Ukraine rebels hold referendums ....Chaos Ensues

"Self-rule" referendums have been taking place in Ukraine's easternmost regions, with pro-Russian separatists claiming a big turnout.

 Reporters at polling stations in Donetsk and Luhansk regions spoke of chaotic scenes, no voting booths in places and no electoral register. At least one person is reported to have been killed by armed men loyal to Ukraine's government. Ukraine called the vote a "criminal farce" organized by Russia (a likely possibility). Western countries have also condemned the vote. Separatist leaders ignored a call by the Russian president to delay it.

At the Primorsky polling station in Mariupol, a large crowd is gathered outside, waiting to vote. There is a crush of people inside. Organization is chaotic at best. There are no polling booths: people vote at the registration desks. People's details are hastily scribbled on generic forms. There is also a collection for money towards funding the Donetsk People's Republic.

The chairman of this polling station, Sergei Babin, said that people from other regions are permitted to vote here. He said their details would be taken down, and then, to ensure they haven't voted elsewhere, "the lists from different polling stations would be checked against each other".  Asked how long such a mammoth task would take, he replied "one day."

A Donetsk separatist leader, Denis Pushilin, told one Russian news agency that once the results are announced, all Ukrainian military troops in the region would be considered "occupying forces". The shooting incident, in which separatist officials said at least one person had been killed, took place in Krasnoarmiisk, west of Donetsk city, after armed men supporting the Kiev government closed down a polling station.  A photographer with AP news agency reported seeing two people lying motionless on the ground.

A few hours before polling was due to close, separatist officials claimed turnout in Donetsk region had been close to 70% - but there was no independent confirmation. In other developments:

• An official at a Sloviansk polling station said voting was going well, with pro-Russia militiamen in fatigues and balaclavas were voting alongside grandmothers
• But one pro-Ukraine teacher said she received death threats after refusing to let rebels use her school as a polling station
• In Donetsk,  the process appears haphazard. Although there are voters' lists in polling stations, one can vote at any station
•  Only a handful of polling stations are serving Mariupol, a city of half a million.

Many ballot boxes bore the logo of the Donetsk People's Republic

 

  In some rural areas, a portable ballot box was used

 

  Valery Bolotov, the Luhansk region's self-declared "people's governor", cast his ballot

Thousands of Ukrainians went to vote at a polling station set up in Moscow - here people hold up their passports

The ballot papers in Ukrainian and Russian ask one question: "Do you support the Act of State Self-rule of the Donetsk People's Republic/Luhansk People's Republic?"
A second round of voting is planned in a week's time, on joining Russia. Organizers also say they will boycott Ukraine's presidential elections on 25 May. Ukraine's interim President Olexandr Turchynov has admitted many in the east supported pro-Russian militants, but warned the referendums were "a step towards the abyss".

The EU and US have also condemned the referendums, amid fears Ukraine could be sliding to civil war. A Pew Research Centre survey suggested a majority even in eastern Ukraine - 70% - wanted to remain in a united country, despite concerns about governance. Russia annexed Ukraine's southern autonomous republic of Crimea after a March referendum.
Bill Taylor, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, said results from Sunday's vote should be treated with caution after what happened in Crimea. Russia is estimated to have some 40,000 troops near the border and says they have been pulled back, but Nato says it has seen no sign of this. EU leaders have warned Russia it faces further sanctions if Ukraine's presidential election fails to go
ahead.

Eastern Ukraine referendum

• Votes in separatist-controlled cities and towns of Donetsk and Luhansk
• Some 3,000,000 ballot papers ask: "Do you support the Act of State Self-rule of the Donetsk People's Republic?"
• Second round on joining Russia planned for 18 May
• Vote deemed illegal by Kiev government and international community