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Follow the link to learn moreBatkivshchnyna parliamentarian Oleksandr Brihinets has said that Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada) did not back the idea of holding a referendum on May 25, 2014.
"A position close to mine is held by the Freedom, UDAR and SEU (Sovereign European Ukraine) factions, so most likely the populism of the referendum will not work. It needs to be held, but not during a war. 154 are in favor. It did not pass. Thank God....," he wrote on his Facebook page.
"A referendum cannot be held at a gunpoint," he said.
At the same time Russian observers still expect invitation to Donetsk region fererendum.
The Civil Control Association, which includes Russian non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that specialize in advocating people's electoral rights, is awaiting an official invitation from the election commission of Ukraine's Donetsk region to monitor a planned referendum on the status of the "People's Donetsk Republic", the association's executive director and a Russian Public Chamber member, Georgy Fyodorov, told Interfax on Tuesday.
"We are expecting an official invitation from the Donbas election commission. We are keeping in touch with the referendum organizers all the time," he said.
