KIEV, Ukraine, Dec. 5 -- Supporters of opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko turned their attention to a Dec. 26 presidential runoff, confident of the success of what they call their "orange revolution," and a top campaign official asserted that there was nothing the opposition's political nemesis, President Leonid Kuchma, could do to derail a victory.
Ukraine's parliament has yet to pass new electoral laws designed to prevent the types of violations that marred the Nov. 21 runoff between Yushchenko and Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, Kuchma's choice. But Yulia Tymoshenko, a fiery politician and Yushchenko ally, asserted: "Things have changed. . . . Hundreds of thousands of people are ready to keep an eye on these elections. We are confident of a colossal victory."
At an evening rally in Kiev's Independence Square, Yushchenko told tens of thousands of supporters that if parliament failed to pass a new election law within three days, it would be too late.
"We don't have much time," he said.
Yushchenko called on the assembly to name a new election commission and criticized Kuchma for refusing to dismiss Yanukovych's government and the old election commission, despite parliamentary approval for both steps.
Tens of thousands of protesters adorned in orange, the color of the opposition party, have rallied in support of Yushchenko over the past weeks. But the gathering in Independence Square on Sunday night was more subdued than most of the other demonstrations, and crowds holding vigils at government buildings were noticeably smaller than at any time since the demonstrations began. Protest organizers said the strain is showing among the haggard demonstrators.
Andriy Parubiy, a self-styled "commander" of demonstrators at Independence Square, said a final decision on reducing or ending the protests depended on the outcome of parliamentary votes on the election law and commission. Weekend votes on the measures were derailed by proposed constitutional changes, sponsored by Kuchma, to reduce the power of the president. Parliament is scheduled to hold special sessions on the issues beginning Monday.
"If everything goes well, we will stop the massive demonstrations," Parubiy said. "If not, small groups will remain. . . . If the unforeseen happens, we can react quickly and bring thousands back to the city."
Tymoshenko said it was time to forget about electoral reforms and a new election commission and focus on the balloting. "The people are very, very clear: They are waiting for justice. The third round will be more democratic, I think," she said.
On Friday, Ukraine's Supreme Court invalidated results of the Nov. 21 runoff and ordered a new vote. Kuchma has not addressed Ukrainians about the court decision, which annulled the electoral commission's declaration that Yanukovych had won.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also has not commented on the decision. During a meeting with Kuchma on the eve of the decision, Putin mocked the proposed third-round election as an opposition ploy to repeat the ballot until Yushchenko won. Putin campaigned for Yanukovych, who favors close economic and political ties with Russia. Yushchenko regards Ukraine's future as tied to the European Union.
Demonstrators see Putin as an enemy and have emphasized the reduction of Russian influence in Ukraine as a main objective of their struggle. Hostile anti-Putin posters have sprung up in the city over the past several days. One showed the Russian president wearing traditional Arab clothes and a suicide bomb belt and saying, "I'm on my way."
During the rally Sunday night at Independence Square, representatives of 11 religious denominations joined Yushchenko on the stage, which has been the site of political speeches and blaring rock music day and night. The Christian clerics and preachers, two Jewish rabbis and a Muslim imam prayed for Ukraine, peace and respect for the will of the people.
The patriarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church led off the prayers. The church broke off from the Russian Orthodox Church, which is based in Moscow, shortly after Ukraine gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The head of the Russian Orthodox Church in Ukraine has openly backed Yanukovych, and the only representative of Moscow-oriented Orthodoxy at the rally was a priest from Yushchenko's home village.
The second speaker was the Roman Catholic head of Ukraine's bishops conference. The Russian church has criticized the Vatican for boosting its administration in Ukraine as an invasion of Orthodox territory. The joint appearance of the Ukrainian Orthodox patriarch and the Roman Catholic bishop was sure to enrage Moscow's Patriarch Alexy II, an influential figure in Russian life and politics.
Internationally mediated talks between Yushchenko's and Yanukovych's camps are scheduled to begin Monday. Poland's president, Aleksander Kwasniewski, one of the principal participants, was due to arrive in Kiev on Monday. In addition to the two candidates, the sessions will include Javier Solana, the European Union's foreign policy chief, and a representative of the Russian government. The group last met before the Supreme Court set the Dec. 26 runoff date. It is not clear what specific issues the group will discuss.
On Sunday, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe appealed for observers from its member countries, which include the United States, to monitor the runoff.
