KIEV, March 24 ??“ Yuriy Lutsenko, a popular opposition leader, resumed active campaign throughout Ukraine criticizing the government after a court had ruled that prosecutors had no reasons to impose restrictions on his traveling.

About 13,000 people turned out for Lutsenko??™s anti-government rally in Chernihiv on Saturday, following about 10,000 people that had joined a similar rally in Zhytomyr on Friday.

Lutsenko has been calling on thousands of his supporters throughout Ukraine to join a protest march on Kiev in April to put pressure on the government of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych for the failure to start reforms.

Yanukovych and Parliament Speaker Oleksandr Moroz accused Lutsenko of trying to undermine stability in the country, while Internal Affairs Minister Vasyl Tsushko had warned about the possible clashes between the protesters and police.

Police has been recently increasingly buying anti-riot gear, tear gas equipment and armored vehicles, apparently preparing for the clashes, according to papers obtained by Lutsenko.

The developments come two days after Lutsenko??™s campaign has been effectively disrupted by the Prosecutor General Office, which has imposed traveling restrictions against him following the corruption allegations.

Prosecutors raided and searched Lutsenko??™s home early morning on March 20 looking for evidence to back the allegations. Although the prosecutors failed to find any evidence, they had later ordered that Lutsenko must stay in Kiev for the time of the investigation, which had disrupted the campaign.

The order was later cancelled by a local court, which had ruled that the prosecutors had no sufficient reasons to start the investigation in the first place.

Yanukovych and other government officials have been heavily criticizing the march and calling on the people to ignore Lutsenko??™s campaign.

Yanukovych apparently fears the protest could end up with an uprising similar to the Orange Revolution, which had ousted him from the post of the prime minister in November 2004. The people rose against massive election fraud and ballot manipulation by the authorities that had scrambled to help Yanukovych to win the presidency in 2004. Yanukovych lost the election to then opposition leader Viktor Yushchenko.

At the rallies, Lutsenko has been harshly criticizing the government for poor economic and financial policies, which had worsened people??™s living standards.

???The Regions Party has been running on a slogan ???Your life will be better today,??™??? Lutsenko told the crowd in Chernihiv. ???Now, we have European prices, but African wages.???

Yanukovych??™s Regions Party issued an angry statement on Friday warning that Lutsenko??™s campaign may lead to a situation when ???the people wake up tomorrow in a country where public confrontation and chronic instability will be the rule.???

???For things like that one has to bear responsibility, and Lutsenko will definitely bear the responsibility,??? the Regions Party said. ???He will be responsible before the people.??? (tl/ez)