Nationalists rally against Ukraine's government

(Vatican Radio)  Thousands of supporters of a right-wing, nationalist paramilitary group in Ukraine have protested against government policies amid a deadly standoff between the nationalists and Ukrainian security forces in the country's West near the border with Hungary.

Listen to Stefan Bos' report:

The latest rally underscored concerns that the government is losing control over groups that have been fighting with Ukraine's army, but are now critical of Kiev.

A large crowd, including men and and at least one woman in military uniforms, gathered on Kiev's main square to express their anger at the government of President Petro Poroshenko.

Their group, known as the radical Right Sector, was one of the most militant factions in massive protests here that forced Russian-backed President Viktor Yanukovych to flee the country in February last year.

Members of Right Sector have since fought with Ukrainian government troops against pro-Russian separatists. But more recently tensions have emerged.

Two Killed

Two Right Sector members were killed earlier this month after the group attacked police in the western city of Mukacheve with gunfire and grenades. Police responded and then surrounded some gunmen in a wooded area of Mukacheve and have been trying to negotiate their surrender since then.

Right Sector insists that the men were trying to confront local policemen who he said were involved in a major smuggling business in the region.

But critics say it is another sign the government is losing control over the Right Sector and other volunteer groups roaming streets with weapons.

And speaking at Tuesday's rally, Right Sector leader Dmytro Yarosh called for a referendum to impeach President Petro Poroshenko and his government.

Strategic Decisions

He said his group had taken "strategic decisions" including holding a national referendum, "on the distrust of the government." The referendum will also demand that the war "waged by Russia against Ukraine", will be recognised as a war, rather than just an Anti Terrorist Operation. "Thirdly, the referendum will demand a total blockade of the occupied territories [in east Ukraine]," he added.

Yarosh also asked support of the people to recognize volunteer battalions and their right to carry arms as well as introducing martial law, which he said, "will help defeat the rebels in the east."

The new government that replaced President Yanukovych's regime was only about "changing names" but not the political system, he stressed.

Not everyone seems to agree: Right Sector received only one percent of the vote in recent presidential elections, though that number is expected to rise if frustration grows over the conflict between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east, where more than 6,500 people have been killed.