Canada PoliticsUkrainian woman’s YouTube plea for help goes viral
A YouTube which successfully puts a human face on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has, as they say, gone viral.
The short film, titled I am Ukrainian, features an articulate young woman — narrating over images of violence — explaining why anti-government protesters have taken to the streets.
The powerful video, posted online on February 10th, has been viewed almost 1.5 million times.
According to the Huffington Post, the film was organized and put up on YouTube by American filmmaker Ben Moses who says that he won't reveal the identity of the woman out of fear that she may face repercussions.
"I was in Ukraine preparing a film on democracy — and the lack thereof — when the protests overwhelmed everything. Hundreds of thousands of ordinary people flooded the streets, finally fed up with the corruption and ceaseless power grabbing by the leaders of this government," he told the Post.
"Meeting the people in the protests — many families with children — and hearing their stories propelled me to try and do something to spread the word about what their issues really are. This young woman personifies the vast majority of the people on the streets in the country, and speaks to the heart of the protest. The vast 99 per cent are not thugs or neo-Nazis, they are ordinary citizens who have simply had enough."
[ Related: Canadian government closes its embassy in Ukraine ]
Mass protests in Kiev, began last November when President Viktor Yanukovych decided to put off a plan to deepen ties with the European Union.
The conflict — rooted in decades of geographic and cultural strife — became violent as the Yanukovych regime tried to thwart the activists' efforts.
The violence spiked on Tuesday, with 25 people killed and hundreds injured in clashes between protesters and riot police.
(Photo courtesy of YouTube)
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