Pseudo-referendums are tools of the occupiers
29.09.2022
The pseudo-referendums held in the occupied territories of Ukraine are another stage of the military aggression conducted by Russia against Ukraine. Since February 2022, the Kremlin has been using military action to destroy the Ukrainian state and commit genocide against Ukrainians. It is now using administrative action to sanction Russia's occupation and annexation of parts of Ukraine.
The Russian authorities conducted pseudo-referendums to use them as a pretext to detach parts of its lands from Ukraine. What we are dealing with is a continuation of warfare, though implemented with administrative tools. The Kremlin wants to announce in the near future the annexation to Russia of Donetsk and Luhansk, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions. It will probably do so in entire administrative regions.
With another operation against Ukraine underway, Russia's constant information warfare is part of the war effort. Increasingly, Russia's information products and narrative are making their way into public opinion in the West. This can also be seen in the way pseudo-referendums organized by the occupying forces are described.
Fictitious votes have nothing to do with the idea and principles of democratic elections. Nor are they an expression of the will of the people in the areas where they were held. Meanwhile, the way some media outlets are covering this propaganda show serves to give credence to the aims of its Kremlin directors.
Presenting the pseudo-democratic, illegal electoral farce as typical referendums or plebiscites in the democratic world works to the advantage of the regime officials responsible for the reprehensible actions. The pseudo-referendums are a propaganda spectacle designed to convince the Russian public that the people of the occupied territories of Ukraine want inclusion in the Russian Federation and that the 'special military operation' is succeeding.
Unacknowledged by anyone but Russia, the pseudo-referendums held are illegal actions that constitute a crime against the integrity of Ukraine. However, they will be presented quite differently by Russian propaganda - as an expression of the 'will of the people' who 'want to join Russia'. This is a further element of aggression and Russia taking action on the basis of its own lies. This is why it is so important to use appropriate terms when describing the pseudo-referendums organized by the occupiers in Ukraine. The struggle for awareness and a true picture of Russian actions is part of the West's response to Russian aggression.
Stanisław Żaryn
Government Plenipotentiary for the Security of Information Space of the Republic of Poland