Election in Ukraine shows that people have the power

With the Jan. 30 parliamentary elections in Iraq hanging in the balance, now that the largest political party representing Iraq's Sunni Muslim minority has said it won't participate, proponents of democracy should determine if there are any lessons to be learned from what occurred Sunday in Ukraine.
Finally free to express themselves at the ballot box in the re-run election for president, Ukrainians spoke loudly and clearly. They gave opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko a stunning 2.3 million-vote victory over Viktor Yanukovych, the current prime minister. With thousands of observers on hand to ensure a trouble-free election, millions went to the polls.
Yushchenko, who had the backing of the West and was the target of an assassination attempt (through poison-laden food), will replace President Leonid Kuchma. Kuchma has been the authoritarian leader of the former Soviet Republic for 10 years.
With the United States, Britain and other European countries on one side, and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the other (he actually campaigned for Yanukovych), the stage was set Sunday for what many saw as Ukraine's bid for political freedom.
And although Yanukovych has refused to accept the result and says he intends to file a challenge with Ukraine's Supreme Court, it's only a matter of time before power is transferred. The road to democracy was far from smooth, with hundreds of thousands of Yushchenko supporters taking to the streets and blockading government buildings for weeks after the fraudulent Nov. 21 vote, and with doctors revealing that the opposition candidate had been poisoned. The stark change in his facial features led to speculation that he had been the target of foul play.
The public demonstrations and evidence of voter fraud prompted the supreme court to annul the ballot and order new elections, which were held Sunday.
U.S.-Russia connection
The United States and its allies must now make sure that the will of the people is carried out. President Bush should prevail upon Russian President Putin, with whom he has a close relationship, to urge Yanukovych to give up his challenge. Bush must also make it clear to the people of Ukraine that the democracies of the world stand ready to assist in the nation's development.
For his part, Yushchenko should keep his promise to reach out to the pro-Russian eastern half of the country and to open lines of communications with the Putin government.
There are similarities between the political situation in Ukraine and what is taking place in Iraq. Both countries were under dictatorial rule and have little experience with true democracy, and both have populations that are divided along ideological lines.
The Jan. 30 parliamentary elections in Iraq have been portrayed by the Bush administration as tantamount to giving the war-torn nation a lifeline. But there are major hurdles that must be cleared if the process is to have any legitimacy.
The United Nations, which has been asked by the U.S. and Britain to help facilitate the election, should develop a plan for ensuring participation by the Sunni minority, which held power in Iraq during Saddam Hussein's dictatorial rule. The majority Shiites, who were long kept under foot by Saddam and his henchmen, see their ascension to power as a reward for their suffering.
Because the seats in the parliament will be allotted according to the total votes received by each party, the Sunni Muslims would only hold 20 percent if every member eligible to vote went to the polls. The Shiites are expected to grab at least 60 percent. There also is the issue of the Kurds, who will have even less representation than the Sunnis.
It's plain to see why there is reluctance on the part of Iraqi's largest Sunni party to participate, and why there are calls for a postponement of the election.
But President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair have made it clear that the Jan. 30 date is firm. Given that, it is incumbent upon them, in conjunction with the U.N., to persuade minority groups in Iraq that going to the polls is in their best interest and will pay dividends.