Mass protests in Kyiv puts city of 3 million in danger while subway was suspended

While mass events are a big no all over the world a mass protest against Russian influence is taking place in Kyiv, Ukraine putting the entire city in danger of coronavirus

14 active cases of Coronavirus are currently reported from Ukraine, with 7 just added today. Having a mass protests is coming close to a suicide mission and organizers of a street protest in Kyiv say resisting Russian influence is more important than honoring a ban on mass gatherings.

In the meantime, he Kyiv metro system will temporarily halt operations starting at 11:00 p.m., local time, on March 17, until at least April 3, while aboveground public transport duplicating metro lines will continue to operate as usual, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.

“In line with a decision by the governmental commission on industrial and environmental safety and emergencies and the government’s directive, Kyiv must close the metro, as well as Dnipro and Kharkiv. Therefore, the Kyiv metro will suspend the transportation of passengers starting at 11:00 p.m. today, tentatively until April 3,” Klitschko said in a video message on Facebook.

Ukraine, like many countries, also has closed schools and banned mass gatherings to combat the coronavirus. But unlike others, it has struggled to tamp down street protests, which persist over the war in the country’s separatist east.

At demonstrations over the weekend, several thousand people turned out in Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, to protest what they perceive as a concession to Russia in talks to end the fighting. In so doing, they first defied a ban on gatherings of more than 200 people and then, as the prohibition was tightened, gatherings of more than 10 people.

On Wednesday, Mr. Zelensky’s government agreed to open direct talks with separatist leaders in eastern Ukraine, something the previous president had resisted for years and a potential breakthrough in negotiations.

source: eTN