Ukrainian nationalists in the city of Sevastopol in Ukraine’s Crimea tried on Saturday to frustrate a demonstration of pro-Russian activists, dedicated to Russia’s National Unity Day, but failed, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported.
The Russian-speaking city celebrated the holiday by peaceful marches on November 4-5. The events were authorized by the authorities. More than 500 people took part in them.
As some 300 demonstrators with slogans “Three countries - one people” (the Slavic nations of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine) were marching on Saturday evening, 10 nationalists holding Ukrainian flags blocked their way, but police interfered and the column continued its movement.
In a display of nationalistic violence, a few young people attacked an elderly man who held a Russian flag and started beating him, but police stopped them.
The demonstration ended in a small rally and congratulations with the festival uniting all Slavic peoples.
Demonstration organizer Gennady Basov told RIA Novosti the provocation was not a surprise to him and explained why demonstrators themselves did not use force to oppose the nationalists.
“They repeatedly said they would use all means to prevent us from celebrating our holiday. These guys did not engage in a fight with equals, they chose a person who is weaker and attacked him with their whole group,” he said.
“If we had repelled them, all Ukrainian media would then have shown their injured faces and cries that they were cruelly beaten for their love for Ukraine,” Basov said.
National Unity Day was introduced by the Kremlin in 2005 to replace the communist holiday of November 7 celebrating the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution.
November 4 was chosen as the date of the liberation of Russia from Polish invaders in 1612.
