think oppressive leaders would learn that lesson by now. But no, it seems we're more likely doomed to repeat it in cycles, over and over again. I wonder what those politicians who come up with the idea of "hey, let's make protesting virtually impossible. That will all our problems!".
They need to understand that protesting is that an effect of a cause. If the cause isn't fixed, those issues and frustrations the people have won't just go away. They will build up, until they explode.